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Most people associate domestic violence with men attacking their
partners at home, but it also covers children assaulting their parents,
as described on Brat Camp. The figures are daunting. Domestic violence
accounts for 16% of all violent crime, according to the
Home Office.
Shockingly, the domestic violence figures do not tell the whole
story because this crime is notoriously under reported. There are
an average of 35 assaults before a victim calls the police and the
crime has more repeat victims than any other offence. It claims
the lives of two women each week and costs in excess of £23 billion
a year.
Shamed into tortured silence
Victims, who are often scared of their abusers and ashamed of their
family situations, are frequently reluctant to go to the police.
There can be few family problems more difficult to reveal to the
outside world than a son or daughter attacking his or her parent.
As if this were not enough, another form of abuse lies behind the
figures and is reported even less frequently. Shouting at or taunting
a person can lead victims to severe stress, depression and even
suicide.
A desperate way out
Verbal or physical abuse is all bullying and the abusers destroy
other people's lives. Often one type of abuse leads to another,
once there is no more respect left in a relationship. Verbal abuse
can lead to threats of violence, which then lead to actual violence,
experts explain. Even though it is awkward, experts advise victims
of bullying to seek help as soon as possible. The longer the bullying
continues, the worse it can become and the harder it may be to stop
it.
Bullying is always serious. About 16 children kill themselves every
year in the UK after bullying distress, according to figures from
the charity Bullying Online. The horror of bullying is clear, even
if there are no similar figures for parents suffering abuse at the
hands of their children.
Help is never far away
A relationship without respect is self destructive of itself and
the people involved in it, including the abuser. As an abuser's
bullying intensifies, he or she is likely to feel more and more
isolated from the outside world and particularly the victim of the
abuse, whether he or she is the mother, father or partner.
It makes no sense for a person to bully his or her loved ones and
this sort of abuse is unreasonable and irrational. Bullies may need
psychological or medical help to halt their abuse and come to terms
with their feelings of anger and hate. Before an explosive situation
gets out of control it is advisable to seek the advice of your GP
as well as one of the many abuse-related advice groups.
Sources include Bullying Online and Victim Support
For further reading, weblinks, organisations and helplines go to Find out more.
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