LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – Women’s Protective Services of Lubbock receives calls every day from victims seeking help getting out of threatening situations.
Mikaylyn Lujan has worked with the service for two years and has seen the dangers of domestic violence firsthand. She said leaving is not as easy as it seems.
One survivor’s story
Lujan described a case involving a woman she referred to as “Delilah” to protect her identity.
“For confidentiality reasons, I’m going to refer to her as Delilah. But Miss Delilah is an elderly woman, I would say like maybe mid-60s, who had been financially and physically and emotionally abused by her own son, who was in his mid-20s. And she had endured this abuse from him for many years,” Lujan said.
“He took control over her finances… and on top of that, if things weren’t done the way he wanted them to be, or if she tried to stand up for herself in any way, she was always met with physical retaliation,” Lujan said.
Warning signs
Lujan said cases like Delilah’s, involving physical abuse, are frequent, but warning signs are not always a busted lip or bruises.
“So if you notice a friend or a family member pulling away, or if they’re kind of being more private about the things that they used to be able to speak to you about, of course the physical signs, whether it be significant amount of weight loss, or if it’s bruises, cuts, things like that. And know that there’s something happening, you can always discreetly pass along resources or such as our resource as well,” Lujan said.
Resources available
Women’s Protective Services encourages victims to use their resources, such as support groups, one-on-one counseling, and connections to resources like legal help.
“Majority of the time, whenever a survivor is getting ready to leave, that is when they’re most at risk. And almost always will the abuse escalate to physical or to a fatal incident that will happen,” Lujan said.
The Texas Council on Family Violence reports 160 lives were taken by domestic abuse in Texas last year. The victims’ ages ranged from 16 to 89 years old.
“Those friends, families, anybody that they’re connected to that have lost a loved one due to domestic violence, they can also be utilized as a voice for survivors who are currently stuck in that cycle,” Lujan said.
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