72 Quotes by Beverly Engel

With emotional abuse, the insults, insinuations, crtiticism, and accusations slowly eat away at the victim's self-esteem until he or she is incapable of judging a situation realistically.

Emotional abuse poisons a relationship and infuses it with hostility, contempt, and hatred,

No matter how much a couple once loved each other, once emotional abuse becomes a consistent aspect of the relationship, that love is overshadowed by fear, anger, guilt, and shame.

At the very least, emotional abuse causes both abuser and the victim to lose sight of any redeeming qualities his or her partner once had.

The disrespect and hatred each partner begins to feel leads to more and more emotional abuse and to each partner justifying inappropriate, even destructive, behavior.

Over time, anger can build up on the part of both abuser and victim, and emotional abuse can turn into physical violence.

When emotional abuse is mutual, it becomes a matter of survival, as each partner has to constantly fend off criticism, verbal attacks, or rejection and shore up enough strength to go on with daily tasks.

As the emotional abuse takes its toll and each partner becomes less and less self-assured, each clings to the relationship even more.

No one wants to have to face the fact that he or she has lost control in this way and that his or her actions and/or words have caused his or her partner emotional damage.