Staying alive: a client with chronic mental illness in an environment of domestic violence.

This case study of a young, African American mother with chronic mental illness demonstrates the impact of domestic violence on a vulnerable population. The client was economically disadvantaged, socially isolated, stigmatized, and victimized by repeated abuse from her live-in male partner of 7 years. With this overlay of violence in the home, the client experienced a downward trajectory in health, self-esteem, economic status, personal freedom, social relationships, and legal standing.