SAVANNAH, Ga. (WSAV) — All this month WSAV has been unmasking domestic violence. This Wellness Wednesday, we continue our series of conversations on the issue. This week we’re focusing on the impact of domestic violence on children.

We discuss the effects of domestic violence on children, which can change over time, such as:

  • Losing their sense of safety is threatened which impacts physical and mental health
  • Acting out behavior or aggression due to abuse
  • Impacting their ability to learn ways to connect to others
  • Impairing their ability to navigate conflict in a healthy way
  • We also discuss interventions and strategies like:
  • Learning what their behavior is trying to communicate
  • Creating routines and a sense of calm in other areas of their life
  • Teaching emotional regulation skills and how to calm the self
  • Increasing different types of therapy resources as they become adults

Once again we are joined by Mary Jo Horton from Memorial Behavioral Health.