How to get out of an abusive relationship -- with your BF, father or otherwise.

abuse.jpgHe tells you that you'll never be good enough or that you'll never amount to anything. He calls you names, criticizes your body or says that you're stupid. And he makes you question yourself and your value. Sound familiar? If these words, actions or circumstances are coming from the man you love -- whether he's your boyfriend, your father or another man in your life -- you may be the victim of emotional abuse.

Unlike physical or sexual abuse, there are no scars or physically painful acts that you can point to as harmful. But emotional abuse is just as painful, scarring and damaging to your self-esteem -- and you, in all your amazingness, deserve sooo much better. Unfortunately, emotionally abusive relationships can leave you feeling powerless, even believing that he's right when he says you're not a valuable, good person.

But the most important thing you can do is realize your worth -- just like Summer (a.k.a. Christina) did when she decided to leave the sex industry and take back her life once and for all. Take a cue from Christina and her amazing bravery and allow yourself the right to live in an environment where your worth is acknowledged and respected. It's the best gift you can ever give yourself.

And deciding that you don't deserve this kind of relationship is the hardest part. But once you do decide to recognize your fabulousness and get help, just know that there IS support. That step will be all the more easy if you reach out for help and support. Here are a few resources:

National Council on Child Abuse and Family Violence:
1-800-222-2000

National Resource Center on Domestic Violence:
1-800-537-2238

National Women's Resource Center:
1-800-354-8824

Need more signs that you might be in an emotionally abusive relationship? Check to see if any of these apply to you:

  • He makes you feel like you're always wrong or everything's your fault.
  • He makes you think that you are of no value in the relationship.
  • You feel like you're intruding when you ask how his day was.
  • He says you're fat, stupid, ugly and no one wants or likes you.
  • He says you can't handle life without him.
  • He makes you feel like you can't try anything new.
  • You feel like you wouldn't be anyone without him.

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I was in a realationship for almost two years. At first it was perfect. Then I became pregnant after being pregnant for a few months he became abusive, extremely abusive, right away. The first thing that he did was chock me. I knew that it wasnt healthy, but I stayed. I delt with that for so long that I started thinking that it was all my fault. After I gave birth I found out that he had been cheating on me for our intier relationship. Yet after all that I still didnt want to leave. I stayed for another month. Then on a monday morning my head got clear. I packed up and left. I got lucky! Some people not so much. I mean I may not have anything but I have food for my son a bassenette that he is getting to big for and clothes for us but I am alot safer. so here to every person in my shoes. Keep your head up and you will make it some how some way.
 
Im in emotional and abusive relationship i always say im gona leave but i give him chance after chance he calls me names tells me im ugly and that im nothing but only when hes drunk and when he becomes sober he apolgizes and i forgive i dont know how to get past it...Im scared of change because ive been with him almost 5 years
 
The Absence of Rage I Got Flowers Today (Poem) I got flowers today. It wasn’t my birthday or any other special day We had our first argument last night, And he said a lot of cruel things that really hurt me. I know he is sorry and didn’t mean the things he said Because he sent me flowers today. I got flowers today. It wasn’t our anniversary or any other special day Last night he threw me into a wall and started to choke me. It seemed like a nightmeare. I couldn’t believe it was real I woke up this morning sore and bruised all over. I know he must be sorry, Because he sent me flowers today. I got flowers today. It wasn’t Mother’s Day or any other special day. Last night he beat me up again. And it was much worse than all the other times. If I leave him, what will I do? How will I take care of my kids? What about money? I’m afraid of him and scared to leave. But I know he must be sorry Because he sent me flowers today. I got flowers today. It was the day of my funeral. Last night, he finally killed me. He beat me to death. If only I had gathered Enogh courage and strength to leave him, I would not have gotten flower today.
 
a man like this will never change. my x bf of 4 yrs would punch me in the head. he got me at my school and saw my sisters bf parking at the same building i left from and he got mad bc he would go to that building. so he punched me in the head when we got in the car and grabbed my hair and pulled. its hard to get out of things like this b.c they black mail u about everything and he would prank call my house. im out not but cyco me misses him
 
I am 21 and i have just come out of an emotionally abusive relationship. He never treated me right from the beginning but because he was a christian and loved God I thought he would change and treat me better. I have learned a valuable lesson.Even if man loves God it's up to him to change and God will help work it out. He never wanted to change. I made myself believe,"oh God will change that!" but in reality it's man who has to make the decision to change first. He called me horrible names, cursed me out in front of his friends, was always mad at me for something. Everything was my fault and he never took responsibility for his own actions. He raised his hand to me a couple of times, but he better be lucky he didn't hit me! the sad part was i was going to go back to him because i believed that he was going to change and somehow treat me right. He's not and i deserve better!
 
this is too all woman in bad relationships all i have to say is get out before he does something to really hurt u Mental abuse is worse then hitting ...i can say this due to being in a marriage that was phical abuse (hitting, spitting in my face,ect...) then 2 yrs later i met another man who was mentaly abusive ..i am no longer with either man but my children payed the price for me chooing the wrong men in my life ..a man will hit u if u let him ,he will mentaly abuse u if u let him ..find help any where u can ,talk to some one about it. PLEASE PLEASE GET HELP. if not for ur self do it for the children in the future . no one has the right to put their hands on anyone and it make me so made when they say their sorry or it will never happen again . Bull##it is what i say .
 
its hard to get out of a relationship like that. some girls say well if he hits you and dosent treat you right why dont you just leave?? i was 16 when i had a baby and i didnt no what i was getting myself into my boyfriend would always go out and started to hit me after i had my baby. it got to the point where i had bruses all over my body and he was extreamly jealous. i lost all my friends and i would never go out. after so long things started to get really bad and i would lie to him not because i was doing anything wrong but because i was just so scared i no it sounds dumb but thats just how i was. i found out that in the summer he cheated on me twice. it really hurt me but im back with him now because i love him so much!!! sometimes i think about what he did and it makes me want to leave him for good but i just cant.
 
Tyra, I think it's interesting how when women think they found "love" ... almost anything that man does to her, becomes accepting. Whether it's cheating, abuse, alcohol, drugs or gambling, women become passive to it. I, like most women in the world, have experienced abusive relationships. If I wanted to "live" and survive, I knew that it was simply up to me to make the decision to leave. No matter how much a person can tell you to "leave" it takes a lot of strength, to actually get away. In my faith I learned that "Love is patient, and kind...." It took 10 years to heal, and realize that I deserved "true" love in my life. On the flip side, there are men who get abused by women too, however, those cases are rarely acknowledged. Thank you Tyra, for being an inspiration, and for shedding light on the real issues that we go through daily in our lives.
 
tyra, i was involved in an abusive relationship. he used to say harsh things to me, accused me of things i wasnt doing. i decided to leave him and i went to a place where i knew he wouldnt find me. since that day it was over betweem us and im now free.
 
tyra, i was involved in an abusive relationship. he used to say harsh things to me, accused me of things i wasnt doing. i decided to leave him and i went to a place where i knew he wouldnt find me. since that day it was over betweem us and im now free.
 
Bill You Have A Big Heart...i admire you.
 
My dad was emotionally abusive to my mom and it happened my whole life growing up so I thought it was ok how he treated her because I loved him so much and thought he was a great man. Sometimes I felt like they put me in the middle of their fights by talking to me about the other one instead of each other like they should. My father died from cancer when I was 17. I miss him terribly and my mom I know loved him but she is still dealing with the emotional scars he left and he died 7 years ago. She is remarried but I don't think she is happy in this relationship either. My friend reminds me so much of my mom when she was her age. She is married to an abusive man and they split up but she is thinking of going back to him. I hope she doesn't. She admitted just before she moved out that he had hit her a few times. I knew he had a bad temper and was really emotionally abusive, I tried to let her know that it was just a matter of time before he hit her and he did. She is an amazing person she just has low self esteem and anyone should be so blessed to have her in their life. I wish she could realize how amazing she is and learn to go for what she deserves. Also to Bill with the nurse offer, I am interested. How old is your son? I am a CNA currently but would like to go to nursing school. I have a 21 month old son and I live in OR. I'm 24.
 
Women! can stand up just like a man can. You can fight being abused even harder by just leaving solves all problems. If you stay thats when he knows he has control. it hurts to leave the one you love but hurts more when the one you love is hurting you. face reality and ask yourself if thats what you really want.
 
im only 17 and ive been involved with this one guy since i was 14 off and on...he cheated on me when we first started dating but still made that out to b my fault..we broke up then he came back round 3 months later saying that he wants to work things out...the min i said yes was the minute that changed my life...since then he has put me through an eating disorder cuz he continuoously called me fat then i started dropping weight and he asked if i was making myself puke..hes gotten alot of my friends against me and tries controlling every aspect of my life. a few weeks ago he got in my face yelling at me nd he was so close to hitting me that i started crying,hes alot bigger older and stronger then me nd i didnt know what to do, my parents dont like him so if they ever found out we hung out id b dead and he doesnt understand that theyd probably have him arrested...its so scary nd something i think about every day because i kept hiim in my life its become a problem that has gotten bigger and bigger that i dont know how to control cuz he thinks he does nothing wrong and im just to sensitive. get out of relationships like this because its ur life and happiness your risking and i found that out the hard way because of someone who supposedly loved me
 
But what if its more then just emotional abuse?



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