Violence Against Women Essay Sample

1 in 3 women around the world has been subjected to either physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence in their lifetime. (World Health Organization 2). Violence against women is an issue which unfornutaly is ignored and looked over by governments, institutions, laws, and policies all around the world. It is a necessity to accept the issue with violence and abuse against women and work on fixing the issue as it can have many damaging effects on one’s mental and physical health, can trigger substance abuse and also affect the children witnessing it.

To begin, violence against women can cause the person being abuse to develop physical and psycological health issues. Survivors of violence against women tend to develop certain mental health disorders such as depression, anxiety, sleep disorders, eating disorders and suicidal thoughts along with physcial health concerns which are often long term. According to The Effects Of Violence On Health by Fredrick Rivera, “ Consequences include increased incidences of depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder, and suicide; increased risk of cardiovascular disease; and premature mortality. The health consequences of violence vary with the age and sex of the victim as well as the form of violence.” (Rivera 1). Women who have experienced violence are more likely to develop mental health disorders which can hold them back in many ways. Due to most of these disorders being developed while in contact with the abuser, they are unable to get treated properly which plays a huge role in worsening their mental health condition as the abusers tend to ignore the feelings of them, aggravating their mental state. They also develop certain conditions, such as Although some women cut contact with the abuser, these psychological physical issues are just some of the scars left in their heart and bodies by the abuser. In brief, victims of violence against women are likely to grow psychological and physical health issues.

In addition, violence against women may trigger abuse of substances such as drugs and alcohol in order to forget or lessen the pain. Women who suffer from the effects of violence tend to try to find ways to make themselves forget about the pain and the issues they’re dealing with and in some choose to use drugs or alcohol in order to forget about their pain. As Addiction And Domestic Violence written by Jeffery Juergens states, “In fact, women who have been abused are 15 times more likely to abuse alcohol and 9 times more likely to abuse drugs than those without a history of abuse.” (Jurgens 1) Women who have been abused are much more likely to abuse alcohol and drugs compared to women who have not experienced violence because women dealing with abuse may try their best to forget about their agony. It might make it harder for them to feel the pain or realize how much danger they are in. The issue with substance abuse is even worse if the abuser also suffers from substance abuse. Therefore, women who are victims of violence have a higher chance of abusing the use of substances as drugs and alcohol to lighten and forget about their sufferings.

Furthermore, violence against women influences the children who are exposed to the violence. Children who witness violence towards their mothers, sisters and other family members are also affected by the abuse. According to Effects of domestic violence on children by Office On Women’s Health, “A boy who sees his mother being abused is 10 times more likely to abuse his female partner as an adult. A girl who grows up in a home where her father abuses her mother is more than six times as likely to be sexually abused as a girl who grows up in a non-abusive home.” (Basile 3). Children who grow up witnessing violence against their family members are one of the most affected people by the violence. Even though the children might not be abused along with their mother, even seeing it happen could have an effect on them. Especially if the abuser is the father figure of the children. Thus, violence against women negatively impacts the children witnessing it.

Finally, violence against women is an important issue which deserves to be elavated as it may negatively influence the victim’s mental and physical health, can trigger substance abuse and impact the children witnessing the violence. Violence against women has an incredible amount of damaging effects on women’s psychological health as it may lead to mental health disorders such as depression, anxity and Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD, physcial health issues that may be long term health concerns for their wellbeing. Many of these issues which the victim is experiencing may lead to substance abuse as a coping mechanism. Lastly, witnessing the violence also affects the children’s mental health and the adults they grow into. Violence against women deserves more attention from governments, institutions, laws, and policies all around the world. Working towards protecting, saving victims of violence against women and preventing violence aganist women will help end violence against everyone.