The problem of domestic violence cannot be underestimated as any Probation and Parole Officer (as I was) can testify.
The jails are full of people with uncontrollable violence. When you talk to them, most are very nice and appear ‘normal’. Those with a minimum amount of insight will tell you that they have no idea why they can be so violent, or that they may have acted "out of character".
I am also a nutritional psychologist and my job was to 'rehabilitate' offenders. Many incidents of domestic violence occur under the influence of alcohol, and alcohol in particular can trigger very violent reactions. The reason is that alcohol is a hypoglycemic chemical that can suddenly lower blood sugar levels in some people with a sensitivity to alcohol. A person in a hypoglycemic state can be compared to an animal without a brain. Whereas non-alcoholic people might slow down and fall asleep, in alcoholic people it can raise their energy levels to extreme (due to adrenaline) and their behaviour can be out of control.
Many of my clients also report that they could not remember their offence (murder or grievously bodily harm). If alcohol consumption plays a role in violent behaviour, treatment of alcoholism is absolutely essential. Return to alcohol is usually a bad sign.
There are many psychological explanations why people may overreact and much of this has to do with their negative self-image and lack of social skills.
However my experience has been that “talk therapy” has been of little use, because many of these clients would ‘relapse’ into violent behaviour soon after ‘therapy’.
Being a nutritional psychologist I was of course interested if there could be a metabolic disorder that could explain that kind of behaviour. Working with doctors with a similar interests as myself, we found that MOST violent offenders, whether alcoholic or not, were hypoglycemic!!!!
Thus the first step in the treatment of ‘recidivist’ violent behaviour is to test clients with the special test for hypoglycemia. This test is described at our web site at:
www.hypoglycemia.asn.au
“Testing for Hypoglycemia and How the Doctor can Help”
We also have a paper-and-pencil, test called the NBI (Search web site). If you score high then you are likely to be hypoglycemic. The hypoglycemic syndrome has many forms and types and some can be due to a mineral imbalance (especially zinc and copper) whilst blood sugar levels may range within the norm.
The biochemical aspects of violent behaviour can be explained in terms of overproduction of adrenaline in certain stressful situations - the fight/flight hormone - that is triggered in people who suffer from brain energy starvation.
Thus an essential part of treatment is putting clients on a hypoglycemic diet, that includes also detection of possible allergies and food sensitivities as well as nutritional deficiencies (especially mineral imbalances by way of hair analysis).
The psychological aspects to violent behaviour should not be ignored either. I have found that most violent people are extremely sensitive to criticism.
This usually means that they have a negative self-image which can date back to childhood. It is has been suggested that some people implode and others explode in stress situations, and it seems that violent-prone people tend to explode.
This negative self-image may be due to the fact that they never had complete control over their moods due to the metabolic disorder, and have learned to be aggressive to deal with it. But even if that is treated (by the hypoglycemic diet), they still need to learn appropriate defences against criticism.
The psychotherapy course I taught in groups is based on EGO psychology, where the self-image is seen as being at the core of personality. If you are interested in that course it is best to read on it at our web site under PSYCHOTHERAPY. Assertiveness Training is an important part of treatment.
Thus in summary treating violent behaviour is primarily based on treating the nutritional biochemistry affecting behaviour and this is followed by more traditional psychotherapy.
I always advised for both members in a relationship to participate in the course so that both would be aware of what is going on. Some of the triggers of violent behaviour can be dealt with immediately by either partners, once you understand some of the mechanisms involved.