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FACTS ON VIOLENCE AND CHILDREN
... To learn and grow into a healthy adult, children must feel confident in the world and in themselves. Domestic violence can wipe out a child's confidence and leave them shocked.
....Infants and toddlers who witness violence show excessive irritability, immature behavior, sleep disturbances, emotional distress, fears of being alone, and regression in toileting and language. Preschool children may develop enuresis and speech problems, such as stuttering. Exposure to trauma, especially family violence, interferes with a child's normal development of trust and later exploratory behaviors, which lead to the development of autonomy and personality.
....Over half of men who abuse their female partners also abuse their children. Children often suffer directly. Violence or the threat of violence toward a victim's children is often used to control a battered woman. In 30% to 60% of these violent homes, the children are also abused. The child may be abused by the mother's intimate partner, by the abused mother, by an abused sibling imitating the parents or by a relative.
.....Abusive relationships can also be particularly damaging to children, even if they're just witnesses. Children who witness domestic violence can suffer long-term consequences.
....Many studies have shown that children who grow up witnessing abuse suffer from emotional, behavioral, and cognitive problems. They are at greater risk for depression, poor school performance, withdrawal, complaints like stomach aches and headaches. Often, on the playground and at school, boy’s display to some degree, the aggressive behavior they witness at home.
Underlying all these "symptoms" of domestic violence are children's emotional responses: i.e. anger, misery, intense terror, fear of dying, and fear of the loss of a parent. Children may feel rage, guilt, or a sense of responsibility for the violence, which can stifle emotional and social development.
....The legacy of domestic violence is passed on when children are raised to believe that violence is a normal way of life. Therefore exposure to violence in the home teaches children that violence is a normal way of life and increases their risk of being part of a violent relationship as adults, either as abusers or as victims. Children often believe that somehow they are the cause of the violence in the home.
....“You can help your children by assuring them that they are loved and not at fault. Children need to feel that they are protected and safe. When you leave an abusive relationship, you show by example that violence is wrong”.
,,,,Seeking help is the best way to protect and save your children — and yourself — from an abusive relationship.
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...MHSA PROP 63
