10/15/2026
Domestic violence doesn't stop when someone reaches a certain age. Yet older survivors can be overlooked in systems, data, services, and even our understanding of what domestic violence looks like.
Older adults may experience many of the same forms of power and control as younger survivors. However, the circumstances surrounding abuse may look different later in life. An older survivor may have been with their partner for decades. They may share a home, retirement income, bank accounts, or caregiving responsibilities. They may have health conditions or disabilities that make leaving more difficult. Their social circle may have become smaller over time, leaving them with fewer sources of support.
And sometimes, the person experiencing abuse may not identify what is happening as domestic violence. Generational attitudes and expectations about marriage and relationships can influence how someone understands their experience. An older survivor may have grown up at a time when domestic violence was rarely discussed, and leaving an abusive relationship may not have been viewed as an option.
If we want to prevent and respond to domestic violence across the lifespan, we must make sure older survivors are part of the conversation. To get started, here are five ways to support older adults:
1️⃣ CENTER OLDER SURVIVORS: Include older adults in domestic violence awareness, prevention, intervention, and public education efforts.
2️⃣ BRIDGE THE GAP: Strengthen partnerships between survivor advocacy organizations, Adult Protective Services, aging services, healthcare providers, housing providers, and other systems that support older adults. No single system can address all of the needs an older survivor may face.
3️⃣ USE INCLUSIVE LANGUAGE: Talk about domestic violence across the lifespan rather than framing it as something that primarily affects younger people.
4️⃣ TRAIN PROFESSIONALS: Healthcare providers, law enforcement, attorneys, advocates, housing providers, and other professionals need the tools to recognize domestic violence in older adults, including coercive control, financial abuse and exploitation, isolation, and interference with healthcare.
5️⃣ ASK DIFFERENT QUESTIONS: If you are working with or supporting an older adult, don’t assume that a long-term relationship is a safe relationship. Ask about choice, autonomy, access to money and resources, relationships with family and friends, healthcare decisions, and whether the person feels safe at home.