White Ribbon VA Campaign, Part 2 - S3E11

Dr. Aprille Woodson:

Welcome to part two of the White Ribbon VA campaign. We want to continue our conversation on domestic violence. Dr. Fagundo, can you talk about some of the ACA resources you recommend that are relevant to this topic?

Dr. Eddy Fagundo:

Thank you, Dr. Woodson. I recommend people visit our website, www.counseling.org, to find relevant resources. For example, for continuing education, we have many CEs relevant to distance counseling and using technology counseling. There are also several CEs related to trauma, substance use disorders, sexually transmitted infection, as well as intimate partner violence, or IPV. A new CE on intimate partner violence will be released soon. Some of these CEs are free. We also have relevant textbooks, for example, the 2024 book titled A Contemporary Approach to Substance Abuse Disorder and Addiction counseling, as well as Assessment and Counseling Procedures and Practices, and the Book Crisis Intervention Ethics case book. There are also free resources. Counseling Today have some stories online that are free and can be accessed by anyone. Our digital Counseling Today magazine and issues also offer relevant content and they require membership. Similarly, the Voice of Counseling podcasts offer episodes with relevant content. For example, this very same episode.

Dr. Aprille Woodson:

Thank you for sharing those resources, Dr. Fagundo. I want to switch to Dr. Haynes-Mendez and talk a little bit more about this topic, specifically intimate partner violence. Dr. Haynes-Mendez. Can you describe the risk factors related to intimate partner violence?

Dr. Kelley Haynes-Mendez:

Yes. First, I want to define intimate partner violence. Intimate partner violence can range from physical, psychological, or sexual abuse of one person by another in a close relationship. The couple may be heterosexual or same sex, and they may be or have been dating, married or living together. Also, apart from physical violence and threats of abuse, control is also a hallmark of the abusive intimate partner relationship with the aggressor often controlling the partner's access to family and friends, taking control of shared finances and constantly monitoring the partner's activities.

And so from a human rights perspective, we understand that everyone is entitled to all rights and freedoms without distinction. And these include characteristics such as race, sex, gender, and other status. We also know that there are risk factors. The groups most often experiencing these types of harms are marginalized and vulnerable groups that experience various types of social inequities in society. So for many, the risk of experiencing intimate partner violence increases if you are someone who is poor, someone who is less educated, an adolescent or a young adult, someone living in a high poverty neighborhood, someone dependent on drugs or alcohol, or if you identify as female. There are also intersectional dynamics at play. Whereas people who experience multiple aspects of these social determinants may also have greater risk of experiencing intimate partner violence.

Dr. Aprille Woodson:

So, as I'm listening to you talk about this, Dr. Haynes-Mendez, I want you to discuss some of the psychological implications of having experienced intimate partner violence. Can you expound on that a bit?

Dr. Kelley Haynes-Mendez:

Yes. Victims of interpersonal violence or intimate partner violence have a wide array of consequences of experiencing that violence. Those can range from psychological disorders to behavioral and emotional symptoms. And so if you have been victimized by an intimate partner recently or in the past, you may be experiencing any number of the following symptoms or characteristics. Those include depression or depressive thoughts, suicidal thoughts and/or attempts. You might be experiencing anxiety and low self-esteem and inability or unwillingness to trust others, a fear of intimacy, isolation from family, friends, and loved ones. We also sometimes see risky behaviors such as unhealthy eating, risky sexual behaviors, and/or dependence on substances. Many victims also experience post-traumatic stress disorder or some form of post-traumatic stress, emotional detachment. There are often sleep disturbances. There may be flashbacks to instances of violence as a part of the trauma experience and process, replaying the assault in one's mind. And then finally, poor physical health, this may include frequent headaches, chronic pain and activity limitations.

Dr. Aprille Woodson:

So, it sounds like there's a wide array of psychological implications when you're talking about this specific type of violence. What are recommendations for someone experiencing intimate partner violence?

Dr. Kelley Haynes-Mendez:

Right. So if someone is experiencing intimate partner violence, and it's asking themselves this question, "What can I do to help myself?" I think there are several important recommendations. This person could connect with supportive and caring people. Again, those might be family members, friends, colleagues, coworkers, but it's important in this particular recommendation to avoid individuals who might blame the person for the abuse. So we want to be very careful about connecting again to those who are supportive and caring and can provide a type of positive environment and psychological safety rather than someone who will be critical and/or blaming an individual for their experiences.

