You may be abused if you:

• are frightened of your partner's temper, often agree because you are afraid to hurt your partner's feelings or are afraid of your partner's anger.

• have the urge to ``rescue'' your partner when your partner is troubled.

• Find yourself apologizing to yourself or to others for your partner's behavior.

• have been hit, kicked, shoved, or had things thrown at you by your partner when he or she was jealous or angry.

• make plans and decisions about activities and friends according to what your partner wants or based on how your partner will react.

• drink heavily or use drugs to escape abuse or painful feelings about your partner.

• are treated badly or embarrassed by your partner in front of others.

• agree to have sex even if you are uncomfortable about it.

Am I an Abuser?

You may be an abuser if you:

• are very jealous.

• sulk silently when upset.

• have an explosive temper.

• criticize your partner a lot.

• have difficulty expressing feelings.

• drink heavily or use drugs.

• are protective of your partner to the point of controlling.

• control your partner's behavior, friends, and decisions.

• have broken things, thrown things at your partner, hit, shoved, or kicked your partner when angry.

Warning signs of an abusive personality

• Jealousy.

• Controlling Behavior - Constantly questions who you spend your time with, what you did/said and where you went.

• Isolation - Puts down everyone you know. Doesn't allow you to talk or visit with family or friends.

• Blames Others for Problems/Feelings - It's always someone else's fault.

• Hypersensitivity - Sees everything as personal attacks.

• Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde Personality - Sudden mood changes, One minute nice/next minute exploding.

• Past Battering - You may hear the person was abusive to someone else, they may say it's a lie, their ex was crazy or it wasn't that bad.

• Any show of force or threat during an argument.

• Doesn't respect your property or privacy.