Mental health articles

How to deal with this problem Domestic Violence What to Do
Questions to ask the woman Domestic Violence What to Do
• Do you and your husband fight or argue? How often? About what? This is a relatively easy
question since most husbands and wives argue.
• Has your husband ever hit you? Or threatened to hit you? A threat to hurt someone can be as
terrifying as an actual hurt.
• If so, when was the first time? Since then, how often has he hit you? Has it been getting more
frequent recently? Violence that is getting worse with time is likely to lead to serious harm
unless quick action is taken.
• What is the worst injury you have suffered? Has he ever used a weapon or tried to kill you?
Women who have suffered severe injuries such as fractures are at greater risk of physical injury
in the future.
• How is this situation affecting your feelings? Ask questions regarding anxiety and depression
. Ask specifically about suicidal thoughts.
• How are you coping with this violence? Have you told anyone else about it? Who? Identify the
woman’s social support and her ways of dealing with the violence. Check on the use of alcohol
and sleeping pills.
• What about the children? If there are children caught in the violence, make arrangements to talk
to them.
• What things have you thought of to change your situation? If the woman has considered
separation, find out whom she has talked to. What are her concerns about separation? Whom
would she go and stay with? This is especially important when there are no women’s shelters in
your area.
• Would your husband come to talk to me? In most cases he probably would not, but it does no
harm to ask.
Questions to ask the family or friends Domestic Violence What to Do
• What do you feel she should do? This will give you a sense of the views of the woman’s close
relatives. They often play an important role in influencing the decision taken by the woman.
• If she were to leave home, would she be welcome to stay with you? Or with someone else?
Special interview suggestions Domestic Violence What to Do
• Look for signs of physical injury, such as bruises or cuts.
• Do not be afraid to ask. Most women are relieved when asked about violence because they are often scared or embarrassed to bring it up themselves. You can ask about it in different ways.
• Because violence is a subject that causes embarrassment, discuss it in private. If relatives or the husband seem unwilling to leave, you can say you need to ‘examine’ the woman and thus need to be alone with her.
• It is better that family members are not present during the interview until you have asked the woman about which relatives she feels safe with.
• Discussion of violence takes time. Do not be in a hurry to get
the information.
• Do not take sides. Listen before you say anything on how to resolve the situation.
• Do not make judgements about whether she is right or wrong in deciding to stay with or separate from her husband.
• Do not be in a hurry to ‘save’ the woman from her situation.
• Do not be angry with the person who has been violent.

Tags: domestic violence