How To Recognise Emotional Abuse? 8 Warning Signs To Look Out For
Don't forget to safeguard yourself!
As per the official data, every day 1 in 3 women across the globe are subjected to intimate partner violence which can be sexual or physical. But have you ever thought about how physical violence in a relationship begins? In most cases, it all begins with emotional violence. In most cases, an abuser uses emotional abuse to weaken the other person and make them dependent before the physical abuse begins. Now, it’s not necessary that every emotionally abusive relationship has physical abuse as well but every physically abusive relationship sure has emotional abuse. This is why it’s important to spot the signs of emotional abuse and safeguard yourself.
8 Signs Of Emotional Abuse
1. Name-Calling: It’s one thing to outright use derogatory words but it’s an entirely different thing to use nicknames to shame you in a subtle manner. If your partner has pet names like “fatty” or “my panda”, they’re shaming you in a subtle manner.
Also Read: We Can’t Eliminate Violence Against Women Unless We Recognise And Talk About Emotional Abuse
2. Patronizing: Abusers often belittle the victim by saying things like ‘you’re a hopeless cause’ or they simply blame you for displaying bad behaviour like ‘you’re always late’ or ‘you always mess up’.
3. Public Shaming: It’s not necessary that an abuser will shame you outright because it always starts in a subtle manner. They may begin by cracking jokes at your cost or saying disrespectful things.
4. Dimissive Behaviour: Abusers are often dismissive of the victim’s emotions. For example, if you tell them that you don’t like the way they talk to you, they will say things like ‘you take everything so seriously’ or ‘you’re imagining things’ and if you call them out for cracking a joke at your cost, they may dismiss how you feel by saying something along the lines of ‘you can’t take a joke’. Essentially, they trivialise your feelings, emotions and needs.
5. Yelling: This is the biggest sign of emotional abuse. If your partner occasionally yells at you and intimidates you by throwing things, that’s a big fat warning sign of emotional abuse and it’s in your best interest to flee in the other direction.
6. Controlling Behaviour: Nothing screams emotional abuse as loud as a partner who tells you what to wear and who to talk to and how to behave. This includes controlling your finances, emotional blackmailing, gaslighting, using the silent treatment and other manipulative tactics to get you to do things how they like it.
7. Blame Game: The biggest tactic used by abusers to emotionally abuse someone is to constantly guilt trip them. They may accuse you of being too needy or simply blame you for everything that goes wrong to cover up their emotional abuse.
Also Read: Unconditional Support Can Help Women Leave Abusive Relationships. This Twitter Thread Explains How To Provide It
8. Isolation: The one big warning sign is isolation. If your partner tries to isolate you and prevent you from socialising or discussing your relationship with your family and friends, chances are that they’re preventing you from even discovering that you’re in an emotionally abusive relationship or preventing you from seeking help and support.
Remember to always watch out for these warning signs of emotional abuse in a relationship.
First Published: June 28, 2023 3:08 PMMen Don’t Need To Save Us. We Just Need Them To Call Out Problematic Behaviour In Other Men.
