Taking Care of Yourself

Being in an abusive relationship can have a huge impact on your health - physically, mentally or emotionally.  It is important that you get medical treatment if you are injured. Injuries may sometimes turn out to be a lot worse than they appear at first. If you decide to report your abuse to the police, they may ask for a record of any injuries you suffered.

You may feel depressed and that you cannot cope or constantly feel tired and run down. This may happen even after you have left the relationship, either because of all the changes you have had to cope with or because you no longer have to take the feelings of the abuser into account.  You now have space for your feelings to surface.

Try getting support for this from friends and relatives, your GP, health visitor, Refuges, the Police Domestic Violence Unit or a counsellor, who will help you work through your feelings.