We hear a lot about a husband beating his wife to death, or a father torturing his children! phenomenon of domestic violence or Domestic Violence A serious problem that we must all take seriously, and it is a problem that is not only common in our Arab societies, but also spread all over the world. Learn with us in this article about the causes of domestic violence, its physical and psychological effects, and solutions to confront and deal with it.

What is family violence or domestic violence?

Domestic Violence – Domestic Abuse It is a type of mistreatment of a family member towards other members, such as hitting, insulting, or threatening one of the spouses to the other, or hitting, insulting, and mistreating one of the parents to their children, or it may even amount to mistreating and threatening children to their parents.

Types of domestic violence

Physical violence

And it happens by physical assault, which leads to physical injuries, such as may be serious, such as fractures in the bones, and the matter may reach death, and it is considered a crime punishable by law.

Sexual Violence

This type is classified as a crime in the event that the victim is forced to submit to any unwanted sexual behavior or activity, even on the part of the life partner and not only on the part of any family member.

Emotional violence or psychological violence

It includes verbal threats, defamation, moral humiliation and bullying, and may also include controlling the behavior and actions of the victim and forcing her to do unwanted things, or preventing the wife, for example, from seeing her family.

Economic violence

It may seem strange to you, but the adjective “miserliness” in itself is considered a kind of violence towards the family when one of the spouses fails to spend on the other and prevents him from obtaining the money necessary for a human life.

Stalking

It is an attempt to communicate and infringe on the freedom of the victim repeatedly and intentionally, which makes the victim feel threatened and afraid for his safety. This may happen even in the simplest forms, such as sending unwanted text messages or phone calls.

The causes of domestic violence

There is never any justification for any person committing domestic violence of all kinds, but there are some motives that must be wary of and considered as a problem that must be resolved and treated before it develops into a disastrous one for all family members, including:

• Drug or alcohol abuse is one of the biggest drivers of domestic violence.
• Unemployment, poverty or low standard of living and suffering with the requirements of life.
• The cultural and social level in which one of the spouses was brought up and based on the husband’s abuse, insult, and beating of his wife, or vice versa, as an attempt to impose control.
• Infection with a mental or psychological illness, especially among adolescents, which causes them to act violently. This is one of the most important factors to beware of, because this adolescent may grow up to become more violent with his family members even after marriage.
• Feelings of inferiority, especially if one of the spouses is superior to the other in educational, social or financial terms.
• Suspicion of the behavior and morals of the victim, even if it is unjustified and unfounded.

stages of domestic violence

To better understand how domestic violence develops, you must understand that it has a cycle of 6 stages:

1. The stage of escalation of tension between the spouses.
2. The stage of verbal attack with insults and insults.
3. Explosion phase and physical attack.
4. The stage of remorse and blaming the victim.
5. The stage of regret and the promise not to repeat the matter.
6. The “honeymoon” stage, as if nothing had happened!

Most cases of violence go through all these stages, and with the last stage, and as soon as another situation appears, the stages escalate again, as if it is a vicious circle that has no end.

Signs of domestic violence

If you believe that someone close to you is experiencing any kind of violence, you should note the following:

• The presence of unexplained bruises, wounds or fractures on the body.
• This person avoids family gatherings, meeting friends, and any social activity.
• This person always finds excuses and justifications for his partner’s abnormal behavior.
• He always appears fearful and uncomfortable in the presence of a particular family member.

There are other signs that also tell you that someone close to you is abusing or violent with his family members, as follows:

• This person is always yelling or making fun of a loved one.
• He always controls the actions of his family members and takes all decisions for them without their consent.
• He prevents his family members from meeting their family or friends or participating in social activities.
• Enforces unwanted sexual practices and behaviors (this may not be obvious to others if the victim has not stated it).
• He always threatens to try to harm himself or his partner if he wants to separate or divorce.

The effects of domestic violence

Domestic violence can affect all family members without exception, even those who are not directly abused, whether on men, women or children, as follows:

The physical effects of domestic violence

• Physical injuries as a result of being hit, such as bruises all over the body or face, cuts, and broken bones.
• Chronic fatigue and stress.
• hard breathing.
• muscle cramps
• Sleep and eating disorders.
• Inability to have sex or loss of desire.
• Fertility and menstrual disorders.

Read in detail: Violence against women and its psychological and physical effects

Psychological effects of domestic violence

Physical injuries are not the only result of domestic violence, as psychological injuries may be more dangerous than them, as follows:

• Feeling sad most of the time and getting depressed.
• Post-traumatic stress disorderThe victim always has nightmares in her dreams, and is always immersed in bad thoughts.
• Suffering from severe stress and anxiety that is difficult to control.
• Lack of self-confidence.
• Suicidal thoughts may come as the victim despairs of getting rid of her suffering.
• Resorting to drug and alcohol abuse.

