Why Do Women Stay?
"From the outside looking in, you could never understand it. From the inside looking out, you could never explain it"
This seems like a horrible nightmare to most, as if it is unreal. But women live this nightmare every single day. Most of us cannot begin to understand why someone would willingly stay in a situation such as domestic violence, especially to the extent of battering. But, what we do not realize is when it graduates to this point, the will is no longer
- still being positively reinforced by the "honeymoon" phase of the battering cycle
- economic dependence upon the batterer
- belief that they can keep the peace
- fear of danger if she were to leave
- threats made by the batterer to hurt her or her children if she left
- loss of self-esteem
- depression or loss of psychological energy necessary to leave