Another recommendation is the possibility of securing a restraining or protective order if necessary. This can prohibit an individual from harassing, threatening, approaching accosting or even contacting you. And it's important if there is a restraining or protective order in place to always keep it with you. Then finally, I think it's important to recommend mental health counseling with a psychologist or other licensed mental health provider. Oftentimes, we can contact a doctor or other primary healthcare provider to offer support in these situations and engage with services at centers or shelters for persons who have experienced intimate partner violence.

Dr. Aprille Woodson:

Thank you for sharing that information. I think it's really important for the audience to hear this because of just the increase, especially during COVID-19 incidents, domestic violence overall. Dr. Haynes-Mendez, can you share some of a resources that you would recommend for our audience?

Dr. Kelley Haynes-Mendez:

Sure. In 2009, APA passed a policy resolution about violence against women, which recognize that violence against women is a major cause of reduced quality of life, distress, injury and death for women and has serious secondary effects for families, communities, and the economy. And it also outlines ways in which the organization or any organization can contribute to the minimization of violence against women in society. So that's one resource which is more broad and perhaps useful for organizations.

Secondly, I offer the APA Psychologist Locator, which makes it very easy for an individual seeking out a therapist or support for mental health counseling in some way for individuals in your local area. APA also has a brochure on violence against women with disabilities. Women with disabilities may experience unique forms of abuse that are difficult to recognize and it makes it sometimes more difficult for them to get the help they need. And so in this particular brochure, it offers recommendations about how to identify abuse and how to get help.

Outside of APA, there is also a couple of recommendations or resources that I would offer, which are one, the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. That organization works to educate the public on how to recognize domestic violence and what to do about it. They also address teen dating violence and the impact of family violence on children and domestic violence against individuals with disabilities, older adults, and other marginalized populations. And then finally, the Women of Color Network, which promotes and supports the leadership of women of color advocates, so women who are advocating on behalf of victims of intimate partner violence as well.

Dr. Aprille Woodson:

Thank you for sharing those resources. Those are very important. All the partners are very important to providing resources out there. There are a number of pieces of legislation specifically focused on the VA. And right now, ACA's Government Affairs team is monitoring and advocating for four bills that have a focus on healthcare for veterans and their families as well as a focus on support for people that have encountered domestic violence, abuse, and stalking. So these bills include H.R. 733, that Center for Mental Health Act of 2023. This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to ensure there is a minimum number of vet centers located in each state. Veteran centers are community-based counseling centers that provide social and psychological services to eligible veterans, service members, and their families.

The second bill is H.R. 6097. It amends the Family Violence and Prevention to Services Act. This is a new bill. This bill was introduced on October 26th, 2023. This bill authorizes grants to ensure access for victims of family violence, domestic violence, and dating violence, including substance use disorder treatment. It allows parents or legal guardians and their children, stepchildren or other dependents to remain together throughout the course of treatment for other purposes.

The third bill that Government Affairs is monitoring at ACA is H.R. 3409. This is the Health Family Act. The companion bill is Senate 1664. And this bill allows Americans to earn paid six time so they can address their own health needs and the health needs of their families. And the focus of this bill is on domestic violence.

The final bill that they are monitoring within the Government Affairs team at a CA is H.R. 2996. It is the Safe Leave for victim of Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Stalking Act. This bill amends the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to permit leave for an employee to meet their needs related to being a victim of dating violence, domestic violence, sexual assault, sex trafficking or stalking, and for other purposes.

So we're asking our audience, if you want to advocate on any of these bills, please contact the ACA Government Affairs team by emailing them at advocacy@counseling.org. Again, that is advocacy@counseling.org. You can also visit the ACA Government Affairs portion of the website and click on Take action. There, you can sign up to become an advocate and will receive alerts to advocate on issues focused on mental health care related to these specific issues. You can also locate your legislator from this page and contact them and ask them to support these bills and others like it.

ACA has a strong relationship with the US Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Defense, and continues to work closely with Congress on these bills. The Counseling Compact, which is also supported by the Department of Defense, is another resource to continuity of care for clients that face these challenges. The Compact will allow clients to continue services with their counselor in the event they have to move to a compact state.

I want to join all of our guests that have been a part of this important conversation, both in part one and part two, Veronica Mudra, Dr. Bridget Truman, Dr. Eddy Fagundo, and Dr. Kelly Haynes-Mendez for discussing this critical topic and promoting this campaign. We are asking all our listeners to join the Department of Veterans Affairs White Ribbon USA, the National Association of Social Workers, the American Psychological Association, the American Psychiatric Association, the American Counseling Association, the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, and the Veteran Service Organization and make the pledge to stop domestic violence. Until next time, I'm Dr. April Woodson bringing you another informative episode. Thank you for joining us.

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