17 million broken lives: The hidden toll of domestic violence in America

In the Gregorian calendar, October is recognized as Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and October 12 marks the Day of Domestic Violence Survivors.

The United States first established this observance in 1987. Yet, decades later, the crisis of domestic violence continues to claim lives and destroy families across the Western world, particularly in the U.S.

According to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 17 million people were affected by various forms of domestic violence in the year leading up to the National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey.

The statistics reveal the alarming depth and scale of this crisis in America:

• On average, 24 people per minute become victims of domestic violence — equivalent to more than 12 million women and men each year.
• Three in ten women (29%) have experienced domestic violence in their lifetime, reporting that it has had a direct impact on their work, education, and daily functioning.
• Nearly 15% of women in the U.S. have suffered some form of physical harm due to domestic violence.
• One in four women aged 18 and older has been a victim of severe domestic violence.
• Nearly half of all women have experienced psychological or emotional abuse from an intimate partner.
• Women aged 18–24 and 25–34 are the most likely to experience domestic violence.
• Between 1994 and 2010, almost four out of every five domestic violence victims were women.
• Most female victims had been abused by the same perpetrator in previous incidents.
• One in five women has experienced rape as a form of domestic violence.
• 81% of survivors report significant short- or long-term effects such as injuries or symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
• Children witness domestic violence in nearly one out of every four cases recorded in U.S. state courts.
• Between 30% and 60% of domestic violence offenders also abuse children in their homes.
• 40% of child abuse victims report having also experienced domestic violence.
• One study found that children exposed to domestic violence are 15 times more likely than the national average to suffer physical and/or sexual abuse.
• According to the U.S. Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect, domestic violence may be the leading cause of child abuse–related deaths in the country.
• Survivors of domestic violence are three times more likely to meet the criteria for PTSD.
• They are twice as likely to show symptoms of depression and three times more likely to develop major depressive disorder.
• Survivors are three times more likely to engage in self-harming behaviors.
• They are three times more likely to experience suicidal thoughts and four times more likely to attempt suicide.
• Finally, survivors are six times more likely to develop substance use disorders.