Intimate Partner Violence

Pattern of behaviors used by one partner to gain and maintain power and control over another partner. Many people believe that IPV is only present when physical abuse is present, but it begins and continues with emotional abuse. Knowing the signs for yourself or a friend can be helpful in staying safe and learning that the abuse is not your fault.

Warning Signs

• Controls who you see, where you go, or what you do
• Shows extreme jealousy of your friends and time spent away
• Checks your phone, email, or social networks
• Calling you names
• Violates your privacy
• Blaming you for their behavior
• Decides what you wear or eat or how you spend your money
• Prevents or discourages you form going to work or school or seeing your family or friends
• Humiliates you on purpose in front of others
• Unfairly accuses you of being unfaithful
• Destroys your things
• Threatens to hurt you, your children, other loved ones, or your pets
• Threatens to hurt themselves because of being upset with you
• Threatens to report you to the authorities for imagined crimes
• Says things like, "If I can't have you, then no one can."
• Forces you to have sex when you don't want to
• Controls your birth control or insists that you get pregnant
• Physically harming you in any way