Effects of family violence on children

Children who witness abuse and violence between their parents are affected by this violence according to their age group, as follows:

• before entering schoolThe child may start doing things he has not done since he was an infant, such as involuntary urination, finger sucking, and screaming for no reason. He may also feel exaggerated fear of the simplest things, and he also suffers from sleep disorders and separation disorder.
• Children at school stageHere, the child may blame himself for the abuse his mother suffers from, for example, and the child suffers from a decline in studies, a loss of self-confidence, and his lack of participation in school activities, and it may lead to him practicing violence in school as well.
• AdolescenceHere comes the most dangerous stages, as the teenager by nature does rebellious acts, of course, let alone the teenager who is exposed or exposed to domestic violence, this time he may practice violence against his family members as well, he escapes from school, and it may come to resorting to drug abuse. This is more common in boys, or in girls, and they resort more to withdrawal from life and depression.

Read in detail: The impact of violence on children and adolescents psychologically and physically

Effects of domestic violence on society

Have you heard of the term “domino effect”? When you stack dominoes behind each other and then hit one of them, the rest of the pieces begin to fall one after the other. This is exactly what happens in the case of domestic violence. A child who witnesses domestic violence will, in turn, develop aggressive behavior towards people outside his family, and grow up to become a husband and father. Violent at home, thus raising children with the same aggressive behavior, and so on… Can you imagine a society with this many children who are at risk of developing violent people in the future if they are not rescued early?!

The impact of domestic violence also, and with the escape of children from their homes, the spread of the phenomenon of street children and the increase in rates of theft and drug addiction, and the exploitation of children and adolescents in illegal acts and thus increase crime rates in society.

Treatment of domestic violence and solutions to confront it

There are two parts to this, if you are a victim of domestic violence, or if you know a victim of domestic violence and want help:

First: What should I do if I am subjected to domestic violence?

• You must first call 911 or 911 to help you if your life is in danger or if you experience physical violence.
• Keep any evidence of physical abuse and hospital reports, and use them when needed.
• You should look for organizations that provide assistance to victims of domestic violence in your country, so that they can help you.
• Trying to find solutions and persuading the life partner to seek psychological treatment, if this does not happen, there is no escape from separation.
• Talk to someone you trust to help find alternative solutions or turn to them for help.

Second: What should I do if someone I know is subjected to domestic violence?

• If you are worried about someone close to you and you think they are being abused, you can:
• Listen to him carefully and never blame him and judge him in advance. It is difficult for someone who is subjected to violence to talk about his problems even to the closest ones.
• Give him time and space. Never pressure him, so he doesn’t hold back from speaking.
• Tell him that no one deserves to be beaten, abused, or assaulted, even if he makes a mistake.
• Encourage him to tell you his feelings, push him to make his own decisions and never impose your opinion or decision on him.
• Help him find an organization to help victims of domestic violence.
• Always be supportive and supportive of him, even if his decision is to continue the relationship, so that you are close to him and he can turn to you in time of need.

Domestic violence solutions

Here comes the role of the state and community institutions to establish specialized bodies that provide assistance to victims of violence in the family, not only at the level of major cities, but also at the level of small areas. The best solution is not to stop violence, but to prevent people from becoming violent in the first place by supporting studies and research that try to find solutions to this problem.

The role of these institutions is not only limited to helping and raising issues of rights and finding means of living, but also to carry out huge awareness campaigns on a large scale in the media and on the streets, and to ask businessmen and artists to fund and support these campaigns and adopt this issue seriously.

These institutions must also try to provide living quarters for the affected women who are financially unable, and find work for them so that they are financially able to live and provide for their basic needs without relying on financial aid.

The state and governments must also set strict laws that provide clear penalties for anyone who commits any act that is classified under domestic violence, whether it is physical, sexual or psychological violence, and the court must deal with violence cases more flexibly with the victim and more decisively with the perpetrator.

Domestic violence number

Here are the important toll-free numbers to call to report violence or seek help for protection against domestic violence in some Arab countries:

• Domestic violence number in Saudi Arabia: 8001245005 or 1919
• Domestic violence number in Egypt: 15115 or 01205575331 or 01121997477 or 01007525600
• The number of domestic violence in Lebanon: 1745
• Domestic violence number in the UAE: 800623 For more local numbers, visit this website: (Domestic violence complaints in the UAE)
• Dar Al-Aman for women exposed to domestic violence in Bahrain.
• Domestic violence number in Iraq: 139-01

Finally, every individual in society has a responsibility to reduce and get rid of the phenomenon of domestic violence, and we must all always stand with the victims of domestic violence and provide a helping hand and participate in raising awareness against this phenomenon, and if you have any questions, you can consult one of our doctors from here.