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What is Abuse?

Abuse is a pattern of behavior that a person uses to try to control or dominate another person. Abuse does not have to be physical. The consequences of emotional abuse can be as damaging as physical abuse, though much harder to recognize, and therefore more difficult to recover from.  Emotional abuse may cause long term self esteem issues. Listed below are some examples of emotional abuse:

When a person is threatened, intimidated, humiliated, yelled at, or blamed, and made to feel inferior or stupid;
Constant emotional or verbal assaults that make someone feel sad, worthless and/or unwanted;
Name calling, making them feel crazy, playing mind games, and blame shifting;
Using words and feelings to strike out, embarrass, shame, insult or reject;
May include excessive, aggressive or unreasonable demands that are beyond a persons capacity;
Constant criticizing, belittling, insulting, and rejecting are all examples of emotional abuse.

Emotional abuse may happen for months and years before any damage is evident. By the time the injury is noticed, the person may already be having significant difficulty coping with life. Emotional abuse ultimately affects a persons development and sense of self-worth.

Physical abuse is the most visible form of abuse may be defined as any act that results in a non-accidental trauma or physical injury.  Physical abuse injuries result from punching, beating, pushing, shoving, slapping, biting, kicking, choking, hitting, burning, throwing objects, preventing someone from physically leaving, threatening with a weapon, or otherwise harming someone.  Many people include rape under physical abuse, I do not. I think it constitutes sexual abuse.

Sexual Abuse can be defined as the involvement of dependent, developmentally immature children in sexual activities they do not fully comprehend and therefore, which they unable to give informed consent.  Sexual abuse also includes rape, whether as an adult or a child.  Sexual abuse is any misuse of a child for sexual pleasure or gratification.  Sexual abuse includes sexual intercourse and/or its deviations, including, exhibitionism, fondling, and any sexual contact.  Sexual abuse can include any of the list below:

For A Child
indecent exposure/exhibitionism
exposure to pornographic material
the deliberate exposure to the act of intercourse
masturbating in front of a child
fondling
forcing or coaxing a child to touch an adults sexual organs
any penetration of a child's vagina or anus by an object that doesn't have a medical purpose
engaging a child for the purposes of prostitution
using a child to film, photograph or model pornography

For An Adult
criticizing you sexually
insisting on uncomfortable and unwanted touching
committing sadistic sexual acts
name calling, "whore", "frigid", "dog" before, during or after sex
forcing someone to strip who did not want to
forced sex of any kind, includes rape even when you are married
any sexual contact done without your consent, including when you are married

(AUTHOR UNKNOWN)