When a Florida relationship becomes violent, domestic abuse is a serious issue that should be addressed and defined. The National Domestic Violence Hotline refers to domestic violence as intimate partner violence and defines the problem as a behavior pattern used by one partner or spouse to control the other.
Violence can be physical, sexual, emotional or mental and is almost always tied to power and control. Isolation, intimidation, economic abuse, using children, using coercion and threats and blaming others are often the beginning signs that a relationship is headed toward a domestic abuse issue.
Many are unaware that a relationship they are in is abusive. While it may seem clear from the outside, the situation is murky and confusing from the inside. WebMD gives the following signs that a partner or spouse may be abusing another:
- Cuts the person off from friends and family
- Physical abuse such as hitting, punching, kicking, pulling hair and even withholding medical care
- Control of all the money
- Bullying, controlling or threatening behaviors such as criticizing, blaming for the abuse or threatens to kill
- Sexual abuse
Abusers will also show extreme jealousy, prevent the partner from making their own decisions, pressure the person to use drugs of alcohol, insult the partner or even look at one in a threatening way. They may also use weapons, knives or guns to control behavior and strike fear in their other spouse or partner.
Those who are looking in on the relationship often have a perspective that helps the abused partner realize there is a problem. Domestic violence is not just limited to women and men can be victims also, although statistically, women are more vulnerable. Because these situations often end in tragedy, it can be beneficial for someone in an abusive relationship to speak to an attorney.
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