It’s safe to say that we’ve all been decently educated on how to recognize sexual and physical abuse. Whether or not we’re well-equipped to deal with either of the latter is debatable. However, one thing’s for sure– we don’t know how to deal with emotional abuse, if we can even recognize it that is. Nobody talks about it and as a result, it’s a deadly killer.

Emotional abuse comes in all shapes, forms and sizes. It is characterized by verbal abuse, threats, bullying and criticism. Abusers are able to control their victims and get away with these acts by manipulating, shaming and intimidating them. So much so that often times victims of emotional abuse don’t often don’t see these behavior patterns as damaging. You, your friend, parent or sibling could very easily be a victim of emotional abuse and not know it, and it’s destroying us from the inside out.

Psychologically harmful in nature, long-term emotional abuse can result in depression, emotional trauma, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Let’s stop this before it even gets to this point.

These are some of many warning signs (Check out a full list on Live Bold and Bloom):

1.. They humiliate you in front of others.

2. They regularly disregard your opinions, suggestions or needs.

3. They accuse you of being “too sensitive.”

4. They try to control you and treat you like a child.

5. You feel like you need permission to do simple things like make plans or make decisions.

6. They give you disapproving looks and/or body language.

7. They can’t take a joke, yet are constantly laughing at you.

Here’s what you can do to overcome it:

Be honest with yourself. Don’t ignore the signs. Recognize that abuse is abuse and it will not go away unless you do something about it.
Stop enabling your abuser by making excuses for their behavior.
Remove yourself from the abusive relationship. Enlist the help of your friends and family if you need to. Always keep in mind that actions speak louder than words.
Combat the negative feelings that they’ve planted in your mind about yourself with positive ones. You are in control of how you view yourself.
Find a therapist. Having a professional work with you through your feelings of confusion will help you to build strength and not fall deeper into the hole that you’re in.

Love is not supposed to hurt. Give yourself time to repair, and you’ll be even happier for it.

And remember, it can be hard to realize that you’re in an abusive relationship. But if you or someone you know needs help figuring out how to leave, learn how to take action through breakthecycle.org.

On Saturday, May 21st, we’re hosting our inaugural conference about how creativity and technology are changing our daily lives, from our hobbies to our work. Will you be joining us? Tickets here.

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