Recognizing Abusive Patterns: A Guide to Change
In my last post, I wrote about how common it is for former victims of child abuse to pass on the abuse they experienced to their children and/or their intimate partner. The first step toward changing your abusive behavior is to recognize it in yourself. Hitting, slapping, kicking, punching, pushing, choking or strangling, or use of a weapon to threaten are all forms of physical abuse, even if you are doing so in order to punish or teach a lesson to your children. The emotional abuse of a child or romantic partner can be more difficult to identify. The following is a list of types of emotional abuse that a parent or an adult partner can impose on their children or their romantic partner. Be as honest with yourself as you can possibly be and put a check mark next to each type of abuse you tend to practice. Domination The person who tries to dominate another person has a tremendous need to have their own way and they often resort to threats in order …
