Abuse does not exist in isolation- it infiltrates every corner of a person’s life. Sabotaging goals, destabilizing employment, harming children, and eroding peace and happiness, abuse is  a cancer that eats away at every facet of a person’s life. The damage can be so extensive that it creates long-term economic, emotional, and social consequences that can last for decades.

Life Goals Set Back by Abuse

A national survey found that over 60% of survivors reported that intimate partner violence negatively affected their ability to pursue education or career advancement. 

Studies show that between 21% and 60% of survivors lose their jobs due to abuse-related reasons, including harassment at work, injury, stalking, or forced absenteeism

Many survivors lose jobs, become homeless, accumulate debt, lose access to shared assets, or have their credit damaged as a result of abuse.

Even after leaving an abusive relationship, survivors frequently report lower lifetime earnings and reduced economic security.

Lost Workdays and Reduced Productivity

The economic impact of abuse on the workforce is substantial. In the United States alone, intimate partner violence results in nearly 8 million lost paid workdays every year. Survivors miss work due to injuries, medical appointments, court proceedings, relocation for safety, avoiding altercations, embarrassment, and psychological trauma.

Even when present at work, survivors often struggle with concentration, sleep deprivation, anxiety, and fear- reducing productivity and increasing the risk of disciplinary action or termination.

Parenting and Child Outcomes

Abusive relationships profoundly affect parenting and child development. Research consistently shows that exposure to domestic violence is associated with increased behavioral problems, anxiety, depression, and academic difficulties in children. Survivors coping with trauma may have reduced emotional bandwidth, making consistent and responsive parenting more difficult.

Children who witness abuse are also at higher risk of becoming victims or perpetrators of violence later in life, contributing to cycles of intergenerational harm.

Loss of Peace, Happiness, and Well-Being

Perhaps the most devastating impact of abusive relationships is the loss of peace and happiness. Survivors experience significantly higher rates of depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and chronic stress. Living under toxic, abusive circumstances erodes a person’s sense of safety, trust, and self-worth.

Even years after leaving an abusive relationship, many survivors report lingering emotional distress, difficulty forming healthy relationships, and reduced overall life satisfaction.

Conclusion

Abusive relationships destroy lives in ways that are both visible and invisible. They delay dreams, strip financial security, disrupt careers, harm children, and rob individuals of peace and joy. These consequences are not just theories, they are well-documented, real, and catastrophic.

Recognizing the full scope of harm is essential to addressing abuse not only as a personal tragedy, but as a serious public health and societal issue.

Understanding how abuse can set your life back 10 years is critical to let you know how important it is to address and eliminate abuse from your life.

References

1. Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR). Dreams Deferred: A Survey on the Impact of Intimate Partner Violence on Survivors’ Education, Careers, and Economic Security. 2018.
2. National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV). Economic Abuse and Domestic Violence.
3. Legal Momentum. The Impact of Domestic Violence on the Workplace.
4. National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV). Domestic Violence and Employment Statistics.
5. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics. Intimate Partner Violence: Consequences and Costs.
6. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Preventing Intimate Partner Violence: Consequences.
7. American Psychiatric Association. Domestic Violence: Psychological Effects.
8. Women’s Health.gov (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services). Effects of Domestic Violence on Children.
9. Evans, S. E., Davies, C., & DiLillo, D. Exposure to Domestic Violence: A Meta-Analysis of Child and Adolescent Outcomes. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 2008.
10. World Health Organization (WHO). Violence Against Women: Health Consequences.
11. CDC. Intimate Partner Violence and Mental Health Outcomes.
12. American Psychological Association. Long-Term Effects of Domestic Violence.