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  • Courses
    • Finding Clarity And Healing Survivor Course
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    • Training for Survivors
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  • Restore Coaching Calls
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The MEND Project Blog

The MEND Project Blog

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The MEND Project’s blog offers articles, personal stories, and more to help victims and responders of emotional abuse.

Use the box below to search our articles, or scroll down to view them as a list.

Additionally, you can click here for free downloadable resources.

healing-from-emotional-abuse_3

Healing from Emotional Abuse: 5 Essential Steps to Fully Recover

If you have experienced any form of emotional abuse – whether from a family member, friend, or romantic partner – it can be hard

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spiritual abuse signs and is separating okay for healing

How AI Can Be a Supportive and Empowering Resource for Abuse Survivors

Spiritual abuse, or religious abuse, is one of the most damaging forms of psychological coercion, which can take years before a person fully heals

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Trauma Bonding Explained: Signs and How to Break the Bond

Understanding Trauma Bonding: What It Is and How to Break Free

When abuse is present in a relationship, a trauma bond can form, making it difficult, and seemingly impossible, to stay or leave the harmful

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how_to-get-out-of-an_abusive_relationship

How to Get Out of an Abusive Relationship Safely: A Guide

If you are in an abusive relationship, the situation can become so dangerous that leaving becomes not just necessary but urgent for your safety.

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Why Women Stay in Abusive Relationships

13 Overlooked Reasons Why Women Stay in Abusive Relationships

If you have witnessed a friend or family member in an abusive relationship, you likely were concerned for their safety and maybe even their

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Choosing a Therapist: A Guide With Questions to Ask

Let’s begin with a few preliminary points before we get into how to interview and choose a therapist.  It can be hard to know

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Abusive Belittling

When ‘Belittling’ Crosses the Line into Emotional Abuse

Belittling within an abusive relationship happens slowly over time. If it happened outright and upfront, the victim would be more likely to confront it

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Reactive Defense: Understanding the Fallacy of Mutual Abuse

There’s been significant debate and public discussion about the term ‘mutual abuse,’ which has been used to conclude that some situations of domestic violence,

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Overt vs. Covert Beharior Relationship Examples

Healing from Emotional Abuse: 5 Essential Steps to Fully Recover

It is difficult to understand overt versus covert behaviors and how each plays out within relationships. Yet understanding is the key to overcoming.  Covert

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A woman experiencing what is institutional abuse.

What Is Institutional Abuse? (Definition, Types, And Effects)

It may seem implausible that an “institution” or “organization” can abuse people.  But the truth is that it can and does happen.  In this

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Leaving a Covert Narcissist

The Story of Leaving a Covert Narcissist: By Michelle

In this brave Emotional Abuse Survivor Story by Michelle (not her real name), she shares the details of her journey being married to a

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What is Narcissistic Gaslighting?

The terms “narcissist” and “gaslighting” are widely used in our culture, but they are rarely understood. Narcissistic gaslighting is a form of psychological abuse

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Manipulation in Relationships: Signs, Tactics, and How to Recognize the Pattern

Manipulation in relationships means using guilt, fear, confusion, pressure, or other emotional tactics to influence your behavior for someone else’s benefit, rather than communicating honestly and respecting your boundaries. It can be hard to recognize ...

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People-Pleasing: Losing Yourself to Keep the Peace and Finding Your Way Back

Have you ever said yes when everything inside you was saying no? Maybe you agreed because you did not want to disappoint someone. Maybe you stayed quiet to avoid conflict, softened what you really thought ...

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The Cycle of Abuse: Why the Bad Times Can Be So Confusing

Does your relationship move between periods of warmth and connection and difficult times that seem to keep returning? Perhaps things feel good for a while. You feel close to your partner and hopeful about your ...

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The Benefits of Support Groups: Why Healing Happens Better in Community

Healing from emotional abuse can feel deeply isolating. There are many reasons for this. Safe listeners and helpers can be difficult to find, and it may be even harder to find people who truly understand ...

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Reactive Abuse Explained: Understanding the Survivor’s Response to Ongoing Harm

When two people share conflicting stories of abuse, determining what is happening can be difficult even for mental health counselors. This is especially true when prolonged mistreatment has caused the victim to react in aggressive ...

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AI Support for Abuse

How AI Can Be a Supportive and Empowering Resource for Abuse Survivors

We recently connected with Anne Wintemute, founder of Aimee Says, to learn more about the heart behind this AI-powered help companion and how it can support people in confusing, difficult, or abusive relationships.  In the ...

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Disclaimer: The MEND Project is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. The information on this website and the services we provide are offered for educational purposes in an effort to serve those impacted by abuse. While we are not clinicians, we are committed to research and to helping identify and clarify harmful behaviors and patterns when covert abuse is present. We do not seek to vilify any gender or any person, regardless of race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, nationality, or other identity. © 2026 The MEND Project. All Rights Reserved.

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