Who is an abuser?

Who is an abuser? What comes to mind when you think of an abuser? There are many myths that continue to float out there about who is capable of hurting their families and what leads to that kind of behavior. Though a popular assumption is that an abuser is someone with a mental health issue, a maturity...

Divorcing your Best Friend

Each of us at one point in our lives, have experienced a break up. The ending of a “dream” romance that should have lasted forever; having to sit through the “it’s not you, it’s me” talk that you either initially bought and then realized later was less than truthful, or hopefully,...

The Mourning After: Part 1: “I want to see other people”

When someone important breaks up with us, oftentimes our reactions in the wake of such a shock are not the… uh… healthiest. Sometimes we may fall in to a depression, neglect our own nutrition, pick up unhealthy lifestyle habits, or perhaps even look at our ex’s Facebook profile so often that we do not...

Textual Harassment

Last month, the sometimes-controversial TV psychologist, Dr. Phil, aired a show on Teen Dating Violence, specifically focused on the topic of “textual harassment.” “He’s sent me scary texts where he’ll threaten my life,” explained the guest, Mallory, 19. She looked down during the interview, as...

Unseen Bruises: The Truth about Domestic Violence

There’s this idea that domestic violence, or intimate partner violence, equates to a man physically harming a woman. Images of black eyes and purple bruises jump to mind. All over the US, the rate of 911 calls to police for domestic violence incidents has been steadily declining since 2000. Problem...

Trading Barbies for Bruises: Teen Dating Violence

There is a lot of talk on daytime television shows, news reports, and various other forms of programming about how more and more teenagers are engaging in abusive types of behavior with the person they are dating. Teens are engaging in more risky behavior, telling the media that they feel pressured into...