Emotional Rape: What Is It?

Emotional rape can be defined as:

Emotional abuse characterized by patterned and purposeful behavior which purpose is to undermine and control the victim. It is an attack on the victim's personality rather than their body. In sexual rape, the term "without consent" refer to the victim having not agreed to sex. Emotional rape is the abuse of someone's higher emotions -love, self-respect, compassion, admiration - without consent. That is, the 'rapist' doesn't tell the truth to the victim and coerces them into sharing these emotions with them while having a covert agenda. (i.e. - sex, money, etc)
Emotional rape is the exploitation of a person's higher emotions through manipulation and/or deception. In her true story, two people began a romantic journey and ended up completely estranged because of his need to use her emotions to get what he wants.

For this reason, it is important that people become more educated about issues of psychological and emotional abuse. There are several forms of psychological abuse, like: Brainwashing, emotional blackmailing, emotional exploitation, emotional rape, and sometimes even hurtful verbal insults. I bet that most people don't even know that there is something called "Emotional rape."

Emotional rape aims to undermine the victim's self-respect and self-image leaving that person vulnerable to abuse. The victim starts developing a sense of dependence on the abuser, and thus feels incapable of escaping the emotional abuse circle. If they abuser discards them - they can stay in a downward spiral for years, if not a lifetime.

Brainwashing or NLP techniques are widely practiced without people's knowledge, in emotional-rape relationships. Because of lack of awareness about brainwashing, we find that numerous people become victims to this emotional rape technique.

from R.M.; one of the women I counsel on her abuse issues:

It is a heartless con game they play to keep their need for sexual supply or mind games filled. They know the words to say and the role to play to manipulate you into a relationship with them, but at the first sign that you are figuring them out or becoming 'inconvenient' to use & abuse, they will turn on you as if you were nothing.

No, others do not understand because they were not in your shoes. They don't want to know or believe you.

To the legal system and people on the outside of the situation, it is easier for them to buy into the explanation that the emotional rapist gives, that you are just "scorned, crazy" and "want revenge", if you voice your pain and trauma.

A man can profile a woman for months or years, set the stage for her vulnerability with circumstances (such as divorce, illness, break-ups) and then use her confusion and distress to literally devour her mentally with all sorts of false compassion and canned lines designed to lure her in. It's manipulation at its most evil.

He just moves on to the next person he finds to take advantage of.

It is the same grooming tactics used by pedophiles, but if you happen to be of age, no one cares. It doesn't matter that maybe you were very vulnerable, or that you may already be in an abusive situation and you were exploited, conned, and used. Even the emotional rapist will say you 'knew what you were getting into' or 'you were an adult' and blame you.

The legal system is blind to it.

People have actually come forward to expose these types of emotional rapists that go around exploiting women or men.

The perpetrators will do whatever they can to discredit their target, they will file false charges with some law enforcement friend to back them up, file frivolous law suits using 'selective' information, start hate sites or post their victims on websites with a bunch of lies designed to minimize the rapist's role.

They will sue if they know their victim is broke, and find an attorney that gets off on hurting the innocent victims themselves. Yes, they find the most asinine lawyer they can. And that is if the lawyer believes or doesn't expose their lies too!

What does it say about our judicial system whenever they can't even see the system being manipulated by these types of victimizers? You'd be surprised how many of them get away with physically or cyberstalking someone and then turning it around on their victims. They will go to great lengths to appear to be the victim!

They make their victims get rid of any evidence during the grooming of the target, while THEY keep records of contact with them to use later as their defense. Yes, this happens! In one incident a man who was exposed actually coerced his victim throughout the relationship telling her repeatedly to get rid of proof of contact; told her to do the contacting (to later -- make HER look like a stalker); to keep his number off her phone records, then used his records of her calls to file a harassment charge on her!

And anything that may have been kept - the emotional rapist will say was a lie, made up, planted by the scorned other party!

This was vindictive revenge. Period.

