Domestic Violence and Drug and Alcohol Problems

Dawn Farm works closely with our local domestic violence programs. We want to ensure that survivors of domestic violence achieve safety and sobriety and we want to help men who batter create accountable relationships that are consistent with the principles of recovery.
Here are a few documents that have been developed over the years to educate staff, clients and the community.

“But, I was drunk!”

A lot of people in treatment say something resembling, “I only abused her one time and I was drunk and in a black out. If I’m powerless over alcohol, how can I be responsible for this? My sentence to batterer intervention program is unnecessary. I’m an alcoholic not a batterer, and if I get sober and into recovery it will never happen again.”
Read our response here.

Common Misunderstandings about AA and DV

Twelve step groups have the potential to offer social networks with accountability and a framework for self-monitoring and addressing the ways selfishness, fear and resentment render the alcoholic “incapable of a true partnership with another human being.”
However, twelve set concepts can easily be misunderstood in ways that collude with the abuser.
Read more here.

Dawn Farm Guidelines for Working with Survivors of Domestic Violence

Dawn Farm has spent a great deal of time examining the interface between addiction and domestic violence. We recognize that there is great promise for increasing opportunities for enhancing the survivor’s safety as well as serious potential pitfalls that can lead to harming the survivor. These guidelines are intended to avoid the latter.
The following are Dawn Farm’s beliefs about treating addicted survivors of domestic violence. These beliefs should guide all of our work with survivors.
Read the guidelines here.

Dawn Farm Guidelines for Working with Batterers

Dawn Farm has given a great deal of time and consideration to the interface of addiction and battering. We believe that it is very easy for addiction professionals to inadvertently collude with batterers by minimizing their responsibility for their abuse. These guidelines are intended to help Dawn Farm staff avoid common pitfalls in working with addicted batterers.
The following are Dawn Farm’s beliefs about the relationship between battering and addiction. These beliefs should guide all of our work with batterers.
Read the guidelines here.

Barriers Preventing Effective Communication Between DV and CD Professionals

The intersection of addiction and battering has been the subject of intense debate and polarization between batterer intervention programs and addiction treatment programs.  This article is an attempt to describe some of the lessons learned on the path from fighting to collaboration between Dawn Farm (a drug-free addiction treatment provider with roots in the therapeutic community movement) and Alternatives to Domestic Aggression (a batter intervention program rooted in feminist theory and the Duluth Model).
Read the rest here.

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