A saúde mental de mulheres em situação de violência doméstica

Abstract

The domestic violence in women causes physical and mental health problems and interferes with their well-being and the quality of their life. The general objective of this research was to analyze the mental health of women in situations of domestic violence who are users of a Women's Reference Center. Based on sociodemographic data, the study aimed to analyze women in situations of domestic and family violence; to find out if they had a common mental disorder and to learn their perception about the development of impairments to their mental health. This is a quantitative and qualitative, exploratory study, with a transversal cut. The research was divided into two stages: the first involved 30 women in situations of domestic violence attended at a Women's Reference Center, in the city of Campina Grande-Paraíba, Brazil. To characterize the participants, a sociodemographic questionnaire was used, and to detect the presence of common mental disorder (CMD), the Self Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-20) was applied. To understand the mental health problems of women, a semi-structured interview was used. Initially, the SRQ-20 was applied, which pointed out, in 23 (76.7%) of the participants, symptoms suggestive of CMD, above all, anxious depressive mood, somatic complaints and suicidal ideation. The second stage was carried out with 19 participants, who tested positive for TMC. A semi-structured interview was applied with questions about the object of study, domestic violence and mental health. The content of the interviews was analyzed according to the Thematic-Categorical Content Analysis proposed by Bardin and five categories of analysis were identified: emotional exhaustion; reduced self-esteem; identification with psychopathologies; suicide risk; search for health services and health care. The emotional exhaustion category included symptoms such as emotional imbalance, aggressiveness, fear and excessive crying, which affected the performance of their daily activities and the relationship with their children. The reduction in self-esteem caused insecurity and a feeling of worthlessness. From the moment they started to experience some symptoms and after receiving a medical diagnosis, in some cases, the participants felt affected by psychopathologies, especially depression, anxiety and even madness. The risk of suicide was mentioned by 42% of the study participants (suicidal ideation and attempted suicide). Regarding the search for health and health care services, 82% of the participants said they sought care, however less than half were able to obtain specialized monitoring. The research data indicated that women had negative perceptions in relation to their mental health, as they mentioned emotional and behavioral imbalances after suffering violence, which significantly harm their lives. Thus, local public policies are needed to ensure health, prevent disease and promote adequate and effective treatment for women who are victims of violence to overcome their mental health problems.