RICHMOND, Va. (WWBT) -While the holidays can be filled with joy, celebrations and fun, all of the events, gift buying and travel can also make it a challenging time for domestic violence survivors.
This is why the YWCA in Richmond and Safe Harbor in Henrico are currently preparing for an increase in cases.
“It’s just important for people to know that the holidays can be hard because of tragedy, trauma, so many different things just in general. Trying to survive alcohol abuse, drug abuse, those things that when people are stressed, they’re trying to cope, and sometimes it’s just not in the best way,” Senior YWCA Richmond’s Director of Domestic and Sexual Violence Services Shawntee Wynn said.
YWCA Richmond sees an increase in financial abuse/trauma this time of year, as staff say they see it in 99% of its domestic violence situations.
Its team says 1 in 4 women will be a victim of domestic violence, and the presence of a gun in the home increases the probability of violence by 500%.
“It can be a really dark time for a lot of people for so many different reasons, and so that’s where we can see an uptick in things happening in terms of violence because of the stress. We think about economic stress that people are going through just trying to make ends meet each and every day,” Wynn said.
Abuse takes a different form in every family and might look different or challenging to recognize to the outside eye. Wynn says isolation can be a telling sign.
“A lot of times abusers will try to break those relationships so they can have more of the control, and so looking for that also a lot of times, noticeable bruises or those kinds of things, but a lot of times those things you might not see, they might be covered up,” she said.
The team at Safe Harbor in Henrico sees similar stories, with financial stress being a big reason for its uptick. Director of Human Trafficking Services Alexandria Wall says they have been booked up for the past month but can still help those in need.
“We can either offer shelter, or we can offer hotel, to get away from that situation. Or, we have a lot of other resources and connections in the state and even out of state to help them get somewhere safe to offer them monetary support, things like that, whatever they need,” Wall said. “We definitely get more calls around the holidays, and we stay full. We stay full at pretty much all times.”
Wall says another reason for the increase is people being around abusers more. Suppose you are a survivor and traveling with your abuser. In that case, she recommends having a code word with your kids, keeping their documents with you like IDs, social security cards, and birth certificates, and ensuring a trusted friend or family member has your itinerary.
“Take care of yourself; it’s not easy, we know that. It’s not just simple to just always just walk away, but try, and take care of yourself. Prepare as best as you can, do some self-care, get good sleep, get good nutrition, have safe people around you that are in your corner and have a plan,” Wall said.
The EmpowerNet regional hotline is available 24/7 to connect victims with safety planning, emergency housing and additional resources. You can call or text (804) 612-6126 to be connected. Services are available for non-English speakers through language line translation services.
“The most important thing to note is that if for any reason when you call and maybe someone doesn’t pick up, please, please leave a message. That just means that advocate might already be on the phone helping someone else, and they’re going to get right back to you,” Wynn said.
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