Using Emotional Abuse

• Putting the other person down
• Making the other person feel bad about themselves
• Calling the other person names
• Making the other person think they are crazy
• Playing mind games
• Humiliating the other person
• Making the other person feel guilty

Using Privileges

• Treating the other person like a servant
• Making all the big decisions
• Acting like the master of the castle
• Being the one who determines the roles

Using Economic Abuse

• Preventing the other person from getting or keeping a job
• Making the other person ask for money
• Giving the other person an allowance
• Taking the other person's money
• Not letting the other person know about or have access to family income

Using Coercion and Threats

• Making or carrying out threats to do something to hurt the other person
• Threatening to leave the other person, to commit suicide, report the other person to welfare
• Making the other person drop charges
• Making the other person do illegal things

Using Intimidation

• Making the other person afraid by using looks, gestures, or actions
• Smashing things
• Abusing pets
• Displaying weapons

Using Children

• Making the other person feel guilty about the children
• Using the children to relay messages
• Using visitation to harass the other person
• Threatening to take the children away

Using Isolation

• Controlling what the other person does, who they see and talk to, what's read, and where they go
• Limiting their outside involvement
• Using jealousy to justify actions

Minimizing, Denying, Blaming

• Making light of the abuse and not taking the other person's concerns about it seriously
• Saying the abuse never happened
• Shifting responsibility for abusive behavior
• Saying the other person caused it