Domestic Violence Case – Call received by the Sikh HelpLine
“Bless the helpline to continue help silent victims like me..”
Testimonial (Real Case Study):
A call was received by the Sikh Helpline regarding a rape case that had been brought to the forefront after the highlighted press case from Delhi in the recent news. A lady who was in deep distress having hidden her pains for many decades until she couldn’t bear it no more.
I was married for 15 years, to a once loving and caring man…who under the influence of alcohol became very abusive with domestic violence and sexual abuse too…..I had two beautiful children with my husband but years later, began to realise that a lot was being hidden from me, and all the money I had been earning for all my married years was disappearing into a dark black hole, that I couldn’t trace. I took the physical abuse for many years towards the end of my marriage, including forced intercourse against my consent, but in my culture, women are expected to fulfull their duties to look after the house, our husband and our children and it is not easy when one is being continuously beaten and bruised as well as salved for one’s pleasure.
Over the years of my marriage, I was continuously raped by my husband on several occasions but had no one to turn to. I could not talk to my family as I did not want to worry them, or upset them. I knew leaving him or having a divorce would not be supported due to the shame it would bring to the community. I used to hear about this happening to other people and they would always be advised to be patient and things will get better with time. I too followed this cultural and social way of living to protect my reputation in the community and to avoid being shunned as a divorcee, and to save my children being labelled too. However, when I saw the Delhi rape case on the news, it hit me… how men were getting away with such bad acts of crime in India. Seeing this message clearly on the news bought it all back for me. I was at breaking point. I had never been able to voice my experiences…. I had been handed the Sikh Helpline card by a colleague. I picked up the phone to the Sikh Helpline for help…..
I was fortunate enough that my call was dealt with immediately and passed onto a lady who gave me all the time i needed to get through the memories that I had just brushed under the carpet for many decades. A member of the Sikh Helpline team came to see me where i was comfortable and listened to me…..and talked to me……now months later…i feel i am liberated of my past that I was dragging along with me everywhere…. I feel free…and its all thanks to the Sikh Helpline who genuinely want to help and do whatever it takes to make sufferers like me feel better….I came to realise that all i needed was a listening ear and Sikh Helpline gave me this opportunity.
I want to thank the volunteers at the Sikh Helpline who are doing such a great job…sometimes all we need is a non-judgmental listener to let us get things off our chest…. bless the helpline to continue help silent victims like me.
DOES THIS SOUND FAMILIAR TO YOU? ARE YOU OR SOMEONE WHO YOU KNOW GOING THROUGH THIS OR SOMETHING SIMILAR? PLEASE DO NOT SUFFER IN SILENCE, THERE IS ALWAYS SOMEONE HERE TO HELP AT THE SIKH HELPLINE, 24 HOURS A DAY, 7 DAYS A WEEK. PLEASE CONTACT US USING ONE OF THE METHODS ON OUR CONTACT US PAGE.