Merriam Webster’s Dictionary defines abuse as “maltreatment,” but for our purposes, which addresses many people who have complex trauma, we think about maltreatment that repeats over time. Abuse isn’t always visible. When someone relentlessly belittles or insults you, there is nothing that others can see, but it can still cause harm and leave invisible scars.
Abuse is defined by patterns of harm, power imbalance, and impact on safety or development. If you had to suppress needs, emotions, or autonomy in order to maintain connection or avoid punishment, that environment shaped you. You do not need dramatic evidence for something to have been harmful. The question is not whether it meets a stereotype. It is whether the behavior consistently undermined safety, agency, or emotional development.
This page is part of the What Counts as Abuse? section of the CommuniDID site, which helps readers evaluate past experiences and understand why confusion about abuse is common.
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