Words Can Absolutely Hurt You

Words Can Absolutely Hurt You

There is an old saying “Sticks and stones will break my bones but words will never hurt me” that song is not true and it was obviously made up by someone who was never verbally abused. 

Words can cut you to the bone just as surely as if you were cut with a knife. The scars from the abuse will last a lot longer than the scars from an actual beating. They will scar your heart and haunt your mind for years. 

Even when you think you have moved on, and changed your life, something will bring you right back to that moment. You will remember their words as clearly as if they said them to you yesterday. You will second guess yourself, and eventually you will start believing all they have said to you and about you. 

Sometimes their words will haunt you forever.

“You are stupid” 

“You can't make it without me”

“You can't do anything right”

“Why do you always twist my words around, its because of you I act this way”

“I was just kidding, cant you take a joke”

Or my favorite one I heard all the time..

“Your a worthless piece of shit”

These words and many others change who you are. It doesn't matter if you're a college graduate, a high school drop out, a business person or blue collar worker, verbal abusers don't see color, gender or education.

They are bullies and they want to have control over you and your life. They will stop at nothing until they get it. They break you down little by little until you wake up one morning not knowing who you are, not liking who you are and believing all that has been said about you is true.

According to the CDC they released a study in 2008 that surveyed more than 70,000 Americans and the results were staggering. These are the results of that survey. 

23.6% of women and 11.5% of men reported at least one lifetime episode of intimate-partner violence.

In households with incomes under $15,000 per year, 35.5% of women and 20.7% of men suffered violence from an intimate partner.

43% of women and 26% of men in multiracial non-Hispanic households suffered partner violence.

39% of women and 18.6% of men in American Indian/Alaska Native households suffered partner violence.

26.8% of women and 15.5% of men in white non-Hispanic households suffered partner violence.

29.2% of women and 23.3% of men in black non-Hispanic households suffered partner violence.

20.5% of women and 15.5% of men in Hispanic households suffered partner violence.

Harvard university put out their own study on verbal abuse, they went on to say: 

“Scolding, swearing, yelling, blaming, insulting, threatening, ridiculing, demeaning, and criticizing can be as harmful as physical abuse, sexual abuse outside the home, or witnessing physical abuse at home”

The report suggests that, when verbal abuse is constant and severe, it creates a risk of post-traumatic stress disorder, the same type of psychological collapse experienced by combat troops in Iraq. The research on which the report is based points out that children who are the target of frequent verbal mistreatment exhibit higher rates of physical aggression, delinquency, and social problems than other children.

Other researchers have associated childhood verbal abuse with a significantly higher risk of developing unstable, angry personalities, narcissistic behavior,

obsessive-compulsive disorders, and paranoia.

 “Verbal abuse may also have more lasting consequences than other forms of abuse, because it’s often more continuous,” says Teicher. “And in combination with physical abuse and neglect, may produce the most dire outcome. 

There are always signs, yet we chose to ignore them. Here are a few:

Do they...

Make derogatory comments about a group you belong to 

gender, career, religion, etc. 

This comment might end with "I mean them, not you."

Make fun of or insult your ideas, behaviors, or beliefs?

Make negative comments about people, places or things that you love?

Say things that are almost true about you, but leave you wanting to defend yourself?

Do they say, "What? It was just a joke!" to dismiss a remark that offends you?

Ask you questions about something that just happened and reply to your answers, "Do you care to think about that and answer the question again?" or just sit there, staring at you, in a way that lets you know your answer wasn't "right"?

Engage you in long conversations about things on which you disagree until you reach the point of wanting to say, "Okay. Whatever. You're right!" Or insist that you repeat what they said and then, later, claim, "You agreed with me then!"

Break you down until you say you're sorry about a fight you clearly are in the right about?

These are signs of how you feel when you are with them 

Do you feel...

Nervous when approaching them with certain topics?

Insulted because of their use of foul language, or does their use of foul language change the meaning of otherwise normal requests? Such as, "Could you f*ck*ng tell me how much f*ck*ng longer it will be before you're ready for dinner?"

