Domestic Violence Awareness Month begins in October, drawing attention to a form of abuse that affects millions of Americans and can begin long before a victim suffers a visible injury.
Federal data show intimate partner violence affects women and men across age groups, while abusive relationship patterns can begin during adolescence and children can suffer lasting effects simply from witnessing violence in their homes.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines intimate partner violence as physical violence, sexual violence, stalking, or psychological aggression committed by a current or former romantic partner.
The CDC’s latest National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey estimates that approximately 34% of U.S. women (nearly 43.5 million) have experienced contact sexual violence, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner during their lifetimes.
Among men, the comparable figure was approximately 17%, or 20.7 million men.
During the 12 months measured in the survey, an estimated 6.7 million women and 2.8 million men experienced at least one of those forms of intimate partner violence.
The survey was conducted from September 2023 through September 2024 among 15,609 adults. The CDC cautions against directly comparing those estimates with older editions of the survey because its methodology changed.
More Than 240,000 Texas Family Violence Offenses
The latest statewide law-enforcement data demonstrate the scale of the problem closer to home.
The Texas Department of Public Safety’s 2025 Crime in Texas report recorded 240,925 family-violence offenses involving 241,015 victims statewide in 2025.
Simple assault accounted for 169,100 offenses, followed by 31,613 aggravated assaults, 26,490 intimidation offenses, 4,939 rapes, and 3,072 kidnappings or abductions.
The report also recorded 415 murder or non-negligent manslaughter offenses carrying a family-violence designation.
DPS cautions that incidents can involve multiple offenses and victims, so those totals should not be interpreted as a count of unique incidents.
The 2025 figures are the most recent full-year family-violence statistics currently published by DPS.
161 Texans Killed By Intimate Partners
A separate measure examines the most severe outcome of abuse.
The Texas Council on Family Violence’s latest Honoring Texas Victims report documented 161 Texans killed by an intimate partner in 2024.
Firearms were used in 71% of the killings, and in 34% of cases the perpetrator also died by suicide.
The organization found that 75% of victims had sought help to end or escape the abuse, while 66% of perpetrators had a known history of violence.
Among women killed, victims ranged from 17 to 70 years old, with women ages 30 to 39 accounting for the largest number of deaths.
Male victims ranged from 18 to 69, with men ages 30 to 49 comprising the largest group.
There Is No Single Age Of A Domestic Violence Victim
Those figures illustrate why there is no meaningful single “average age” for a domestic-violence victim.
It may also begin much earlier than many people realize.
The CDC describes teen dating violence as a type of intimate partner violence that can occur in person, online, or through technology and can include physical violence, sexual violence, psychological aggression, and stalking.
In the CDC’s 2021 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, among U.S. high school students who reported dating during the previous 12 months, approximately 1 in 12 experienced physical dating violence and about 1 in 10 experienced sexual dating violence.
The CDC notes that behaviors teenagers may initially dismiss as teasing, name-calling, or ordinary relationship conflict can develop into more serious forms of abuse.
Abuse Does Not Always Begin With A Punch
Domestic violence is not limited to physical assault.
Warning signs identified by the National Domestic Violence Hotline include extreme jealousy, isolation from relatives or friends, controlling household finances, preventing a person from working or attending school, repeated humiliation, sexual coercion, threats against children or pets, destruction of property, and intimidation involving weapons.
Technology can add another layer of control.
Phones can reveal locations and communications, while GPS devices and online accounts can be used to monitor a victim. The Hotline warns that computer and cellphone activity can sometimes be monitored without the user knowing.
That makes digital safety especially important when someone is searching for help.
What Someone Else Might Notice
Friends, relatives, co-workers, neighbors, teachers, and pastors may never witness an assault.
They may notice something else.
A person who once spent time freely with friends may become increasingly isolated. Someone may appear frightened when a partner calls, repeatedly cancel plans, have little control over money, offer explanations for injuries that do not seem to fit, or appear to need a partner’s approval before making ordinary decisions.
A partner may call or text incessantly, demand someone’s location, publicly humiliate the person, control transportation, or appear unexpectedly at work or social events.
No single behavior proves abuse is taking place.
A pattern of control combined with fear, however, can be a reason to privately ask whether someone feels safe.
Why Doesn’t The Victim Simply Leave?
It is one of the most common questions surrounding domestic violence and one of the most complicated.
A person may depend financially on an abusive partner, share children, housing, transportation, health insurance, bank accounts, or pets, or have nowhere safe to go.
Some fear losing custody of their children. Others have been threatened with violence against themselves, relatives, children, or pets if they leave.
The National Domestic Violence Hotline warns that leaving can be a particularly dangerous period and recommends individualized safety planning.
A safety plan is a personalized strategy for increasing safety while experiencing abuse, preparing to leave, or after leaving.
Depending on the circumstances, it can include identifying safer areas of a home and exits, maintaining access to a telephone, arranging transportation, documenting abuse when safe to do so, identifying trusted people, and planning for children’s and pets’ safety.
How To Help Someone You Are Worried About
Trying to help does not necessarily mean confronting a suspected abuser.
That can sometimes increase the danger to the victim or others.
The National Domestic Violence Hotline encourages friends and relatives to focus first on safety, listen without judgment, privately express concern, and help the survivor think through options rather than attempting to take control of the situation.
Practical assistance might include providing transportation, storing copies of important documents, offering access to a safer telephone or computer, helping locate an advocate or shelter, caring for a pet, or establishing a code word signaling that emergency assistance is needed.
Friends and relatives can also contact the Hotline themselves for help developing a safety plan.
Children Can Be Victims Without Being Hit
Children do not have to be physically assaulted to be affected by domestic violence.
A child may hear an assault, see a parent injured, witness threats, attempt to intervene, or live with persistent fear about what may happen next.
The CDC classifies witnessing intimate partner violence as an adverse childhood experience, or ACE — a potentially traumatic experience that can affect health and well-being later in life.
In the CDC’s nationally representative 2023 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 18.6% of high school students younger than 18 reported having witnessed intimate partner violence.
The same research examined how exposure to adverse childhood experiences is associated with health conditions and risk behaviors among teenagers.
When A Weapon Is Present
The Texas fatality numbers highlight why threats involving firearms should be taken seriously.
The Texas Council on Family Violence found that 71% of Texans killed by intimate partners in 2024 were killed with a firearm.
The National Domestic Violence Hotline also identifies strangulation, the presence of a firearm, and serious suicidal behavior by an abusive partner as particularly significant lethality concerns.
Someone who believes a person is in immediate danger should contact emergency services rather than physically confronting an armed or violent individual.
Where To Find Help
Someone in immediate or life-threatening danger should call or text 9-1-1.
The National Domestic Violence Hotline operates 24 hours a day at 800-799-SAFE (7233).
People can also text START to 88788 or use the organization’s online chat.
The Hotline is also available to friends and relatives who are concerned that someone they know may be experiencing abuse.
Domestic Violence Awareness Month lasts through October, but the need for awareness, support, and prevention continues year-round.
