What is Abuse?
Abuse is when someone who is supposed to care about us threatens our health and/or well being. No one deserves to be treated that way
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1. Emotional/Verbal
Actions that attack our sense of self, including:
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- rejecting or degrading
- terrorizing
- isolating
- corrupting and/or exploiting
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2. Environmental
Actions that attack our personal sense of safety, including:
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- destruction of property
- harming and/or destroying pets
- controlling the use of vehicle, telephone, objects, etc.
- throwing things
- threatening to hurt another person or endangering the person while in a vehicle
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3. Financial
Actions that exercise power and control over finances, including:
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- taking money, controlling finances
- not taking responsibility for share of finances
- secretive behaviour regarding shared finances
- withholding reasonable access to finances
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4. Physical
Actions that threaten and/or injure, including:
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- physical injury inflicted by one person on another
- injury that results from direct attack and/or harsh discipline
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5. Ritual
Actions that exercise power and control over choices, including:
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- forcing us to practice rituals/beliefs against our will
- restricting us from practicing rituals/beliefs
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6. Sexual
Any form of sexual contact, exploitation, and/or sexual activity that is unwanted
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7. Social
Actions that exercise power and control over us through social contacts and social networks, including:
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- controlling access to children, family, friends, and/or social contacts
- controlling access to media, reading materials, censoring mail
- controlling mode of dress, dictating behaviour
- demanding an accounting of time, social contacts
- using children as a weapon during separation and/or divorce
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What is the Cycle of Abuse?
Abuse is not a one-time incident; it usually follows a definite cycle.
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Phase One - The Tension Building:
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- verbal attacks, put-downs, and minor battering occur
- tension and anticipation
- the feeling of "walking on eggshells"
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Phase Two - The Explosion:
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- tensions erupt into violence
- the abuser is likely to sexually assault, injure or kill
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Phase Three - The Denial:
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- abuser blames the partner for the incident that happened
- excuses are made ("If only she didn't . . . ")
- he minimizes what he did
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- after the incident, the partner becomes extremely loving, kind and sorry for what he did
- begging forgiveness, promising it will never happen again
- guilt is felt by both partners
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The cycle can cover a long or short period of time. The violence usually gets worse. The "Calm" phase, then the "Denial" phase will eventually disappear.
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Is violence against women a serious issue in Canada?
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- 51% of women in Canada have experienced violence.
- Every minute of every day, a woman or child in Canada is being sexually assaulted.
- In Canada, 1 in every 5 women abused by a partner is assaulted during pregnancy.
- Approximately one to two women per week are murdered by a partner or ex-partner in Canada.
- In Canada, more than 100,000 women and children take refuge in one of Canada's more than 480 shelters each year.
- A minimum of one million children in Canada have witnessed violence against their mothers by their fathers or father figures.
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Sask Women and Domestic Violence
Information on women's experience of domestic violence in our province.
Sask Domestic Violence
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Facts for Teens
A fact sheet on resources and strategies for teens experiencing violence.
Facts for Teens
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Community Impact of Domestic Violence
Domestic violence costs all of us.
Community Impact
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Southwest Crisis Services
"Building healthier families and communities together"
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