WHY LEAVING IS THE BEST OPTION
It is an unfortunate fact that people change. Over time, people can change negatively and cause a lot more pain than good. Life can be unrelenting and people who suffer from anger issues can feel like they need to take control of their lives and the people around them. Typically, when someone inflicts pain on others, especially the ones they love, it is their way of taking out their own frustrations over how their life has turned out. Feelings of their own injustices can make them feel like aggression is the only way to address what they are feeling.
Aggression is never the answer to any problem.
LEAVE YOUR ABUSER
No matter how frustrated or upset anyone is, taking it out on their spouse or their children should never be tolerated. However, abusive spouses can assume complete control over their family and may make them feel as though it is impossible to reach out for help. Staying with your abuser may seem like the path of least resistance. After all, leaving might cause even more anger than usual. Abusers assert their power over their loved ones and keep it by using fear. If you are afraid for your life or your children’s lives, getting help is crucial. There are law firms that may be able to help you get the justice you deserve and protect you and your children. If you live in Oklahoma City, Women and Children’s Law Center may be able to assist you and break free from your abusive spouse.
HAVING A DIVORCE LAWYER ON YOUR SIDE
Separating yourself from your abuser is scary. For a victim, leaving your spouse will mean that you will have to fend for yourself and fight back in ways you have never before. Instead of allowing your spouse to assume dominion over your life, leaving will help you take back your own free will and independence.
In order to leave your spouse, you have to be strong. Aside from that, you will need a legal team on your side that will be able to guide you through the legal processes of divorce, child custody, and child visitation. All of these processes can take months, even years. But, with a determined lawyer, you can get the representation you need to make your case go as swiftly as possible. This can make things easier for you and your family, especially knowing all that you have gone through. Making a break fairly quickly will allow you and your children to move on and start a fresh life.
If you are questioning leaving an abusive relationship, we are here to give you three distinct reasons to leave. Though making the movement to divorce your spouse can be challenging and emotionally intense, you have more to lose if you stay.
REASON ONE: PHYSICAL HARM
Abusers will cause temporary to long-term injuries. With one blow, they can rain down untold pain on you. Bruises, broken bones, and concussions are all symptoms of domestic violence and can cause health issues in the future. Also, though one part of the body was injured, other areas can be affected too. Back pain, headaches, and digestive problems can follow a victim, long after bruises have faded.
Abusive relationships are toxic, no matter what. If you are in a relationship where physical violence is communicated, it can get out of control quickly. Relationships can cause a lot of stress on both partners — regardless of the health of the relationship. In an abusive relationship, the frustrations and added stresses of aging can cause more intense violent reactions. This means that a small argument could mean that you will end up in the hospital with serious injuries. Beyond just injuries, you could be killed by your abuser, or your children could be seriously wounded.
As a parent, your child should never be the victim of abuse. Even if you can tolerate being the victim of domestic violence, your child should never have to suffer as well. If your child is physically injured by your spouse, an investigation into your family life at home can be conducted if the school is suspicious. If your household is found to be abusive and you have done nothing to take your child out of that situation, you may have to face legal implications yourself.
REASON TWO: PSYCHOLOGICAL DAMAGE
Abuse can take a toll on you mentally. You can feel depressed suicidal, or even suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Abusers can often experience mood swings that come out of nowhere. Because of this, victims can constantly be on-edge and feel closed off from the rest of the world. Being physical with anyone can be a challenge, especially after years of abuse. Small gestures, such as hugs and even handshakes, can be difficult for a victim.
Worse of all, victims of abuse lose the ability to trust others. Instead of fostering loving, patient bonds, victims, such as children, can either fall into a similar abusive cycle with their loved ones or reject any emotion or physical closeness with anyone. This can obviously make their lives difficult and damage their mental health.
As an adult victim, the symptoms and consequences are the same. Trusting again is very difficult and PTSD can be a major consequence of an abusive relationship. However, abusers can also use other methods of abuse that cause very serious psychological damage. For instance, abusers will often use finances to encourage their spouses to stay with them. Abusers will make victims believe that they are incapable of taking care of themselves, and must therefore depend on their abusers for survival. This can make victims feel trapped in their relationships and unable to leave. It is this feeling of being trapped that makes victims stay with their abusers until the violence gets out of control and someone is either seriously hurt or killed.
REASON THREE: SOCIAL IMPAIRMENT
Abusers can isolate their victims in order to make them feel more vulnerable and weak. Some abusers will keep their spouses and their children away from other people to make sure that every aspect of their lives is controlled. Violent husbands or wives also like to isolate their families so they feel like they cannot communicate with others for help.
Social impairment can make you and your children feel incapable of asking for help. Isolation is a specific type of abuse that can take a very large toll years after the abuse has stopped. For instance, long after the abuse has stopped, you may feel strange communicating with anyone. Making connections with people in a friendship or romantic relationship can feel almost impossible. This form of abuse can make the victims feel incapable of any emotional connection long after the abuser is no longer in their lives.
Children too can suffer from a social impairment, as they may not be able to behave in normal ways. Children who are isolated or feel alone are far more likely to either commit suicide or run away when they are older.
WOMEN AND CHILDREN’S LAW CENTER OF OKLAHOMA CITY
The damage of domestic violence cannot be denied. Just of few instances of violence can leave devastation to a family. Victims can lose belief in themselves and their capacity for meaningful relationships. Violence should never be met with violence. If you are currently having an abusive relationship, you need to get help.
Talking to a lawyer can give you the resources you need to make sure your abuser never touches you or your child again. With the help of your Oklahoma City family law center, you will be able to meet with experienced lawyers that will be able to separate you and your spouse for good. Get justice for you and your family and make sure that your abuser never can get near you ever again. Contact the Women and Children’s Law Center in Oklahoma City if you are done being a victim.