Carol Zuniga, MS, LLP, CEO of Hegira Health, Inc.
October 2024
October is Domestic Violence Awareness month, a time when advocates, survivors, and communities across the country unite to share difficult conversations about domestic violence victims and bring hope to solving this serious problem that spends most of the year in the dark, shrouded in fear and shame.
It has been nearly a year since Hegira Health’s training manager and widely recognized domestic violence prevention advocate, Kelly Ann Mays, was murdered by her estranged husband at her apartment in Westland. We reeled in shock, despite being well aware of the long-standing violence in their relationship. I wrote about it and spoke about it, privately and publicly. Shamefully, when the immediate trauma subsided, we all let the horror of domestic violence in and among us, find its way back into the closet — where adults are regularly harmed, threatened, even killed, and where our children learn that violence is normal, are emotionally and, in many situations physically, scarred for life only to repeat the cycle of violence in their own adult lives.
If you or someone you care about is struggling with mental health or substance use issues contact Hegira Health call 734-458-4601 or visit www.hegirahealth.org.
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About the author
Carol Zuniga, MS, LLP, CEO of Hegira Health, Inc. is a licensed psychologist with more than 30 years’ experience in the healthcare industry. Hegira Health, Inc., is a leading provider of behavioral healthcare services with clinic locations in Western Wayne and the Downriver communities. Visit www.hegirahealth.org.