Tiger Woods, domestic violence, and family conflicts' affect on health

With golf star Tiger Woods in the media spotlight following his car wreck at the end of an episode of domestic violence, it is an opportunity to explore the impact of family conflict and violence on our health. Woods reportedly was assaulted by his wife in the midst of an argument over his alleged infidelity, and upon attempting to leave the scene in his car Woods was chased by his wife with a golf club. This distraction led to Woods crashing his car against a fire hydrant and a neighbor's tree. Fortunately, Tiger Woods does not appear to have sustained any major physical injuries in this incident. However, there are certainly emotional wounds among persons in the Tiger Woods household that could use some tending to.

Domestic violence is a common cause of hospital visits, and affects people of all ages, races, and socioeconomic backgrounds. Every year in the USA, there are between 2-4 million cases reported of women assaulted by male partners, while about 800,000 cases are reported of men assaulted by female partners. Violence in homosexual relationships is also quite common and abuse of children and the elderly and disabled is a persistent social ill as well. It is reported that about 1 in 6 women are abused while pregnant, exposing children to violence even before they leave the womb.

Domestic abuse and violence create cycles of dysfunctional relationships, where people act impulsively on emotions generated from imbalanced ego-based psychological patterns. People acting from fear and resentment may have difficulty controlling how they express their emotions. Once the emotion arises it seeks to be expressed, and if not expressed externally it can build within the individual. This can lead to impulsive outbursts or to physical illness and disease, since the energy of these emotions must either be expressed or transformed in some manner. Domestic violence creates chronic stress, which contributes to many health problems. Unresolved emotions are believed by many health care professionals to be a major factor in heart disease and cancer, the most common causes of death in our society. Being intelligent, talented, wealthy, or famous does not make one immune to having emotional challenges. Being in a prominent social position can actually make it even more difficult to deal with one's emotions, since sharing about one's difficulties involves showing vulnerability and humility. When people have an unrealistic, idealistic image to maintain, they may suppress dealing with their own shadows and repressed feelings. The 2009 film The Shadow Effect by best-selling author Debbie Ford explores this topic of our shadow side, which is a vital part of ourselves that can become problematic if we avoid integrating it.

If domestic violence is present in your family or household you are encouraged to seek guidance and help before things escalate. The longer a pattern persists the more entrenched it may become. If you wait to deal with the issue it may end up being an even greater challenge.  There's no need to wait until things come to a crash to seek help and healing for domestic conflict and emotional wounds.  Resources to assist those in need include the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, the National Domestic Violence Hotline (1-800-799-SAFE [7233]), and The National Resource Center on Domestic Violence (1-800-531-2238).