Recognise These Signs Of Emotional Abuse In A Relationship

When we think of abuse our mind naturally gets to the physical aspect of it. What we often fail to realise is that abuse can also manifest itself in emotional and verbal forms, which can be equally damaging to one’s mental health and overall wellbeing. The signs of abuse, especially that of emotional abuse can be quite tricky to recognise. From subtle signs of manipulation to non-physical behaviours that aim towards gaining dominance or even isolates and scares you, emotional abuse is a complex and serious form of intimate partner violence in relationships that can take up a heavy toll on your mental health, and hence requires much more attention. 

A serious problem in certain relationships, the signs of emotional abuse are often hard to recognise. Behaviours which we might consider as ‘normal’ can actually leave a lasting impact on our psychological well being. A silent destroyer of your emotional and psychological health, emotional abuse often results in low esteem, low self worth and an extremely vulnerable emotional state. Here’s for you to analyse yourself and your relationships better by recognising these subtle signs of relationship emotional abuse that aren't always obvious.

What is emotional abuse?

A type of abuse in relationships, emotional abuse does not involve physical violence. A form of mistreatment that can occur with anyone, whether it be your friend, family or romantic partner, relationship emotional abuse largely manifests itself into a variety of tactics which can range from subtle manipulation to verbal attacks and gaslighting. 

A form of abuse that involves attempts to frighten, isolate or control you, even though emotional abuse does not involve physical violence, it might involve physical threats that are directed towards you. A sign of abuse that is characterised by a person’s use of words, actions and the regularity of such behaviours, relationship emotional abuse might begin gradually with not so obvious signs but later develop into something much more serious.

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Signs of emotional abuse in relationships you should not ignore

Emotional abuse can be extremely damaging for one’s mental and overall well being. Often manifested in ways which are not very obvious, here are some of the signs of abuse in a relationship for you analyse your situation much better

Dominance and extreme monitoring 

An over-controlling behaviour or dominance is among the most common signs of abuse in relationships. If your partner is constantly trying to micromanage your activities and taps down what you are doing on a daily basis, then such a pattern is very unhealthy and an indicator of emotional abuse. Extreme monitoring and dominance reflects a lack of trust, which in turn can largely impact your sense of freedom and autonomy.

Rude behaviour and insulting language

A sign of abuse in relationships that often goes unnoticed and is not given much thought is when your partner constantly uses a condescending tone with you. We often tend to overlook rudeness and insulting language as a sign of irritation and stress from the point of view of the other person, however, these are subtle indicators of relationship emotional abuse that needs a much deeper consideration. From hurling insulting remarks to disregarding someone’s emotions and feelings can be signs of abuse.

Portraying partial affection

A key sign of relationship emotional abuse is when your partner only shows you partial affection. Their portrayal of affection and love towards you is selective and depends upon their mood or fulfilment of their expectations. As long as you are able to fulfil their demands is when they portray affection, however if you cannot then they tend to abandon you. A vital indicator of abuse that often goes unnoticed, it is important to understand that in healthy relationships love and affection are unconditional.

Mood swings

A subtle yet very common indicator of abuse in relationships is frequent and erratic mood swings. If your partner goes from affectionate to rude and being cold in no time, then such unpredictability creates an environment of emotional abuse. As a result, in such relationships, the one who is on the receiving end constantly feels like their mental resilience is at stake and becomes extremely insecure emotionally.

Gaslighting

A manipulative tactic in relationships, gaslighting is the most vital indicator of abuse. A situation in which the abuser in the relationship makes the other person doubt their feelings, thoughts and memories is how gaslighting works. They would make you feel as if you are imagining things and deny certain actions that they might have done. As a result, the person on the receiving end of it all begins to question their sanity and develops a blurred sense of reality.

Over-possessiveness and jealousy

A very common sign of abuse in case of relationship emotional abuse, over possessiveness and jealousy might seem normal to many. However, if your partner begins to portray anger as a way of expressing the same, then the situation is considered as problematic. This could be a sign of emotional abuse, whereby a sense of fear and an unbalanced power dynamics gets created.