ArtsAutosBooksBusinessEducationEntertainmentFamilyFashionFoodGamesGenderHealthHolidaysHomeHubPagesPersonal FinancePetsPoliticsReligionSportsTechnologyTravel

Why A Woman Stays In An Abusive Relationship

Updated on December 22, 2015
Why women stay in abusive relationships.
Why women stay in abusive relationships.

What is an abusive relationship?

Have you ever wondered why some women stay in abusive relationships even though they are getting hurt both physically and emotionally? In this article we shall take a look at what an abusive relationship is and why some women stay in such relationships.

What is an abusive relationship?

An abusive relationship is simply an unhealthy relationship. As the name implies, this type of relationship is characterized by abuse which can be physical, emotional, or even sexual. People in abusive relationships unfortunately don’t get treated with respect by their partners. They end up being emotionally or physically harmed by their partners almost on a daily basis.

Signs of an abusive relationship

Here are some of the most common signs that show that you are in an abusive relationship. You are in an abusive relationship if:

  • You tend to be physically harmed by your partner (a good example of being physically abused by your partner is when your partner slaps, smacks, punches, or kicks you)
  • You are frequently humiliated by your partner
  • Your partner frequently threatens you (sometimes your partner might threaten to cause you physical harm if you leave him or her)
  • Your partner often makes you feel unworthy
  • Your partner is jealous all the time and demands to know where you were whenever you leave his or her presence
  • Your partner doesn’t allow you to spend time with your friends or he or she becomes jealous whenever you spend some time with your friends
  • Your partner often forces you to engage in things that you are not comfortable with or which you don’t like
  • You are frequently emotionally blackmailed (one of the most common emotional blackmails in abusive relationships is one partner threatening the other that they would harm or kill themselves if the other partner left the relationship)

All the things mentioned above are signs that you are in an abusive relationship.

So what would make a woman want to stay in an abusive relationship even though she knows very well that the relationship isn’t healthy for her and that staying in it is harming her and can even eventually cost her her life? Why do some women stay in abusive relationships?

NOTE: Men can also find themselves in abusive relationships. While it is true that males also find themselves being abused in relationships, it is females that suffer more from abuse in relationships.

Reasons why some women stay in abusive relationships?

According to experts, these are the most common reasons why some women stay in abusive relationships:

  • Overdependence on the abusive partner: One of the biggest reasons why many women stay in abusive and painful relationships is because they have come to a point where they cannot imagine surviving on their own without the help of their various abusive partners. There are a number of reasons why a woman gets to that point where she feels that she cannot make it on her own without her abusive partner. One of the most common reasons why this happens is because the woman might feel that she isn’t financially independent to take that bold step of leaving the man. In this case, the woman is so afraid that without the money she is getting from her abusive partner, she wouldn’t be able to take care of herself. Over the years, I have personally seen so many cases where women stay in very abusive relationships only because they are financially dependent on their abusive partners. They hope for the day when they can become financially independent so that they can leave the relationship. As a result of this, these women unfortunately become trapped for a very long time in the abusive relationship – some even end up losing their lives as a result of that.
  • Fear of the action the abusive partner would take if she leaves: Another major reason why a woman would remain in a relationship despite the fact that she is being abused by her partner is because she is afraid of the action that her abusive partner would take after she has left him. For example, the abusive partner might have threatened to harm her or cause her problems if she leaves the relationship. Sometimes the abusive partner can even threaten to harm himself if the woman leaves him. There was this case of a woman who spent over 10 years living in a very violent relationship because her abusive boyfriend threatened he would kill himself if she left him. As a result of this, the woman stayed in the painful relationship for 10 painful years. Eventually her abusive boyfriend had enough of her and abandoned her – this was after having physically and emotionally abused her for about a decade. Isn’t this extremely sad? There are several cases like this all over the world. There are also cases where the abusive boyfriend or husband threatens to take away the children away from the woman forever. Some young women who find themselves in foreign countries can sometimes find themselves having no other option than to remain in toxic relationships because their abusive partners may threaten to have them deported. For example, in the United States you frequently hear stories of immigrant women remaining in relationships with abusive men only because the men have threatened to stop working on their Green Cards or have them deported back to their home countries if they get out of the relationship. So the bottom line is that some women are so afraid of what their abusive partners might do to them or their loved ones if they leave them that they end up staying in the abusive relationship and suffering.
  • For the sake of the children: Many women who have children with their abusive partners tend to stay in the relationship mainly because of the sake of their children. In this case, the woman puts the interest of her child or children before hers. She is more concerned about the negative impact her leaving the man would have on her child or children. For example, she might be thinking that if she leaves her partner, her children might end up blaming her for leaving their father. She might feel that the children need their father and a family and therefore she cannot be selfish enough to deny her children the opportunity to be in a family and have a father. She therefore stays in the relationship no matter how toxic it is for her. There are even cases where the woman might fear that the children’s father might kidnap the children or even harm them if she leaves him.
  • Some women feel they are responsible for the ill treatment they receive: One of the saddest reasons why some women still stay in abusive relationships is because they are somehow able to convince themselves that the reason why they are being abused is because of something they have done. An abused woman might convince herself that her behavior is the reason why she was abused by thinking like this: “It’s my fault that he hit me that way. I was being stubborn. Had I not been stubborn, he wouldn’t have hit me like that. I deserve to be treated that way.” But we all know that it wasn’t her fault and she doesn’t deserve to be treated like that. Sadly, some women feel the fault is always theirs and therefore continue staying in the abusive relationship. But the truth of the matter is that no one deserves to be abused! The fault is always the abuser's and not the one being abused.
  • Some women stay for religious and cultural reasons: This is very common when the woman is married to the man. Certain religious beliefs frown upon divorce. As a result of this, some married women find it very difficult leaving their abusive husbands. Other times, the woman might continue to stay in the abusive relationships because her culture frowns upon moving from one man to another. This therefore makes her to stay in the abusive relationship because she doesn’t want to bring shame upon herself and family.
  • Some women feel abuse is normal: Unfortunately for some women, they have been exposed to abuse all their lives. Maybe when they were young, abuse was a very common thing in their homes. An example is a case of young girl whose father constantly beat her up her mother and abused her in all ways. Such a child might end up growing up believing that being abused is a normal thing. Some women unfortunately find themselves constantly seeing violence and domestic abuse in relationships that these women end up not knowing what a healthy relationship is. They might feel that violence in a relationship is a normal thing. And as a result of this, when they find themselves in a relationship with an abusive partner, they see it as normal and continue living with the abuse. But we all know that violence is never part of a healthy relationship!
  • Some stay because of love: Some women are so blinded by the love that they have for their partners that they would rather stay in the abusive relationship than leave it. This is another very common reason why the average woman stays in an abusive relationship. When you ask many of these women why they haven’t left the relationship, they normally reply by saying they stay in the relationship because they are in love. You therefore see cases of a boyfriend severely beating up his girlfriend and the girlfriend refusing to report the abuse because she loves him too much to do that. Unfortunately for these women, love blinds them so much that they behave irrationally and end up staying in the abusive relationship hoping that one day their abusive partners would change their negative behaviors towards them. Unfortunately for some women that day never comes, and the abuse continues until one day they are harmed seriously or are killed.
  • Some are afraid of never finding another relationship: Another common reason that keeps some women in abusive relationships is because they fear that if they end the relationship, they might never find anyone else to be with them. This mainly comes about as a result of the women having very low self-esteem. The woman might feel that she is not beautiful or good enough to attract another man. The mere thought of ending up alone and lonely makes the woman stay in the relationship even though it is literally killing her.

Advise to women in abusive relationships

If you find yourself in an abusive relationship, the best thing you can do for yourself is to get out of the relationship before you are seriously harmed or even worse killed by your abusive partner. If you can’t get out of the relationship all by yourself, seek help from trusted friends and family members. Speak to someone who can help you such as a counselor. You can also get help from crisis centers and abuse hotlines. Don’t believe your abuser when he beats you up or abuses you and promises you he loves you and that it won’t happen again. This isn’t a healthy relationship. Get out of such a relationship before it kills you.

This advice goes to all people (whether males or females) that find themselves in abusive relationships. Remember that you deserve to be treated with love and respect.

Have you ever found yourself in an abusive relationship?

See results
working

This website uses cookies

As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.

For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy

Show Details
Necessary
HubPages Device IDThis is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons.
LoginThis is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service.
Google RecaptchaThis is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy)
AkismetThis is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Traffic PixelThis is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized.
Amazon Web ServicesThis is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy)
CloudflareThis is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy)
Google Hosted LibrariesJavascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy)
Features
Google Custom SearchThis is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy)
Google MapsSome articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
Google ChartsThis is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy)
Google AdSense Host APIThis service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Google YouTubeSome articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
VimeoSome articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
PaypalThis is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook LoginYou can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
MavenThis supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy)
Marketing
Google AdSenseThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Google DoubleClickGoogle provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Index ExchangeThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
SovrnThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook AdsThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Unified Ad MarketplaceThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
AppNexusThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
OpenxThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Rubicon ProjectThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
TripleLiftThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Say MediaWe partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy)
Remarketing PixelsWe may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites.
Conversion Tracking PixelsWe may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service.
Statistics
Author Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy)
ComscoreComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Tracking PixelSome articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy)
ClickscoThis is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy)