Am I In An Abusive Relationship?

• USING INTIMIDATION
  - making them afraid by using looks, actions, gestures
  - smashing things
  - destroying their property
  - abusing pets
  - displaying weapons
• USING EMOTIONAL ABUSE
  - putting them down
  - making them feel bad about themselves
  - calling them names
  - making them think they're crazy
  - playing mind games
  - humiliating them
  - making them feel guilty
• USING ISOLATION
  - controlling what they do, who they see and talks to,
     what they read, where they goes
  - limiting their outside involvement
  - using jealousy to justify actions
• USING CHILDREN
  - making them feel guilty about the children
  - using the children to relay messages
  - using visitation to harass them
  - threatening to take the children away
• USING MALE PRIVILEGE
  - treating them like a servant
  - making all the big decisions
  - acting like the "master of the castle"
  - being the one to define men's and women's roles
• USING ECONOMIC ABUSE
  - preventing them from getting or keeping a job
  - making them ask for money
  - giving them an allowance
  - taking their money
  - not letting them know about or have access to family income
• USING COERCION AND THREATS
  - making and/or carrying out threats to do something to hurt them
  - threatening to leave them, to commit suicide, to report them to welfare
  - making them drop charges
  - making them do illegal things
• MINIMIZING, DENYING, AND BLAMING
  - making light of the abuse and not taking their concerns about it seriously
  - saying the abuse didn't happen
  - shifting responsibility for abusive behavior
  - saying they caused it

** IF YOU CAN IDENTIFY WITH MANY OF THE ABOVE ITEMS, 

YOU MAY BE IN AN ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIP.