Recovery from Abuse
Abuse comes in many forms and can happen to anyone. Noticing and acknowledging the signs of an abusive relationship is the first step to ending it.
There are many different signs of an abusive relationship with fear being the most telling. You may also experience feelings of self-loathing, helplessness, and desperation. Whether the abuse is past or present I can help you.
Past Abuse
If you were abused as a child you may not have spoken of this. The abuse might have been sexual, physical, emotional or psychological – or a combination of any of these. It may have been ignored or dismissed by people close to you at the time. You may find that it still affects every area of your life even though it all happened a long time ago. You might well now experience relationship difficulties, trust issues, and low self-esteem. You might try to block out these memories in a number of ways, but they just won’t go away.
Feeling unsafe, feeling angry, bad or guilty, feeling helpless and powerless are very common and understandable feelings when you have been abused. We often feel stuck in these feelings. We have nightmares, flashbacks and at times, little things remind us of the abuse and it’s as if it’s happening all over again. These feelings can create chronic anxiety and depression for us in our present-day lives.
Advanced Hypnotherapy used integratively can provide the intimate, safe and supportive environment for you to deal with the consequences of the abuse, without having to re-visit any previous trauma – once is enough. I can help you to understand and work through your feelings. It is a gentle process which will help you to draw on your resources as a ‘survivor’ not a victim, to learn to trust again, to recognise your own strengths and to use those strengths and resources within yourself to move your life forward.
As an adult now you have a choice that didn’t have back then. As a child, you were controlled, but now, you can choose to reclaim your control. You can choose to heal your life, to learn to like yourself and to value yourself again. To get the life you truly want to have, to be the person you truly choose to be.
Living With Domestic Abuse
If you are feeling overpowered and controlled by your partner, you may be living with domestic abuse. Tactics used can be physical, emotional, verbal, sexual, or financial.
How To Recognise If You Are Being Abused
Physical abuse takes the form of actual physical harm to your body ranging from a slap or a push to broken bones and even death. There are not always marks to show what is happening – like having food or drink thrown at you, or your hair pulled – but just because there are no marks, doesn’t mean it isn’t happening or that it won’t get worse.
Emotional abuse attacks your personality and not your physical body. If you feel as if you are walking on eggshells around your partner for fear of upsetting him/her, or you feel isolated and confused, you are being subject to emotional abuse.
Verbal abuse is often experienced with emotional abuse. You might justify it to yourself if isn’t just that you argue too much or that your partner is quick to temper. If you feel humiliated, insulted, constantly criticised, you are living with verbal abuse.
Sexual abuse happens when your partner forces you to have sex when you would rather not or when you feel an obligation to perform sexual acts you are uncomfortable with. If you secretly dread intimacy in your relationship, you may be living with sexual abuse.
Financial abuse occurs when your partner assumes control of and limits your financial independence, such as withholding money, stopping you from working or pursuing your career, monitoring how you spend money, placing financial responsibility for bills on you alone. The most common way for a husband to seize control in a relationship is when a woman becomes dependent. As a mother, your focus shifts to raising your children. You may not notice right away that you are being financially controlled. To safeguard your security into the future, it is vital that you maintain some financial independence.
Have you experienced some form of abuse?
If you need emotional support click to contact me today and we’ll get you scheduled in to talk things through in complete confidence.