1. Extreme Jealousy or Possessiveness
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Constant accusations of cheating
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Monitoring your interactions, friendships, or social media
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Becoming angry when you spend time with others
2. Isolation From Friends, Family, or Support Systems
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Discouraging or forbidding you from seeing loved ones
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Making you feel guilty for wanting time with others
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Moving you away from your support network
3. Controlling Behavior
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Dictating what you wear, where you go, or who you talk to
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Taking control of finances, transportation, or communication
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Demanding access to your phone, passwords, or private accounts
4. Verbal or Emotional Abuse
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Insults, humiliation, name-calling, or belittling
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Blaming you for their behavior (“You made me do this”)
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Gaslighting—making you doubt your memory, feelings, or sanity
5. Sudden Mood Swings or Unpredictable Anger
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Explosive reactions over small issues
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Walking on eggshells to avoid triggering them
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Apologizing excessively to keep the peace
6. Threats or Intimidation
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Threatening harm to you, themselves, pets, or loved ones
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Destroying property during arguments
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Using fear to control your decisions
7. Physical Aggression (Even “Minor” Incidents)
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Grabbing, pushing, blocking doorways, restraining
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“Accidental” harm that happens repeatedly
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Escalation over time from small acts to more serious ones
8. Financial Control or Manipulation
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Restricting your access to money
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Forcing you to account for every purchase
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Sabotaging your job or education
9. Minimizing, Denying, or Shifting Blame
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Claiming abuse didn’t happen or was exaggerated
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Blaming you for their actions or your reactions
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Shifting responsibility to external factors or other people
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Minimizing the impact of their behavior to avoid accountability
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Using excuses such as stress, substance use, or past trauma to justify their behavior
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Making you feel guilty for questioning or confronting them
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Denying the severity or frequency of abusive incidents when confronted
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Redirecting conversations to avoid taking responsibility
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Portraying themselves as the victim to gain sympathy and deflect blame