Thank you for writing this article, Sydney. My ex-boyfriend was emotionally abusive and I recognize almost all of these signs you mentioned, like verbal attacks and forced isolation, as hallmarks of what I went through, and I wonder now if that’s where my anxiety originated. I think it’s easy for people who have never experienced this to dismiss it, to assume that if you weren’t physically abused, you must not have truly suffered, but it’s so important to raise awareness that that’s not true. Actually, for me, the truth is that I wouldn’t have been surprised if his behavior had escalated to physical abuse, and I wondered if that might have been easier. Maybe then I would’ve seen more clearly the signs of abuse; maybe then I would’ve done something differently.