Using a true and flavorful narrative, this book captures the elder financial abuse experiences of an elderly woman - from the day of her rescue through seven months of her recovery. A woman (Sharonita) befriended Diedre nearly eight years ago; and in a short period of time, began taking full advantage of Diedre. To gain greater access to Diedre's finances, Sharonita encouraged Diedre to rent a two-bedroom apartment with her daughter, who was 40 years younger than Diedre. Within one year residing in this property, with the daughter who also worked at a pharmaceutical company, Diedre's memory began to dwindle. She was an emotional wreck and was in significant financial debt. Prior to this newfound friendship, Diedre maintained more than $70,000 in her Wells Fargo checking and savings accounts. By the time of her rescue, Diedre had $500. There were all sorts of large cash withdrawals, personal loans, and credit cards used for this woman, her family and anyone else's benefit, as they saw fit. Diedre was rescued by a former teacher she met and worked with when she was a school principal in Plainfield, New Jersey, more than two decades ago. They always kept in touch and Lynette knew something was not right. How could a former assistant superintendent, now retired with her full pension, and still an education consultant, not have enough money to cover her bills? After the rescue, much was uncovered, including some of Diedre's own skeletons; and of course, the elder financial abuse. This book is a story of triumph and hope. The burden felt overwhelming at times and that was even with having Lynette as her advocate. Imagine if Diedre had to walk this alone? Would that even be possible? Diedre is now a survivor and her story will inspire millions of elders who find themselves as victims, to fight and take a stand for their lives!
Written by a survivor of sex trafficking, Survivor's Guide to Money: How to Use Money as a Tool When It Was Used Against You as a Weapon is the first financial literacy curriculum for survivors of sex trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation. Survivor's Guide to Money is an evidence-based program designed to help survivors: - Developed safety and self-care plans to work through high-stress financial situations - Learn to track spending and saving habits - Understand financial abuse and its long-term impact on financial wellness issues - Examine the concept of self-worth - Grieve the loss of time and money following exploitation - Learn and practice communication and boundary tools - Identify common triggers around money … and much more! This workbook is designed to give survivors a framework to understand the financial abuse they endured, identify obstacles, and set goals to work towards on their journey to financial wellness. The first four chapters in this workbook are the "prep work" before the deeper process begins. They are critical groundwork that must be done to maximize the effectiveness of the rest of the workbook. The next four chapters are focused on working through some key areas where survivors experience trauma and ongoing damage even long after they have found their freedom from their abuser(s). The remaining chapters in the third and final section shift into thinking about the future, creating goals, and developing a plan to achieve them. By taking a critical look at where you have come from, where you are now, and where you want to be in the future, survivors will complete this workbook with a clear plan of action. This workbook is designed to be used in a variety of formats. First, it can be used by an individual in a self-paced setting. Or, it can be used in group formats (peer support groups, residential programming, or supplement direct service outpatient services).
This book provides an insight into advances in elder abuse in the areas of research, policy, practice and legislation. It provides readers with a broad understanding of the topic and considers the progress in elder abuse knowledge. The book explores the nexus of ageism and elder abuse, describes key social policies and their legislative manifestation, covers major policies and programs related to elder abuse, defines elder sexual abuse and much more. It offers the reader a comprehensive insight into new perspectives and approaches to both understanding and responding to elder abuse. As such it will be an asset to academics, students, healthcare practitioners, policy makers and the general public.
Nearly 1.6 million Americans now live in nursing homes. That number will double in the next twenty years, as medical science lengthens our life expectancies and the senior population grows. Inevitably, most of us will have to supervise the care of aging parents or grandparents, and every one of us faces the prospect of growing old and possibly frail. Thirty percent of elderly Americans say they would rather die than move into a nursing home. Their fears are well founded: Inspection documents show that more than a quarter of the nursing homes in the United States have been repeatedly cited for violations that caused serious harm or death to residents. In California, fully one-third caused serious injury or death, and less than 2 percent of nursing homes had no violations!
Designed to empower readers to advocate for themselves and others, this wide-ranging encyclopedia reveals a surprising range of resources and options that consumers have at their disposal. The only book of its kind, this two-volume, alphabetically arranged reference covers a broad array of topics related to consumer rights, including those of interest to often-overlooked populations such as older adults, veterans, and the homeless. Specific entries address critical areas including food and product safety, housing, health care, the financial industry, the automobile industry, and telecommunications. The encyclopedia reviews the historical development of the consumer movement, examines beliefs and values that drive the movement, and identifies agencies and laws intended to safeguard consumers. Expert contributors discuss key current issues as well as those likely to arise in the future. Vignettes and case studies are used throughout, and various, sometimes contrasting viewpoints are shared to help readers better understand the content. Related topics are easily discovered through a "see also" list, and additional readings are provided at the end of each entry.
Each year, millions of women throughout the world experience violence and abuse at the hands of their intimate partner. Abusers coercively control them by using a variety of tactics ranging from physical or sexual violence to emotional or psychological abuse. An additional tactic often used includes financial abuse in which the abuser controls the money in the family, exploits the victim’s financial standing, and interrupts her efforts to be self-sufficient. The impact of financial abuse can leave women financially trapped in the relationship with limited financial management skills, knowledge, or self-confidence. Indeed, survivors often mention financial barriers as a top reason for keeping them trapped by the abuser in the relationship. Curiously, little of the research on domestic violence has sought to either fully understand the impact of financial abuse or to determine which intervention strategies are most effective for the financial empowerment of survivors. Building Financial Empowerment for Survivors of Domestic Violence aims to address this critical knowledge gap by providing those who work with survivors of domestic violence with practical knowledge on how to empower the financial well-being and stability of survivors. Specifically, every practitioner, human service provider, criminal justice practitioner, financial manager, and corporate supervisor should be screening the women they encounter for economic abuse, and when such abuse is found, they should work with the women toward developing financial safety plans and refer survivors to financial empowerment programs to assist survivors to become free from abuse.
