The cycle of abuse

• Card 1

  Many people describe abuse as moving in cycles: tension building, an incident, then reconciliation — apologies, promises, affection — followed by a calm period sometimes called the honeymoon phase. The calm can be genuinely lovely, which is part of what makes the pattern so disorienting.

• Card 2

  1. Tension building
     ↓
  2. Incident
     ↓
  3. Reconciliation
     ↓
  4. Calm
     ↓
  5. Tension building again

  Not every relationship follows a neat cycle. Some are unpredictable with no calm phase at all, and that does not make the experience less real.

Swipe left or right to move between cards