October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month: 6 Ways to Stand in the Gap for Victims

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month—a time to bring attention to a reality hidden behind closed doors, and to remind people who have experienced abuse that they are not alone.

Domestic violence is more than a single incident or a difficult relationship. It can involve patterns of physical, emotional, sexual, financial, or spiritual abuse that leave lasting wounds. Violence can be perpetrated on adults or children and can be experienced secondhand.

The effects can follow the victims long after the immediate danger has passed, shaping how they see themselves, behave in relationships, and experience trust and safety.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 1 in 3 women and more than 1 in 6 men in the United States have experienced contact sexual violence, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner during their lifetime. That represents approximately 43.5 million women and 20.7 million men. (CDC)

But behind every statistic is a person—a mother, daughter, sister, father, son, friend, neighbor, or coworker whose life may have been deeply affected by abuse.

One of our Women in Transition program participants shared the heartbreaking story of her childhood relationship with her mother, saying, “If the only touch I got was her hitting me, then I wanted her to keep hitting me.”

Unsurprisingly, a childhood like that left her ill-equipped to mother her own children, and so the cycle continued. By her own admission, “I didn’t know how to be a mom. I didn’t bond with my children. I didn’t know how to. I didn’t know how to let them know that I loved them.”

At Stand in the Gap, we connect people in need with people who care. That means we serve people whose lives have been marked by trauma, adversity, and broken relationships. Among them are incarcerated and formerly incarcerated women and young adults from hard places—populations that can face heightened vulnerability to abuse, exploitation, and cycles of trauma.

For someone who has experienced abuse, having even one safe person who listens, believes, and refuses to define them by their past can be deeply meaningful. Healing often begins when someone discovers that their story does not have to end where their trauma began.

Awareness matters. But awareness is only the beginning.

Breaking cycles of abuse and trauma requires communities willing to show up consistently—with compassion, accountability, practical support, and hope.

For young people on the verge of adulthood, the transition to independence can bring significant challenges. Without a stable support system, young people may be especially vulnerable to unhealthy relationships, exploitation, homelessness, and other forms of instability. Stand in the Gap’s Life Launch program steps in to provide small groups of mentors to walk alongside one young person during this formative time.

For women who have experienced incarceration, the story can be equally complicated. Many carry histories of trauma and abuse alongside the consequences of their own choices. Acknowledging that complexity does not remove personal responsibility, we do believe that responding to the whole person creates opportunities for restoration. Stand in the Gap’s Women in Transition program provides multiple levels of support, beginning inside prison walls and culminating in the small group mentorship experience.

Stand in the Gap believes that every person is created in the image of God and possesses inherent worth. We believe brokenness does not have the final word. We believe redemption is possible, new beginnings are real, and no person’s past is beyond God’s reach.

Stand in the Gap volunteers cultivate relationships where people can experience safety, belonging, accountability, and hope. They do not minimize the pain of abuse or offer simplistic answers to complicated situations. They walk alongside people with humility and compassion while supporting their journey toward healing, healthy relationships, and a different future.

Especially during Domestic Violence Awareness Month, consider taking action to end the cycle of domestic violence. Whether you are a current Stand in the Gap volunteer or not, there are several practical ways to respond:

1. Listen. Create space for people to share without immediately judging or trying to fix their problems.
2. Learn. Become familiar with the signs and dynamics of domestic abuse.
3. Believe survivors. Respond with compassion rather than blame or shame.
4. Support healthy relationships. Model respect, boundaries, accountability, and mutual care.
5. Build community. Isolation can make vulnerability worse. Consistent, healthy relationships make a difference.
6. Pray and serve. Ask God to show you where you can be a safe and compassionate presence in someone’s life.

Domestic Violence Awareness Month reminds us that abuse is real, its consequences can be profound, and silence can allow cycles to continue.

But it also gives us an opportunity to talk about something else: hope.

At Stand in the Gap, we see hope in people who are rebuilding. We see it in women working toward a different future. We see it in young adults learning to navigate life. We see it in people discovering that their past does not have to determine their future.

This month, may we become more willing to listen, more prepared to recognize abuse, more compassionate toward those carrying unseen wounds, and more committed to creating communities where healing and restoration can take root.