Domestic Violence and Children

Domestic violence particularly involves the abuse (physical, mental, emotional) of one partner/spouse in a relationship at the hands of the other partner. Domestic violence is as big of a crime as any other crime including murder, rape, or kidnapping. Now, people have said time and again, because domestic violence includes every spectrum of severity.

Starting with beating, to marital rape and coercion, domestic violence comprises of everything. Most of the time, a woman is at the bearing brunt of the spear. Though there is no denying the fact that there are houses where men are also similarly abused. But, the difference ratio between a woman and a man getting abused is vastly high.

Children

In this entire brunt of violence and abuse, apart from the partners themselves, there is another person who is affected the most. These are the tender-aged children. The children do not even know what their parents are fighting for. Those who do not know that this brutality is an actual crime.

Domestic violence for children is nothing but their parents fighting with one another. This many a times take a very serious toll-like death and severe injuries. However, parents fail to understand what trauma this violence inflicts on their children. It becomes increasingly difficult for them to see one of their parent beating the other parent and them being all helpless about the whole situation.

A Single Parent Suffering

In most situations of domestic violence households, often a single parent is the main sufferer. Within the set of mother and father, one parent is the sufferer and the other is the perpetrator.

In a lot of cases, it has been viewed that the child is closer to that parent who is put under the crutches of abuse. It becomes growingly difficult for the abused parent to shield their children from such horrific glances and views of violence.

Additionally, in some cases, even the children are victims of domestic abuse and violence.

Mental Trauma and Anxiety

What does domestic violence do to the children? Well, the answer can go on for infinite pages and stretches. Seeing abuse at home takes a massive toll on a child’s mental health and inner peace.

They always dwell in a state of anxiety, fearing when the next violent act will take place. They might go through fear and a fearful feeling at all times which can harm their initial growth as a child and a teenager.

Witnessing such scenarios at home, with bruises, blood, and melancholy involved, creates a kind of mental trauma within the children. They get into a state of extreme sadness and suspicion. Consequently, this hampers their other relationship with people as well. This coherently becomes a cycle of pain and exploitation, which seem to be never-ending.

Exploits other Relationships

A failed marriage with only abuse and violence in it breaches a person’s trust in love and affection. When a child sees their parents suffering in front of them, it is very inevitable for them to question the very roots of the whole love institution.

This creates a situation of indebted feelings of hopelessness and lack of trust. Witnessing domestic violence at home fades their trust in others. This leads them to a point where they fail to put faith in anybody. Love and affection only remind them of their depressing childhood and brings back childhood trauma. As a form of regulated and regular violence, the beating of one parent by another generates a haunting memory in children forever.

They are unable to get out of the jaws of those past miseries and darkness.

Suicidal Tendencies

In many cases, it can be seen that children who go through violence at home, be it on themselves or their parents, ingrain a tendency of being fed up. They get fed up with life in general and lose out hope of expecting things to get better.

Many times, such serious scenarios at home can induce a sense of giving up in children or self-harming tendencies. These self-harming tendencies arise out of the fact that they cannot stop the present disrupted situations by themselves. Henceforth, they walk on the path of punishing themselves in the process. The propensity of such behavior just escalates as a child enters into his teen years and adolescent age, it never goes the back way path.

Aggressive Behaviour

It will not be surprising to see children coming from such therapeutically disturbed homes, growing into monsters themselves. It is an inevitable fact that the basic judgment of right and wrong is never taught to them.

For instance, a man who beats his wife will never teach his son that it is morally wrong to raise a hand on a woman. Therefore, the son who will witness this beating and hitting day after day will imbibe this habit in himself. He will also grow up to be a man who thinks hitting a woman is a way to show that men are always superior to them. Henceforth, this cycle will continue as well.

Children being small creatures with no prior knowledge of the world, practice what they are preached. In cases of domestic violence, children have been indirectly preached violence. Henceforth, while they grow up, they portray an immense amount of aggressive and violent conduct not only towards others but also their parents.

Conclusion

Every nine out of ten households in the world face a situation of domestic violence in them. They have kids who are so tender that they fail to distinguish if what is happening in front of them is correct or no.

Children learn these tendencies of hitting and abusing and tend to take out their familial frustration on something else. It can come in the form of skipping out on a regular lifestyle or in the form of extreme steps like suicide. The best condition that parents should abide by in a household to raise their children includes love, care, affection, and warmth. However, nothing of that sort can be found in a family full of abuse and demarcation.

All that a child needs is love and care, not a feeling of anxiety and disdain.

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