Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, Why do domestic violence victims give their abusers one more chance over and over again? Abusers are cunning and manipulative. They know exactly what to say to change the minds of their victims who are caring and traumatized. Trauma bonding is the type of attachment one…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. It provides an opportunity to shed light on the domestic violence issue and work towards ways of preventing it. Domestic Violence Awareness Month originated from the Day of Unity, first held in October 1981 and created by the National Coalition…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, Sexual Child Abuse refers to the involvement of a child in sexual activity to provide sexual gratification or financial benefit to the perpetrator. It includes contact for sexual purposes, molestation, statutory rape, prostitution, pornography, incest, or other sexually exploitative activities. Children living through abuse and violence…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, According to a recent study, witnessing domestic violence as a child could be just as damaging as being abused. When a child is exposed to either violence directly or witnessing violence, the fight or flight mechanism of the child is activated on a regular basis, and…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month, and I want to bring attention to the effects of children’s exposure to domestic violence and the significance of it. Blake Griffin Edwards who wrote this article, says domestic violence takes many forms including chronic arguing and yelling, controlling…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, ‘Coerced Debt’ often follows domestic violence survivors and is another roadblock to building their future. Abusers use debt to trap their victims. Credit cards and loans taken out under two names, but never paid back, can cripple a survivor financially. Angela Littwin, a law professor at…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, Narcissistic parents tend to see their children as possessions and as extensions of themselves, as opposed to individuals in their own right. This can lead to the child growing up to develop serious identity issues. “Who am I?” and “Who can I trust?” are common questions…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, Another common perception is that domestic violence is a women’s issue, and therefore men don’t have to take responsibility. Often the victim is blamed for doing something to have caused it. Patrick Stewart, the English actor, with a career spanning almost six decades, is challenging the…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, A common perception still today is that domestic violence is often considered a personal private problem and shouldn’t be exposed. Some attitudes in the United States have changed over the past decades. The 1994 Violence Against Women Act pushed justice systems across the country to take…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. I read an article about why domestic violence awareness hasn’t caught up with the #MeToo movement and thought I’d share some of the findings. After the #MeToo movement went viral, the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence created its own hashtag,…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, Is it possible to spot an abusive partner before you get involved? It is difficult in many cases. Many abusers are highly intelligent, clever and charming. They use this technique to deceive and manipulate drawing the victim in. As survivors know, the transition from love to…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, Here are some suggestions for collecting evidence of abuse. I hope they are helpful. Any written rules imposed by the abuser Information about abuse of previous partners Proof that you are being financially marginalized Records proving you provide most of the child care Diary of physical…

It’s almost summer, and I hope everyone had a pleasant Memorial Day Weekend. Often the holiday weekends bring on more violence and abuse instead of peaceful enjoyable interactions. I wanted to share some of the statements abusers will make to keep their victims under control. These are only a handful…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, As we come to the end of National Child Abuse Prevention Month, I wanted to share how violence affects children in relation to the Children’s Domestic Abuse Wheel. The wheel is divided into eight sections with these headings: Emotional Abuse, Physical and Mental Effects, Sexual Abuse,…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, April brings spring flowers and is also National Child Abuse Prevention Month. Child abuse is under-reported and is a hidden epidemic. Over the past 10 years, more than 20,000 American children are believed to have been killed in their own homes by family members—almost five a…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, The cycle of abuse will continue over and over until the abused one stops it. There’s a script domestic violence follows with the abuser rigidly in control. The survivors develop a script of their own and repeat the same lines over and over to themselves, friends…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, I just read an article on Perspecticide and thought I would share some of the ideas about it. Perspecticide is the abuse-related incapacity to know what you know. It’s often part of a strategy of coercive control that may include manipulation, stalking, gaslighting and physical abuse.…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, It’s 2018 and I hope the holidays well and have hope for this coming year. It’s important to have hope. Life is always changing. At a recent party, I got into a conversation with another woman about my previous nursing career and the domestic violence issue,…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, I hope your holidays were peaceful and that you are staying warm. The emergency room I worked in was busiest during the holidays. Alcohol and drug consumption, high expectations of families and close quarters over an extended period of time seemed to contribute to the rise…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, Now that we’ve entered the holiday season, abuse seems to escalate in so many ways. Food is such an important part of enjoying the festivities along with certain customs and traditions connected with food and other pleasures. Sometimes the abusers decide to use food as a…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, I hope you were all safe over the Thanksgiving Holiday. Often domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse escalate during the holidays. When I worked in the emergency room, I saw it over and over. Drugs and alcohol played a part along with high expectations of…

Dear Priscilla Bennett Friends, The spotlight is now on sexual harassment from Hollywood to Congress with much in between, and it’s long overdue. Women have put up with it, considered it part of the job description and have been silent out of fear. Sexual harassment and rape occur in situations…