Although women/men who live in rural areas have many of the same experiences with domestic violence as women/men living anywhere else, those living in rural areas have certain experiences and face certain barriers that are unique to rural settings.

One of the most common tactics of batterers in rural areas is using isolation to maintain power and control over their victims. Batterers may engage in any or all of the following behaviors in an attempt to isolate their partners:

• Prevent access to family vehicles or prevent their partner from getting a driver's license;
• Ridicule their partner or create problems when family or friends are around so that she is reluctant to have them come and visit;
• Accuse their partner of flirting or having an affair;
• Remove the telephone when leaving the home or calling every hour to monitor their partner's whereabouts;
• Threaten to beat their partner when they come back from shopping, an outing with friends, or a visit with family;
• Threaten to kill their partner or their partners' family or pets

A woman/man isolated in these ways has a much more difficult time escaping from a violent partner. Although women and men everywhere experience some form of isolation as a form of control by their partners, those living in rural areas experience even more magnified isolation. Many factors associated with rural areas can have an impact on a rural woman' s/man' s isolation and ability to get out of an abusive relationship. Some of these include that:

• Those living in rural areas may not have phone service;
• There is usually no public transportation, so if s/he leaves, s/he must use a family vehicle;
• There may be a long response time for police and medical personnel;
• Extreme weather conditions, like cold, snow, ice and mud, often exaggerate isolation because on the inability to drive anywhere in these conditions;
• There are fewer resources available to women in rural areas, including: jobs, housing, childcare, and health care. Distance limits access to these resources.
• Employment is sometimes seasonal, meaning women/men may be trapped with her/his batterer for extended periods of unemployment;
• Hunting weapons are common in rural households, as are everyday tools that could be used as weapons, including: axes, chains and pitchforks;
• Alcohol (and drugs), which often affect the severity of the abuse, are common during winter months and unemployment;
• Bruises may fade or heal before a woman/man sees a neighbor or family, and working with farm tools and equipment can be an easy explanation of injuries;
• Rural families are often one-income families and the woman/man may have no money of her/his own to support her/himself and the children

Women and men residing in rural areas have unique problems in attempting to leave abusive relationships and get help. The Family Counseling Center Domestic Violence Program can provide support, safety, planning, safe shelter, job training, information and referrals, advocacy, and transportation. These can all help a woman/man who is battered to obtain the resources they need to get out of an abusive relationship.

• For assistance, call the Domestic Violence Hotline 24-hours a day at (518)725-5300