Hatching the idea to eliminate domestic violence was the easy part. Through several years of trial, research, collaborating, and re-calibrating, Foundation4 Domestic Violence Prevention is now Aureus.
While our ultimate goal is still eliminating domestic violence, the years have taught us that a significant factor in abuse is a person’s self-worth. This factor is an issue on both sides of abuse – the abuser and the abused.
A few years ago we began understanding that when people talked about their abuse they used phrases like,
“If I would have had more self-confidence I could have left”
or
“I found out that my self-esteem was so low the only time I felt powerful was when I was controlling my partner".
The 3 Selfs
The 3 Selfs (as we call them) - Self-Esteem, Self-Confidence, and Self-Worth - are often used interchangeably but they are not the same thing.
SELF-ESTEEM
The internal assessment of your traits; what you think and feel about yourself in an honest and realistic way.
SELF-CONFIDENCE
How you feel about your abilities in a given situation; the belief in yourself to accomplish something.
SELF-WORTH
The belief that you are lovable and valuable regardless of how you feel about your traits; accepting the truth that you’re more than what you do, how you look, what you think and feel.
These definitions helped guide us to an understanding that the root cause of abuse (abusing or allowing abuse) is a lack of awareness or belief in a person’s own self-worth. Through educational tools and learning resources it is now time for Aureus to take massive action to create a world in which self-worth overcomes domestic violence.
Learn from a personal account of domestic abuse. Read Leslie's Story.