Do you have a need to "tell on yourself" about innocent events in case the person hears about it later?

Do you feel misunderstood for the most part in your relationship?

      

Do you doubt...

Your sanity, intelligence, or communication skills because of difficulties relating to them?

Your memories when it comes to recalling conversations or events with the person because their take on it is so different from your own?

Ask yourself these questions and be brutally honest with the answers because these are the signs of verbal abuse. They poison your thoughts with confusion and doubt. 

According to Patricia Evans the leading expert in verbal abuse. Victims of verbal abuse may:

Have difficulty forming conclusions and making decisions

Experience self-doubt, low self-confidence, and lose spontaneity and/or enthusiasm

Believe and say things like "Everything will be better when the baby is born," or "Everything will improve after she finds a job."

But it won't, a study of physical health consequences of physical and psychological abuse concludes:

Verbal abuse is strongly associated with chronic pain, migraine and frequent headaches, stammering, ulcers, spastic colon, and frequent indigestion, diarrhea, or constipation along with many stress-related heart conditions.

The psychological effects of verbal abuse include:

fear and anxiety, depression, stress and PTSD, intrusive memories, memory gap disorders, sleep or eating problems, hyper-vigilance and exaggerated startle responses, irritability, anger issues, alcohol and drug abuse, suicide, self-mutilation, and assaultive behaviors.

There are many other studies out there that will give you facts and numbers, but they can never truly know the pain you feel when you are a victim of verbal abuse. You feel you will never do anything right, that if “only” you could make them happy. You walk on eggshells not knowing what person they will be that day. 

You wonder how they can say they love you yet treat you this way? If they are your parents, you wonder why they don't love you. You're constantly running after their love and acceptance, you will take it into adulthood and a lot of the time continue the vicious cycle. You feel unlovable, unworthy, and you question everything you do and say.

Until the day you realize it is about them and not about you, this is their issue, not yours. No matter how “ good” you are, how “right” you do things, it will never be enough for them, they will find fault in the perfect. They need to put you down in order to make themselves feel better, they are lacking but they put the spotlight on you, so you don't see their faults, it has nothing to do with you.

So today my friends, my advice to you is to get out, get help, do research, talk to others who have been there. You need to start to love yourself again.because you are worthy of being treated well. But until you realize this, they will continue to have power over you even 40 years from now.

Only you can be the change you want to see.

@TreadmillTreats 

Check out my daily blogs @ https://treadmilltreats.blogspot.com/?m=1

Www.treadmilltreats.com 

**Now released my latest book**

The Blessing in Disguise.... revealed

https://www.amazon.com/Blessing-Disguise-Revealed-story-faith/dp/1074340493/ref=sr_1_19?keywords=the+blessing+in+disguise&qid=1561392004&s=books&sr=1-19

***Now available***

My 1st book The blessing in Disguise 

Selling on my website:

Http://www.treadmilltreats.com

And on Amazon.com

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0692437398/ref=mp_s_a_1_13?qid=1462358109&sr=1-13&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=the+blessing+in+Disguise

http://www.am6azon.com/gp/aw/d/0692437398/ref=mp_s_a_1_12?qid=1434452632&sr=8-12&pi=AC_SX110_SY165_QL70&keywords=the+Blessing+in+Disguise

My weekly Youtube page, please subscribe:

https://youtu.be/LDSXCFJVnzM

Http://www.treadmilltreats.com

Twitter: treadmill treats 

Instagram: treadmilltreats

Facebook :treadmill treats

Http://Www.treadmilltreats.com

#treadmilltreats 

#Theblessingindisguise 

#blog 

#blogger 

#love 

#instagram 

#lifestyle 

#blogging

#influencer 

#bloggers

#bloggerlife 

#Garyvee

#Jayshetty

#write

#writer

#motivationalspeaker

#motivation

#motivationalquotes

#motivational

#inspiration 

#success 

#quotes

#soulsisterssoulution

#NewYorktimesbestseller

#Oprah

#TylerPerry