We need to be aware of what these sick individuals are capable of, even more, our legal system needs to get a clue! EMOTIONAL RAPE IS IN FULL SWING these days. Victims suffer devastating symptoms like PTSD and it is real!

EMOTIONAL RAPE CAN LEAD TO:
Social anxiety, also called social phobia, is a disorder characterized by overwhelming anxiety and excessive self-consciousness in everyday social situations. People with social anxiety have a persistent, intense, and chronic fear of being watched and judged by others and of being embarrassed or humiliated by their own actions. Their fear may be so severe that it interferes with ordinary activities. While many people with social anxiety recognize that their fear of being around people may be excessive or unreasonable, they are unable to overcome it. They often worry for days or weeks in advance of a dreaded situation.

Physical symptoms often accompany the intense anxiety of social phobia and include blushing, profuse sweating, trembling, and other symptoms of anxiety, including difficulty talking and nausea or other stomach discomfort. These visible symptoms heighten the fear of disapproval and the symptoms themselves can become an additional focus of fear. Fear of symptoms can create a vicious cycle: as people with social anxiety worry about experiencing the symptoms, the greater their chances of developing the symptoms. Social anxiety often runs in families and may be accompanied by depression.

How Common Is Social Anxiety?
• About 3.7% of the U.S. population ages 18 to 54 - approximately 5.3 million Americans - has social anxiety in any given year.
• Social anxiety occurs in women twice as often as in men, although a higher proportion of men seeks help for this disorder.

What Causes Social Anxiety?
Research to define causes of social anxiety is ongoing.

• Some investigations implicate a small structure in the brain called the amygdala in the symptoms of social anxiety. The amygdala is believed to be a central site in the brain that controls fear responses.

• One line of research is investigating a biochemical basis for the disorder. Scientists are exploring the idea that heightened sensitivity to emotional triggers may be physiologically or hormonally based. This may develop as a result of PTSD.

What Treatments Are Available for Social Anxiety?
There are two effective forms of treatment available for social anxiety: certain medications and a specific form of psychotherapy called cognitive-behavioral therapy. Depression medications include antidepressants such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs), as well as drugs known as high-potency benzodiazepenes.

Cognitive-behavior therapy is also very useful in treating social anxiety. The central component of this treatment is exposure therapy, which involves helping patients gradually become more comfortable with situations that frighten them. The exposure process often involves three stages. The first involves introducing people to the feared situation. In emotional rape situations, it would be ideal to have some sort of planned reconciliation or restorative restructuring between abuser and victim but this rarely, if ever happens. Because of this - the victim often develops an overwhelming fear of their abuser. The abuser often finds excuses to not see their victim - and it becomes a vicious cycle.

The second level is to increase the risk for disapproval in that situation so people build confidence that they can handle rejection or criticism.

The third stage involves teaching people techniques to cope with disapproval. In this stage, people imagine their worst fear and are encouraged to develop constructive responses to their fear and perceived disapproval.

Cognitive-behavior therapy for social anxiety also includes anxiety management training - for example, teaching people techniques such as deep breathing to control their levels of anxiety. Another important aspect of treatment is called cognitive restructuring, which involves helping individuals identify their misjudgments and develop more realistic expectations of the likelihood of danger in social situations.

Supportive therapy such as group therapy, or couples or family therapy to educate significant others about the disorder, is also helpful. Sometimes people with social anxiety also benefit from social skills training.

What Other Illnesses Co-Occur With Social Anxiety?
Social anxiety can cause lowered self-esteem and depression. To try to reduce their anxiety and alleviate depression, people with social anxiety may use alcohol or other drugs, which can lead to addiction. Some people with social anxiety may also have other anxiety disorders, such as panic disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder.

MORE ON EMOTIONAL RAPE

A NEW BOOK FOR VICTIMS

Experts agree that emotional rape is far more complex than verbal abuse. While the latter tends to be erratic and direct response to specific situations, emotional rape is, quite simply, a systematic destruction of someone's personality.

The term "emotional rape" implies a horrific crime, and that is exactly what the victim is going through.