Ishtar Transition House
Posted by Jason Suttie
on Jul 15, 2015
Ishtar Transition House has been operating in Langley since 1973 and is the longest running transition house in North America. It provides safe, temporary emergency housing for women and their children leaving an abusive relationship. They also provide therapeutic counseling for women and for children.
Incidents of abuse appear to follow a definite pattern. First there is a tension building phase where anger and frustration grow. Next, tensions explode and the assault occurs. The abuser feels remorse and promises not to repeat the abusive actions. Unfortunately, this never lasts and the cycle repeats, often increasing in frequency and/or severity. Ishtar provides a way to break the cycle by providing a safe place to escape to.
Children in homes where abuse occur suffer emotional abuse as a direct consequence of witnessing the violent behavior of their father or their mother's partner. Studies show 1/3 of cases involve significant alcohol or drug use, 1/3 involve some substance abuse and 1/3 have no alcohol or drugs as a factor. Abuse is seen across all socio-economic factors.