health

People who experience or witness violence should react immediately.
Police and violence hotlines should be called in an emergency. People
who have been injured should be taken to a clinic or hospital emergency
room for treatment. When an immediate crisis has ended, a family doctor
or school counselor or member of the clergy should be contacted for
counseling and referrals. Shelters and child protection agencies can help
battered women and children. Counseling can help batterers and their
families to learn better behaviors for managing stress, conflict, and anger.
Therapists can help people with post-traumatic stress disorder* achieve
emotional recovery from the aftermath of violence.
Those who commit violent acts or have violent or angry feelings need
to receive treatment. Emotional problems, drug and alcohol abuse, and
other conditions which make a person more prone to violence need to be
handled. The social forces that prevent violence—family, friends, and the
community—need to take positive steps to make violence less likely and
to increase safety.
Physical violence is never an acceptable form of behavior. Everyone
has choices. Becoming aware of the problems, deciding not to follow violent
patterns, and making a commitment to learn new ways of relating are
the keys to change and increased wellness. It is never too late to change
the pattern of violence in families, communities, or society.