Article-Psychosocial Services
PREVENTING FAMILY VIOLENCE WITHIN THE CANADIAN FORCES USING CONCRETE ACTIONS
By Capt Dave Blackburn, Psychosocial and Mental Health Services Department
Have you ever overheard a colleague from your unit using abusive language when speaking with his spouse? Have you ever punched a wall in an attempt to intimidate your teenager who refused to follow your directions? Or have you ever been the victim of physical aggression by your spouse? It is most likely that you can relate to at least one of these situations since family violence can be found even in our Canadian Military community; in fact, it is part of reality and causes significant harm. Fortunately, there are ways to prevent this type of violence by taking some simple and concrete actions.
What is family violence?
Family violence refers to any behavior that may endanger someone else’s life, safety and well-being. It may occur within intimate, associated, dependent or confidence-based relationships. It includes all forms of violence; threats as well as physical, emotional and sexual abuse. Even though statistics show that children and women are more likely to be the victims of family violence, no one is immune to abusive behavior, including men.
There are many different types of abuse:
Physical abuse: Includes in addition to others, hitting, pulling, pushing, pinching, slapping, hand squeezing, arm-twisting, choking, using a weapon or threatening to hurt;
Sexual abuse: Includes in addition to others, forcing the victim to have sex against her/his will, touching her/him or kissing her/him against her/his will. Everyone has the right to say NO;
Social abuse: Includes in addition to others, denying the victim space or privacy, treating her/him like a slave, controlling what she/he does, whom she/he talks to and where she/he goes, not allowing the victim to see family and friends, dictating what the victim wears and/or how they behave;
Emotional abuse: Includes in addition to others, shouting, intimidating, making the victim believe she/he is crazy, stupid or ignorant, humiliating victim, name calling, blaming the victim for things, controlling the victim’s emotions.
What are the consequences of family violence?
Family violence has numerous and devastating impacts. The victim, as well as those who are exposed to violence, may experience short, medium and long-term consequences depending on the nature of the abuse. These consequences may be physical, psychological and emotional.
Recent studies show that children, who live in families where violence prevails, suffer from emotional effects due to witnessing abuse. They grow up in an atmosphere filled with tension and fear, confused about intimate relationships. They may lack self-confidence and feel ashamed, anxious and guilty. This violence could impact their adult life in numerous ways, i.e., they may repeat the same pattern of violence in their own family.
How can family violence be prevented?
Fortunately, it is possible to avoid family violence with concrete actions. Here are a few strategies:
- Recognizing situations of abuse: The Canadian society as well as the Canadian Forces disapprove of violence. It is necessary for victims or witnesses to speak out about all situations concerning abuse and seek professional help. For the abuser, it is imperative to recognize his/her own behavior and to initiate therapy in order to remedy the problem;
- Developing healthy means of communication: In many cases, family violence is the result of bad communication that becomes bitter. Learning to communicate clearly and respectfully with your spouse and your children is essential to avoid abusive situations that are not good for a healthy family;
- Managing stress: Whether at work, at home, with friends or family, life presents many stress factors that have a considerable impact on your well-being, your state of mind and your behavior. Being able to manage stress factors is definitely a good way to prevent any situation that leads to family violence;
- Managing alcohol consumption: Consuming a large amount of alcohol on a regular basis increases the risk of violent behavior. If you know you have a tendency to be more impulsive when you consume alcohol, you must manage your alcohol intake;
- Many other methods are available to you: To discover other ways of preventing family violence, please contact a professional from the Psychosocial Services.
What are the resources available in Europe?
If you have any questions or concerns or if you are a victim or an aggressor, please contact the following resources for help:
In the event that violence occurs outside of office hours, immediately contact the local police authorities and the CFSU(E) Duty Officer or the chaplain of your area (who, in turn, will contact the Family Crisis Team Europe Leader) at: +49-172-5345900.
Medical Clinics
CF Health Services Centre (O) Detachment Geilenkirchen, Germany
Phone : +49-(0)-2451-717301
Internet : http://www.europe.forces.gc.ca/ger-all/org/med/medical-eng.asp 
CF Health Services Centre (O) Détachment Casteau, Belgium
Phone : +32-(0)-6544-5959
Internet : http://www.europe.forces.gc.ca/bel/lm-mg/med/mc-md-eng.asp
Psychosocial and Mental Health Services Department
Phone : +49-(0)-2451-717309
Internet : http://www.europe.forces.gc.ca/ger-all/org/med/mhs-ssm/home-eng.asp
Addiction Counselor
Phone : +49-(0)-2451-717309
Chaplains
Chaplain Germany and Netherlands
Phone : +49-(0)2451-632229 Cell (24/7) : +49-(0)-172-534-5916
Internet : http://www.europe.forces.gc.ca/ger-all/lm-mg/cfs-sfc/speciali/cha-pad-eng.asp
Chaplain Belgium and Italy
Phone : +32-(0)6544-6030 Cell (24/7) : +32-(0)-492-722686
Internet : http://www.europe.forces.gc.ca/bel/lm-mg/cha-pad-eng.asp
Chaplain UK, Portugal, Turkey, Norway
Phone : +44-(0)1895-613022 Cell (24/7) : +44-(0)-787-064-1587
Internet : http://www.europe.forces.gc.ca/uk-gb/lm-mg/dh/padre-eng.asp
CFSU(E) Military Police
Phone : +49-(0)-2451-717-142
Internet : http://www.europe.forces.gc.ca/ger-all/lm-mg/cfs-sfc/operatio/ot-of-eng.asp
Health Promotion Direction
Phone : +49-(0)-2451-717206
Internet :
http://www.europe.forces.gc.ca/ger-all/lm-mg/cfs-sfc/cs-sc/psp/hp-ps/hp-ps-eng.asp
CFMRC
Geilenkirchen: Phone : +49-(0)2451-982020
Casteau: Phone : +32-(0) 6544-5962
Brussels: Phone : +32-(0) 2767-7461
London: Phone : +44(0)1895-613040
Napoli: Phone : +39 081 839 5910
Remote: Phone : +49(0)2451-717168
Internet of Centrepointe : www.centrepointe-europe.ca
CFMAP (CF Member Assistance Program)
Phone : 001-800-268-77088 or charge (613) 941-5842
Site Internet : http://www.dnd.ca/assistance/
CFSU(E) Duty Officer
Phone : +49-(0)172-534-5900
Written in Geilenkirchen, 09 september, 2009
