Physical abuse includes:

• slapping, punching, hitting, kicking, shoving, scratching, biting, throwing things at you
• threatening or attacking you with a weapon
• locking you in or out of the house or abandoning you in a dangerous place
• refusing to help you when you are injured, sick or pregnant

Emotional abuse includes:

• insulting you
• ignoring you
• making you feel stupid or worthless
• ridiculing or laughing at your beliefs
• humiliating you in private or in public
• being overly jealous or possessive
• intimidating or harassing you
• accusing you of infidelity without good reason
• isolating you from your friends and family
• preventing you from going to work
• attacking your children or your pets
• threatening to kill you or to leave you or to throw you out
• threatening to kill himself, or go mad if you leave, or don’t do what he wants

Verbal abuse includes:

• swearing at you, calling you names and talking to you as though you were a child, or as though he owns you

Sexual abuse includes:

• making you do sexual things or wear clothes that make you uncomfortable
• pressuring or forcing you to perform sexual acts that you do not want to do
• forcing you to have sex when you do not want to; raping you or threatening to rape you 
• forcing you to have sex with other people

Financial abuse includes:

• taking or spending your money, taking or destroying your possessions
• spending most of the money on himself or giving you a very small allowance
• expecting you to account for every cent or do more with the money than is possible
• refusing to give you information about your joint financial situation
• delaying or refusing to pay maintenance if you are no longer together

(Zaakirah Rossier, Health24, November 2010)
Compiled by the Saartjie Baartman Centre

Read more:
Domestic scars tell stories
6 tactics used to control women
The Domestic Violence Act
Seeking help - the numbers to call