He felt to blame for what had happened and was clearly confused and ashamed that he had behaved this way toward the woman he loves. And worst of all, he had done it in front of his children. 

He went on to tell of how he had completely lost his cool with his new wife and attempted to strangle her. She had called the police and now he is facing charges for domestic battery. 

Understanding Domestic Violence 

Most of us hear this story and feel aghast that someone could behave this way.  How could someone react so violently toward someone they love? 

A while back I remember seeing Oprah struggle to fathom how a wife batterer could take a frying pan to his wife’s head.  She was understandably horrified at such a behavior.  Most of us are.  But what if we could understand it?

As I talked to Jim I listened to his story.  He told of being verbally battered by his wife for everything from house cleaning to not having enough education to suit her.  She couldn’t accept his not having a college degree and she couldn’t accept his relationship with his son.  The night of the strangling event, she had squeezed his family jewels with her fingernails digging into his skin.  Because he reacted in a self-defense measure to her intimate violence, he was arrested and will, no doubt have a record that follows him for the rest of his life. 

When we feel that we are being attacked we will respond with whatever self-defensive measure we have at our disposal.  When our communication skills are limited, as they are for many men, the only resource we have is to resort to some kind of self-protective measure.  Now, he could and should have just left the scene.  But honestly, how many of us can think that clearly when we are under attack?

Fight, Flight, or Freeze 

Our brains are wired to respond to threat in certain ways.  We have all heard of the “fight, flight, freeze” pattern because it is true of all mammals (yes, we humans are mammals).  Our primitive brains are wired for our survival and chemicals are released in our brains that tell us to respond in a automatic pre-programmed ways when faced with threat. 

Not all threat as is obvious as what occurred to Jim.  Sometimes it’s “merely” verbal attacks.  Funny, I heard a heavy metal song yesterday “You hurt me with your mouth”.  How many times have we seen the public service commercial spot about words hurting as much as a fist?

Yet we expect men to react to the violence of language calmly and without anger.  I am not justifying violence.  What I am saying is that verbal violence is just as damaging to our loved ones as physical violence. 

We forget that in the middle of a fight, don’t we?  We are so bent on our own need for a sense of power and control that we will say and do almost anything to regain control.  We have to feel on top, we have to feel that we are “winning” the argument. 

Then we get angry and tell our friends how mistreated we are when our partners respond with angry, hurtful words or actions.  We can always justify our own behaviors but rarely look at our partners’ reactions with empathy.

Understanding Our Partner’s Reactions 

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1. Arguments and Fights: Why Won’t You Listen to Me?
2. Intimacy – I Give Up!
3. The Hidden Dangers Of Trying To Control Your Husband or Wife…
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5. How to Tell Your Partner Anything and Live to Tell About It