Domestic Violence, Mental Health, and Substance Use Coercion
Description: There is now a large body of research demonstrating that abuse and violence are associated with a wide range of health and mental health conditions. Some are the direct sequelae of physical and sexual violence; others are related to the traumatic/ psychophysiological effects of ongoing abuse. Less well documented, however, are the ways that people who abuse their partners engage coercive tactics related to their partner’s mental health or substance use as part of a broader pattern of abuse and control. These tactics include efforts to intentionally undermine their partner’s sanity or sobriety, control their medication, sabotage their recovery, interfere with their treatment, and discredit their partners with friends, family, helping professionals, and the courts. Stigma associated with substance abuse and mental illness facilitates the successful use of these tactics. For settings that are integrating behavioral health into primary care – strategies to address domestic violence can be critical.
- Identify two ways that abusers undermine the sobriety or sanity of their partners
- Three new strategies for how to assess for and respond to substance abuse and mental health strategies
- Apply these strategies to efforts to integrate behavioral health into primary care