What makes a person stay....

Well my ex was emotionally abusive and well I stayed with him because I made vows for better or worse and I took them seriously. He had physically hurt me but not to often and I wanted to leave as I was unhappy but those vows just came back to me. Plus I had two kids and no way to support them on my own. Well as you saw I said ex he actually left me for some 18 year old girl he had never met (online love). It was the best thing he ever did for me. I am with a great man now and my 2 boys are happy and I have another on the way life is good. I really beleive that God has helped me in many ways and that is why I stuck to my vows and will do the same with my new marriage.

I have never been, thank goodness. But I work with a woman who is with an abusive common law man. The have 3 boys. He is very abusive to her. She used to complain to me a lot about him. Her 3 boys are a mess (of course). Her oldest boy.. who is 15 gets drunk a lot, has gotten a 20 something year old girl pregnant, and gets in trouble in school all the time (when he goes) I gave her phone numbers, addresses for shelters and lots of alternatives. She never looked into any of them. She continued to complain and air her dirty laundry about her family to anyone who ould listen (she still does) After a while, I had to tell her, "look, you have complained to me for years about this, I have given you alternatives, you don't want to help yourself or more importantly, your boys. I can't continue to listen to your stories of abuse. It drains me emotionally and it it not healthy for me, because I don't have sympathy for you anymore and THAT makes me feel like a bad person" The abuse continues, he has asked her to marry him, of course she said yes. I think there is something inside a woman that tells her she couldn't possibly find anyone better. Does it stem from childhood? Probably. Whatever the reason, it is very sad. I try not to judge these women because I have never been in their shoes, nor would I want to.

love

I witnessed the verbal and physical abuse that my dad bestowed on my mom for almost 30 years. I also got to personally experience a lot of verbal and physical abuse from him as well, so I can give you some insight into the mind of an abused woman. I have also had a lot of female friends in abusive or unhealthy relationships who have refused to leave their partners/spouses. First of all, not every woman has the same reasons for not leaving. In cases of verbal abuse, the woman is often made to feel inferior, helpless, and worthless by her abuser, thus making her feel helpless to change her life. Some women end up feeling like they are worthy of a better life or relationships. In cases of physical abuse, the woman might feel afraid to try to leave. Sometimes, in rare cases, women will continue to harbor feelings of attachment, even in the face of abuse, thus the "but I love him" reason. Sometimes, women just aren't willing to accept the stigma of a "failed" marriage. It sounds crazy, but some women would rather be abused than be **divorced**. Some women have been housewives for practically their whole lives with little or no work experience and might feel like they're not capable of providing for themselves. It could be any of these reasons or any combination of these reasons.