Laboring to Love an Abusive Mate

You are free to be happy!  Tell yourself that today!  "I am free to be happy!" You are free to do what you want, when you want, and how you want it.  Yet, so many women and men in miserable relationships have relinquished all control over being joyous.   These couples have been caught up in the trappings of the following:  frequent crying, fighting, arguing, compulsively spending, over-eating, abusing alcohol or drugs, and more that they find it a challenge to put a smile on their faces and truly feel content on the inside.  Between all the personal drama, they simply forgot what it feels like to be happy on a consistent basis.  When was the last time you saw yourself smile in a mirror?  Now when was the last time you saw yourself genuinely smile with a partner? When we look at the many problems in our world, we see people who feel like they have no way out of their circumstances.  "I'm married now--can't do anything!" says the disgruntled newlywed.  &

Abusive partners rob you of your joy, prematurely age you, and make you feel like everything is wrong in your life even when it isn't.  You might find yourself overly critical of others, sensitive when someone says the slightest thing you don't agree with, and often carrying emotions that are downright mean.  This is what people feel like who remain with abusive partners. If he or she is cheating, often lying, physically abusive, or frequently angry about people, places and things, a person in a relationship with an abuser is trying hard not to be a problem.  The victim is going to bend over backwards in everything he or she does just to make sure that the angry man or woman is not disturbed.  The victim knows that if his or her partner becomes upset, he or she will be like a dartboard suspended to a wall having to catch the darts of the mean one.  This is why certain relative's and friend's calls or visits might not be entertained because the emotionally unstable par