12
issue: mental health
The HEALTH | JUNE, 2018
Psychological-physical abusive
relationships
Are you in one?
by NURUL AIN
HUDA ABDULLAH
ainhuda@revonmedia.com
P
SYC H O LO G I CA L
abuse is common and
yet few understand
the definition enough
to spot it. Without the
signs of physical abuse, psycho-
logical abuse can stay hidden for
years. It can be just as devastating
as physical abuse, but in most cases
it goes hand-in-hand.
Pantai Hospital Kuala Lumpur
Child Psychologist Katyana Azman
emphasised that psychological
abuse is when an individual experi-
ence an attack or harassment that
uses verbal bullying with physical
bullying resulting in an individual
feeling very diminished with
regards of sense of self.
“It affects their self-esteem,
self-confidence and their feeling of
self-worth,” she said.
Criminologist and University
Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM)
senior lecturer Dr Mohammad
Rahim Kamaluddin defines it as
an abuser regardless the gender as
regularly hurting his/her spouse
physically or verbally. It may even
happen during courtship between
couples as early as college or in
university.
He explained that psychological
abuse also referred to as mental
abuse and emotional abuse; and
physical abuse go hand-in-hand in
many relationships.
“In fact, it’s rare to find physi-
cal abuse without the presence of
psychological abuse. Often, when
the abuser cannot physically abuse
the victim in public places, they can
emotionally abuse him or her.”
“Physical abuse is certainly
harmful, however, psychological
abuse can be just as bad. It can
lead to lack of self-worth, lack of
independence and the feeling that
you’re nothing without the relation-
ship which results in the victim
being too afraid to part with the
abuser or leave the relationship,”
he said.
Dr Mohammad
Rahim
Kamaluddin.
“In fact, it’s rare to
find physical abuse
without the presence
of psychological abuse.
Often, when the abuser
cannot physically abuse
the victim in public places,
they can emotionally
abuse him or her.”
The
snowball
effect of an
abusive
relationship
W
HEN a person clearly feels so
little about themselves, with a
diminished sense of self-worth,
their self-care is affected.
“In the case of a pregnant mother
who is undergoing an extreme amount
of stress, she would be experiencing a
chemical reaction where cortisol and
adrenalin are constantly released – which
comes through her body to the fetus.
Long-term exposure of such chemical
reaction is not good,” explained Pantai
Hospital Kuala Lumpur Child Psycholo-
gist Katyana Azman.