pennsylvania domestic abuse attorney | Pennsylvania Family Law Blog - The Law Offices of Sheryl R. Rentz

Signs of a Controlling Spouse

By Sheryl Rentz on July 24, 2013

According to a poll commissioned by Divorce360.com, about 36 percent of Americans said they divorced in order to escape relationships that had become verbally or physically abusive. Domestic violence can take many forms and often develops subtly over a period of time. CEO of the National Domestic Violence Hotline, Sheryl Cates says that patterns of coercive control that one person exercises over another fall under the umbrella of domestic abuse, such as threats and intimidation, physical harm, or economic deprivation.

In many cases, victims of abuse are unaware that they are involved in an unhealthy, and sometimes dangerous, relationship until the abuser has taken over his or her life. Whether dating or years into a marriage, it’s important to identify the warning signs and know when it’s time to escape a toxic situation.

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