• Stay away from the kitchen (the abuser can find weapons, like knives, there).
• Stay away from bathrooms, closets or small spaces where the abuser can trap you.
• Get to a room with a door or a window to escape.
• Get to a room with a phone to call for help; lock the abuser outside if you can.
• Call 911 (or your local emergency number) right away for help.
• Think about a neighbor or friend you can run to for help.
• If a police officer comes, tell them what happened; get their name & badge number if you can. 
• Get medical help if you are hurt.
• Take pictures of bruises or injuries and keep them somewhere safe. 
• Call a domestic violence program or shelter such as R.E.A.C.H. of Macon County and ask them to help you make a
  safety plan (<<<Click to make your own safety plan)

​

• Learn where to get help; memorize emergency phone numbers

• Keep a phone inside a room which you can lock from the inside; if you can, get a cellular phone that you keep with you at all times.
• If the abuser has moved out, change the locks on your doors; get locks on windows.
• Plan an escape route out of your home; teach it to your children. 
• Think about where you would go if you need to escape. 
• Ask your neighbors to call the police if they see the abuser at your house; create a signal for them to call the police, for example, if the phone rings twice and then the person hangs up, or a certain shade is pulled down or a light is on in a certain room. 

​

• Pack a bag with important things you'd need if you had to leave quickly; put it in a safe place, or give it to a friend or relative you trust
• Include cash, car keys & important information such as: court papers, passport, birth certificates, medical records &  medicines, immigration papers
• Get an unlisted phone number
• Block caller ID
• Use an answering machine; screen calls
• Take a good self-defense course

​

• Teach them not to get in the middle of a fight, even if they want to help
• Teach them how to get to safety, to call 911, to give your address & phone number to the police
• Teach them who to call for help
• Give the principal at their school or the daycare center a copy of your court order; tell them not to release your children to anyone without talking to you first; use a password so they can be sure it is you on the phone; give them a photo of the abuser
• Make sure the children know who to tell at school if they see the abuser
• Make sure that the school knows not to give your address or phone number to ANYONE

• Keep a copy of your court order at work
• Give a picture of the abuser to security and friends at work
• Tell your supervisors - see if they can make it harder for the abuser to find you
• Don't go to lunch alone
• Ask a security guard to walk you to your car or to the bus
• If the abuser contacts you at work, save voice mails and save e-mails
• Your employer may be able to help you find community resources

​​Protection or Restraining Orders

• Ask your local domestic violence program who can help you get a civil protection order and who can help you with criminal prosecution

In most places, the Judge can:

• Order the abuser to stay away from you or your 
  children
• Order the abuser to leave your home
• Give you temporary custody of your children & 
  order the abuser to pay you temporary child support
• Order the police to come to your home while the 
  abuser picks up personal belongings
• Give you possession of the car, furniture and other 
  belongings
• Order the abuser to go to a batterers intervention 
  program
• Order the abuser not to call you at work
• Order the abuser to give guns to the police 

• Show the prosecutor your court orders
• Show the prosecutor any medical records related to injuries, pictures, or visits related to the domestic or sexual violence. 
• Tell the prosecutor the name of anyone who is helping you (a victim advocate or a lawyer)
• Tell the prosecutor about any witnesses to injuries or abuse
• Ask the prosecutor to notify you ahead of time if the abuser is getting out of jail

• Sit as far away from the abuser as you can; you don't have to look at or talk to the abuser; you don't have to talk to the abuser's family or friends if they are there
• In many courthouses, there is a private room for survivors to wait. Ask your advocate. 
• Bring a friend or relative with you to wait until your case is heard
• Tell a bailiff or sheriff that you are afraid of the abuser and ask him/her to look out for you
• Make sure you have your court order before you leave
• Ask the Judge or the Sheriff to keep the abuser there for a while when court is over; leave quickly
• If you think the abuser is following you when you leave, call the police immediately
• If you have to travel to another State for work or to get away from the abuser, take your protection order with you; it is valid everywhere