This is the most exhaustive list of advice I’ve ever seen on how to protect & hopefully remove yourself or someone you know from an abusive living situation.

Safety Strategies

Preparing to Leave

No matter who you are, if you’re reading this you should bookmark these two links, then share them with everyone you know. I never imagined that I would need this sort of information until one day I needed it very badly to protect a friend & wasn’t in the state of mind to google for it or ask around for advice. We did it alone, safely & successfully, and we took most of the steps outlined above. I only wish we had known at the time that we were making the right choices rather than just hoping that we were.

What struck me was how very few people were able or willing to help her. Domestic situations are very “he said, she said” and unsurprisingly, what a scared, hysterical female says holds very little weight with most people, even family. When she’s not in hysterics people become suspicious that things aren’t as bad as they sound. Then they send her back home to live through it all over again.

If someone you know is in danger you cannot wait for a superhero. You have to be one.