Why Substance Abuse Remains a Major cause of Intimate Partner Violence

Drug abuse and domestic violence go hand in hand, with both being the cause of each other. Intimate partner violence (IPV) has recently caused a lot of media attention.

A drug and rehabilitation center in Indiana is trying to find ways to help individuals who could be struggling with drug or alcohol addiction. Similarly, a drug rehab in Tennessee is working towards helping individuals.

Abusers and victims alike must find ways to overcome this problem where women aged 15 to 44 are the primary targets. In this article, we are going to look at some of the reasons why substance abuse remains a significant cause of IPV.

Substance Abuse – Are Men Always the Predators and Women the Victims?

There’s an assumption that men being prone to violence by nature play the predators and women always fall as the victims. The assumption that men are still the predators in IPV is not entirely correct as some studies have shown that women are prone to abuse men by hitting them. Nevertheless, the difference lies in the degree of injury caused. When women batter men, such cases may go unreported.

According to this addiction recovery blog, the use of drugs or alcohol is a demeanor among intimate partner violence cases even when the abuser is sober, but he(or she) is an alcoholic.. Abusers and assailers may get involved in more dangerous situations especially in circumstances where both are abusing drugs and alcohol. Therefore, the answer to how long is alcohol rehab process going to take is not straightforward. The length of the rehabilitation process depends on several factors and the treatment method.

There are several substances other than alcohol that are involved in IPV, including:

• Prozac defense
• Benzodiazepines
• Xanax
• Klonopin
• Ativan
• Chantix

Some of these drugs we’ve mentioned are generally prescribed to reduce anxiety in drug addicts or help smokers stop smoking. For instance, a drug like Chantix helps to reduce cravings for nicotine but is eighteen times more likely to be linked with violent behavior. On the other hand, drugs like Fluoxetine, Paroxetine, Mefloquine among other drugs are linked with violent behavior or are more likely to inspire violence.

Substance Abuse – How Does Substance Abuse Cause IPV?

Substance abuse and intimate partner violence are closely linked. Statistics show that there is a strong correlation between the two where heavy alcoholic drinkers are often the abusers. If the assailant witnessed violence as a child, he is likely to be influenced by what he saw when he was younger. This factor increases the chances of intimate partner violence. In most cases, severe alcoholics struggle with an array of mental disorders that make them behave the way they do. Such kinds of disorders include eating disorders and substance abuse disorders.

Other substances that are commonly involved in IPV include drugs such as cocaine, methamphetamine, and opioids. Opioid abuse is a major problem in the United States and it is a leading cause of IPV. Treatment for opioid abuse is essential to address this problem.
As the addict tries to regain control over their lives he comes to terms with the pain and fear related to intimate partner violence which triggers eating disorders and substance abuse.

Health Consequences of IPV

Several health consequences related to intimate partner violenceare a significant cause of homicides. We are going to name a few:

• Injury-related deaths
• Loss of pregnancies
• Increased risk of suffering from mental health related problems
• Morbid obesity and eating disorders
• Increased likelihood of drinking alcohol heavily
• Increased chances of contracting sexually transmitted infections (STI) and HIV
• Unwanted pregnancies

IPV remains a significant public health concern; substance use and abuse is a considerable factor that inspires violence. So it’s imperative that the underlying problem be adequately addressed to combat IPV.

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