Mental Health

Published on: October 14, 2024

Taming Impulsive Behaviors that Can Cause Domestic Violence

While some domestic violence stems from systematic patterns of abuse in the perpetrator, for others, the underlying forces aren’t as straightforward. It may be surprising to discover that many acts of domestic violence occur on impulse–simply acting in the heat of the moment without thinking.

Perhaps you’re in such a situation. Maybe an argument with your spouse or partner got out of hand, and things became physical before you had a chance to think. You’ve now found yourself in a situation you never anticipated–under arrest for domestic battery or some other domestic violence offense–realizing that your actions were driven by impulses that felt uncontrollable at the time.

While you must deal with the immediate legal situation, of equal importance is to figure out how to avoid a recurrence of violence. Believe it or not, impulsive behaviors are psychologically driven, meaning they can be identified and tamed with some effort. Recognizing these impulses and learning how to manage them is an essential step in preventing future incidents and finding resolution in the present.

Published on: October 18, 2023

Can an Undiagnosed Mental Illness Trigger Domestic Violence?

by Michael Kraut

If you’ve been arrested or charged with domestic battery, criminal threats, or other forms of domestic violence, the one thing that could make matters worse is not understanding how or why it happened. How, exactly, did you get here? Perhaps you have some anger issues, but you never expected an argument with your partner to escalate to an arrest. Or maybe you’ve been struggling with your mental health but never formally diagnosed with any condition. This begs the question: can an undiagnosed mental illness trigger domestic violence?

In short, yes, it’s possible for an undiagnosed mental illness to contribute to violent behavior in a relationship. Not all cases of domestic violence are as straightforward as they seem, and in some instances, undiagnosed mental illnesses play a significant role in provoking aggressive or violent behavior. While there is no direct causation between mental illness and domestic violence, certain conditions can increase the risk of aggressive or violent behavior. This is especially true for individuals with a history of anger management issues or difficulty controlling their emotions. Let’s explore this issue in a little more detail to provide more perspective.

The Prevalence of Undiagnosed Mental Illness

Published on: July 19, 2021

The Science Behind Abuse—Part 1

by Michael Kraut

A domestic violence arrest can impact your life in many ways. It can jeopardize your job, traumatize your family, and separate you from the ones you love. But beyond triaging the immediate crisis of dealing with the court process, the underlying question is how to prevent domestic violence from repeating. The answer requires getting to the heart of how the abusive patterns began in the first place.

Domestic violence is a problem that affects people of all ages, genders, and social backgrounds. It takes place in rural, suburban, and urban areas and at all income levels. Several studies have been done to try and understand why abuse occurs, as this knowledge can be applied to better treatment strategies. Let’s explore the science behind abuse to better understand how these violent tendencies start—and more importantly, how to curb them. We’ll look at this issue from a total of four aspects: environmental, psychological, neurochemical, and genetic factors.

Environmental Factors Behind Abuse