emotional abuse
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Recognizing and Overcoming Emotional Abuse: A Path to Freedom, and Empowerment

Emotional abuse can be difficult to identify, as it often doesn’t leave visible scars. However, its impact on mental and emotional well-being can be profound and lasting. In this guide, we’ll break down the complexities of emotional abuse, offering insight into its hidden forms and providing actionable steps for healing. You’ll learn:The different types of emotional abuse

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emotional abuse confusion
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How Emotional Abuse Creates a Maze of Confusion

Have you ever been in a conversation where you feel things are getting off-topic or out of control, but you can’t figure out how it happened or why?  Or, maybe you’ve attempted to raise a reasonable complaint, concern, or hurt, wanting to open up about how you’re feeling and deepen an emotional connection with your

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Narcissistic Parents
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Adult Children of Narcissistic Parents: What Happens After They Grow Up

The Lasting Impact of Growing Up with a Narcissistic Parent It’s difficult to fully comprehend the impact of a narcissistic parent on a child.  Children of narcissistic parents experience recurring trauma  that leads to interrupted brain development and other negative effects that often stay with them well into adulthood. The impact of prolonged recurring childhood

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how to tell your story of abuse
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How to Share Your Story of Abuse and How it Helps You to Heal

Sharing your story—publicly or privately—is a significant step in the healing journey for any survivor.    Some prefer to share their story with one or two trusted people. Others may want to share it with groups of safe people, such as family, friends, or a community group they belong to.    Sometimes, survivors want to

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reactive abuse
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Understanding Reactive Abuse: What You Need to Know

Discerning the experiences and stories of two people can be tricky and confusing.  This is especially true when there is a long history of abuse, and the victim’s involuntary trauma responses are triggered by recurring abusive attacks. Both people act in ways that could be considered emotionally violent and/or abusive to an outsider.  This may

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Covert Abuse
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Covert Abuse: Identifying Hidden Forms of Emotional Manipulation

What is covert abuse, and what is covert emotional abuse?   “Covert” means “hidden” or “secret.”   Covert abuse involves specific manipulative behavioral tactics that are hard to spot and difficult to define.   Without gaining clarity and access to the proper language to describe the hidden forms of emotionally abusive behaviors, they are nearly

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Partial Confession
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How Partial Confessions in Relationships May Be Covert Abuse

Labeling “partial confessions” as a term of abuse may be confusing to some people.   How can a partial confession be considered abuse? Isn’t it good for someone to be willing to apologize, at least in part, for wrongful behavior? It’s better than no apology, right?   It isn’t easy for anyone to admit they

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gaslighting
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What is Gaslighting? 10 Obvious Clues You’re Being Gaslighted

Most of us are familiar with “Gaslighting,” which is often used loosely in response to many situations within diverse relationship types.  Gaslighting isn’t always abusive, but when it is, it’s exceedingly difficult to spot. It is known as a “hidden” or covert form of emotional abuse. It’s essential to your mental and physical well-being to

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emotional-abuse-of-children
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Victims of Any Age: The Link between Covert Emotional Abuse and Child Abuse

Many images come to mind when we think of child abuse.   Some imagine: A child in foster care who was abused by their biological or adoptive parent Physical or sexual abuse The numerous news stories of child molestation in an institutional setting by someone the child and family trusted – a camp counselor, a

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husband is dismissive of my feelings
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What it Means When Your Partner Dismisses Your Feelings

Abuse can be subtle and slowly wedge a destructive divide between couples. Subtle, hidden forms of abuse are called Covert Emotional Abuse (CEA). Dismissing is one tactic covert abusers use to avoid authentic connection and attempt to have power over their partner.  In this article, we are going to unpack this tactic. We’ll highlight: What

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