CONNECTION AND DISCONNECTION IN ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIPS

TOPIC. The way in which women's need for connection can lead to destru ctive relationships in which emotional and physical paralysis is chara cteristic PURPOSE. To demonstrate how a woman's sense of disconnection that occurs in abusive relationships may be misinterpreted or worse, labeled and stigmatized, by healthcare providers SOURCE. Theories of g rowth and development that emphasize how a woman's sense of self and v alue derive from being able to maintain highly empathic affiliations C ONCLUSION. The behavioral manifestation of disconnection must be under stood so that healthcare providers can provide the most effective care possible.