Arihia

Arihia is a thirty year old Maori woman who came to us initially to deal with her anger issues. She was in the early stages of pregnancy. Arihia has been heavily involved with gangs and was addicted to P. When she became pregnant she decided that she didn’t want her child to have the life that she had. Her partner was in prison at this stage and she was still in contact with him and hoping to resume the relationship when he was released. Arihia attended the Respect group and learned new ways to communicate without using threatening tactics. She was really amazed when she found out that you can actually recognize warning signs of anger and find ways to calm down. She thought it was normal to just “explode” the minute you feel upset. It has been a huge learning curve for her and it is likely she may return to attend the Strengthening Women’s group as she has been victimised since childhood. During her time here her partner Rua was released from prison and began to attend sessions in the men’s living without violence group. They both acknowledge that attending these programmes has improved their relationship and since the baby has been born they are determined to raise this child without violence or abuse.