Words hurt much more, because the feelings return each time they repeat in your head. Forever.

Bruises fade. Words don't.

My first husband was a terrible verbal abuser. He would praise me in public, but in our private home, he'd tell me I was worthless.

It was a frightening yo-yo affect that lasted for nearly 10 years.

My self-esteem took a beating that probably has never fully recovered. But, I'm a better person for having left him. It's been 16 years since we divorced.

If I never had left, I wouldn't have met my current husband and I wouldn't have known what true happiness is or what a marriage is really supposed to be all about.

Verbal abuse is just as dangerous as physical abuse. And, it's sometimes a precursor to more violence.