Every Month I will draw your attention to current affairs of homelessness, violence against women and other women’s issues contributing to the growing homelessness rate amongst Gen X Women.
Homelessness some starting facts.
It is a well-known that homelessness among older people in our country is growing and while there is an increase across all ages and genders, it is women who have had the greatest increase of homelessness experiences in the last year, with older women recording the highest increases in use of services.
According to homelessness Australia in their report, Overstretched and overwhelmed: the strain on homelessness services, published in August of last year, Women 45-54 had a 9.3% increase, Women 55-64 9.8% increase and Women over 65 10% increase.
The problem is not going away anytime soon, Generation X women are said to be most at risk of homelessness and in addition to my idea about Meno contributing to this, aging, domestic violence, relationship breakdown, financial difficulty and limited superannuation are making all women more vulnerable to homelessness.
Violence Against Women.
71 Women lost their lives in Australia in 2023 due to violence. To look at it another way, every 5.14 days a woman was murdered in Australia by a man. If you missed the vigil held in Adelaide on 21st of January you can see a story on it here
For the first time ever in Parliament there was an acknowledgement of the 60 Australian women and girls who lost their lives up to the 25th of November 2023, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. This was done by Sussan Ley the Deputy Leader of the Opposition and if you missed it, you could watch it here
What I find most confronting about this, is that you know these names, Lindy, Rebecca, Jackie, Erin……and the list continues. They are names of other women that you have in your life, not that you just saw on the news, and this is what brings the message home. It can be any woman who experiences violence and while the most horrific outcome is murder, it is going on every day in ways that are not always explicit and for the most part is discrete. As pointed out by OurWatch, in Australia, violence against women is called many different things, including domestic violence, family violence, intimate partner violence, coercive control, online abuse, stalking, workplace sexual harassment, street harassment and sexual assault.
Last year, all states and territories signed on to a national plan to end violence against women and children within “one generation”, which includes the target of reducing the number of women killed by 25 per cent each year and also in 2023 the government saw the sense in tracking and publicly releasing quarterly information on intimate partner homicides, which up until now has only been done by advocates and researchers, such as Destroy The Joint, who through their Counting Dead campaign has been able to raise awareness in a significant way about the hard facts of domestic violence. You can follow them here
The reason I am mentioning this in my newsletter is because there is growing evidence that violence increases against women during all phases of the menopause cycle. There is limited research on this specific topic in Australia, which I am hoping to change, however in the meantime in the UK, a survey by The Family Law Menopause Project and Newson Health Research and Education on the impact of menopause on relationships, found that two thirds (67%) of women who had divorced or separated, reported an increase in domestic abuse and arguments during Meno.
There is research in America, that included a cohort of Australian women, which has indicated that if you have experienced violence, then your Meno symptoms are more intense, and you were more likely to experience a poorer quality of life. Further this research found that violence-exposed women reached menopause approximately 20 months earlier, and 20.7% of these women were impacted by early menopause (A loss of normal function of the ovaries before the age 40).
From where I stand, we not only need to be talking about violence against women in general, but we also need to be talking about why it increases during Meno and the impacts it has on women’s health and life outcomes as a result.
Some quick facts in Australia from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2021-22). Personal Safety survey:
- 1 in 4 women (27%) has experienced violence, emotional abuse, or economic abuse by a cohabitating partner since the age of 15.
- 1 in 3 women (31%) has experienced physical violence since the age of 15.
- 1 in 5 women (22%) has experienced sexual violence since the age of 15.
- 1 in 2 women (53%) has experienced sexual harassment in their lifetime. In most incidents of workplace sexual harassment, the harasser was male.
- Women are at increased risk of experiencing violence from an intimate partner during pregnancy.
- Women are at increased risk of experiencing violence from an intimate partner during Menopause! (added by Mimi Moon Meno).
If you, a child, or another person is in immediate danger, call 000.For sexual assault, domestic and family violence counselling service call 1800 RESPECT 1800 737 732 for 24/7 phone and online services.