Victims of sexual and physical trauma can feel lost and disconnected from themselves and others. Christiane Sanderson's new book explains how counsellors can restore connection to self and others, and facilitate recovery within a safe and supportive therapeutic relationship. To understand fully the harm caused by interpersonal trauma, professionals must first recognize its complex nature, and the psychological and emotional impact of exposure to control and terror. This book examines the therapeutic techniques and specific challenges faced by professionals when working with survivors of interpersonal trauma. The author explores issues such as safety and protection, the long-term effects of trauma and the importance of visiting past experiences and assessing their impact on the present. This book is essential reading for counsellors, therapists, social workers, mental health professionals, health care professionals including GPs and midwives, legal professionals and all those working with survivors of interpersonal trauma such as sexual violence, child abuse, domestic abuse, elder abuse, institutional abuse and abuse by professionals
CHAPTER ONE CRISIS AND TRAUMAS V PRESENT EVERYWHERE What are the Distinguishing Traits of a Crisis? Research has shown that the Chinese word for crisis involves two characters; one means danger, and the other means opportunity. One psychologist summarized the peculiarities in this manner: A crisis is a turning point that usually cannot be avoided. They are filled with danger because they disrupt life and threaten to overwhelm the people who are affected. Furthermore, a crisis also present people with the opportunity to change, grow, and develop better ways of coping. Since people in crisis often feel confused and helpless, they tend to be more opened to receive outside help, including the help that comes from rescue workers, from counselors and from God. CHAPTER TWO THE MULTIFARIOUS ELEMENTS OF LOSS Increasing Number of Loss Individuals seem to cope with losses better when they are occasional. Yet after the age of 50 or 60, they pass into a period of increasing number of losses. Still grieving from the previous loss, it is ever so hard to make sense of the current one. Furthermore, if one had never learnt to deal effectively or contend with occasional losses, then it is inevitable having several will be catastrophic. Equally important is that each type of loss brings its own kind of suffering and reaction. CHAPTER THREE PURPOSE OF CRISIS COUNSELING When a visit is made, if the crisis counselor does not have an objective, the appointment will be unsuccessful. Therefore, the underlining purpose of crisis counseling is to support the hurting, and not to encourage the avoidance of reality. This means the counselor advises individuals in crisis to admit the crisis, express grief normally and arrive at a healthy resolution. CHAPTER FOUR THE CRISIS OF DEATH AND DYING Although human suffering in multiple dimensions is a factor of life which causes great pain and human anguish, it must not be used as a reason for justifying the direct taking of human lifeKGod must always be understood as the Creator and Sustainer of life. It was Norman St John-Stevas who articulated this view skillfully: The value of human life for the Christian in the first century A. D., as today, rested not on its development of superior sentience but on the unique character of the union of a body and soul, both destined for eternal life. The right to life thus has a philosophical foundation K Respect for the lives of others, because of their eternal destiny is the essence of the Christian teaching. CHAPTER FIVE COMFORTING THE SUCIDAL AND VICTIMS FAMILY The following are invaluable principles that are crucial to the helpline counseling methods: The Suicidal X Activity. The person needs to feel that something is being done for him or her right now. This solemn promise or guarantee can alleviate his or her anxiety. X Involvement of others. If the caller realizes that others are now involved and caring for him or her, the person will be more apt to feel the care and concern and will more likely respond. The Family Counselors, friends and family members alike feel guilt, extreme displeasure, and self-blame because the death was not averted. However, ultimately responsibility for suicide rests with the victim who was unable or unwilling to cope with the pressures of life. Ways to support. Promise to visit the mortuary, and advise family members to do the same. If possible, accompany the grief-stricken relatives, knowing that the initial shock and denial could be overwhelming. X Resist the phrase, It was an accident, a terrible accident. Some may think this is helpful, but its more of an expression of ones own anxiety. X Do not pass judgment, But, he or she was up all night drinking. They did not understand what they were doing. It is not helpful or necessary to give reasons for the suicide. X The date on which the suicide took plac
Since the late 1970s when Congressman Claude Pepper held widely publicized hearings on the mistreatment of the elderly, policy makers and practitioners have sought ways to protect older Americans from physical, psychological, and financial abuse. Yet, during the last 20 years fewer than 50 articles have addressed the shameful problem that abusersâ€"and sometimes the abused themselvesâ€"want to conceal. Elder Mistreatment in an Aging America takes a giant step toward broadening our understanding of the mistreatment of the elderly and recommends specific research and funding strategies that can be used to deepen it. The book includes a discussion of the conceptual, methodological, and logistical issues needed to create a solid research base as well as the ethical concerns that must be considered when working with older subjects. It also looks at problems in determination of a report's reliability and the role of physicians, EMTs, and others who are among the first to recognize situations of mistreatment. Elder Mistreatment in an Aging America will be of interest to anyone concerned about the elderly and ways to intervene when abuse is suspected, including family members, caregivers, and advocates for the elderly. It will also be of interest to researchers, research sponsors, and policy makers who need to know how to advance our knowledge of this problem.
