In Domestic Violence Shelters, Families Now Find Mental Health Support

After escaping abuse, a mother and her two children receive life-changing therapy to rebuild their lives

After a 12-year relationship marked by her partner’s escalating physical and verbal abuse, Aisha Wilson’s life changed forever one terrifying night.

Tensions at the autobody shop, where they worked together, spilled over to their home and grew more frightening. Fueled by rage and alcohol, Aisha’s partner bombarded her with degrading insults, lies, and accusations. He became physically violent, and threatened her life in front of her 12-year-old son and 16-year-old daughter. In that moment, Aisha was shocked and in disbelief, but she had also had enough.
She made a plan to leave him.

“I had to really think about my next move to make sure that it was a move that would free me forever, and not no temporary nonsense that I’ve experienced before where I tried to leave and I ended up back in the same space. This time I knew I had to do something that was going to be permanent. Because my life needed to change, all the way,” she said.

Desperate to escape, she reached out to her sister and brother who called the police. Within 48 hours, Aisha, 45, and her two children moved into a NYC shelter, seeking safety. She also left her job to avoid contact with the former partner.

Over four months, the shelter became Aisha’s sanctuary. The initial days were a blur of raw emotion, but amidst the fear and uncertainty, the staff became a lifeline, providing her with a clean, welcoming environment stocked with food, clothes, and a bed, along with compassion and crucial guidance. The shelter offers a wide range of resources and supportive services to ensure residents like Aisha and her children are physically safe, emotionally cared for, financially independent, and empowered. But for Aisha, perhaps one of the biggest and most transformational decisions made during this process was enrolling in mental health services for the first time.

“I reached the space in my life where I’m tired of being scared,” Aisha says getting emotional. “I wanted my family back. I wanted to be happy again, so I knew that I had to utilize this service so that I could begin to feel whole again.” Through the Domestic Violence Shelter Mental Health Initiative , NYC Health + Hospitals provides mental health services to families residing in 41 domestic violence shelters throughout the city. Family screenings, individual and group therapy, and medication management are provided directly on-site to adults and children in participating shelters, at no cost.

Since the program launched in 2022, NYC Health + Hospitals staff have served over 700 patients in shelters. Families are able to attend weekly individual therapy appointments in-person at their shelter, at an NYC Health + Hospitals facility, or using telehealth.

Aisha’s weekly therapy sessions with Social Worker Edith Salmeron have helped her process and heal from the trauma of her past, in ways that remind her that she is worthy of dignity and respect. Her son has also benefitted from counseling services with Edith.

“Every time he comes back from a session he’s hugging me and his eyes are brighter,” Aisha says. “Thanks to Miss Edith, he seems to be talking more, expressing himself, and asking more questions. He seems to be blossoming,” she says.

Edith and the NYC Health + Hospitals team are working to establish mental health care for her daughter through VirtualExpressCare telehealth services.

For Edith, the expansion of behavioral health services in domestic violence shelters is critical.
“It is incredibly rewarding and fulfilling when a client starts to develop ‘hope,’ that their lives will be better, and when a client uses their pain and trauma to help others” said Edith.

Today, Aisha and her family are thriving. Aisha is back in school pursuing her bachelor’s degree, while also completing another professional certificate at an automotive school. Her passion for art has also been rekindled. Soon, an art project born from her experience as a domestic violence survivor will be displayed at a local gallery.

Aisha and her children are now excited about the future, especially as they prepare to transition to supportive housing. They are eager to finally have a place of their own.

Reflecting on her journey, Aisha wants other people experiencing domestic violence to know that they’re not alone.

“It feels very lonely and scary when you’re in it, but there is help available. There are people and resources on the other side of that fear,” she said. “They’ll help you make it through.”

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Help is available for survivors of domestic and gender-based violence. To get connected to services, call NYC’s 24-hour HOPE Hotline at 1-800-621-HOPE (4673), TTY: 866-604-5350, or chat with an advocate at on.nyc.gov/hotlinechat.