What's the difference between verbal abuse and emotional abuse?

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Golden_Knight

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#1  Edited By Golden_Knight

Verbal abuse and emotional abuse are kind of connected and often used for the same purpose and context - but they're not precisely the same, but I want to hear what other users from this website think because I gurantee there will be interesting views and a good discussion about abuse. If you have been a victim of verbal and emotional abuse (or any abuse) that you wish to share, feel free to tell your story, but don't do it if you don't feel comfortable telling everyone your story because I don't think Comic Vine is confidential; I would recommend a therapist or counsellor if you want to discuss it privately because people with those jobs aren't allowed to tell anyone else about it unless if you're going to do something silly such as killing someone or committing suicide, or anything that's remotely dangerous.

I'm not sure if I have suffered verbal abuse, but I have tolerated a lot of verbal beatings in real life by one specific person who condescending, petty, cruel, harsh and is too hard on me (I have someone else who supports this idea), but I don't feel comfortable saying anything more than me.

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the_stegman

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#2 the_stegman  Moderator

Verbal abuse can be said by anyone, emotional abuse is personal.

If I call you a stupid idiot, that's verbal abuse.

If I call you a stupid idiot, and that's why your wife left you and your son hates you, that's emotional.

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dshipp17

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There really isn't a difference between the two; I guess you could make a slight distinction between the two by the source of the verbal abuse; actually, emotional abuse can be slightly larger, since verbal abuse is narrowly restricted to what someone says to you. But, if someone who is or should be close to you is saying hurtful things to you, that would constitute emotional abuse, while someone who's not close to you or a stranger would probably fall more on the verbal abuse side of things (e.g. if it's a stranger or opponent or adversary, whatever they say to me would not reach an emotional level for me, as what they say to me doesn't need to resonate with me, as they have no real connection to me). However, bullying or harassment can extend into emotional abuse, as part of the harassment may involve verbal abuse (e.g. like a coworker, boss, or someone you have no real choice but to have to encounter very often such as on a daily basis). So, essentially, in a lot of cases, it can only extend into emotional abuse, if you let a person touch you emotionally; and this is one of the pillars that makes me a stable person, despite things in my life in the past and present, I rarely allow anything to effect me on an emotional level, and even rarer, still, on a deeply emotional level; basically, I haven't allowed anything to reach this deep, emotional level since about Valentine's day, 1997, or weeks after, when my fiancee broke up with me; it got on the surface of this deep, emotional level with my Branch Director and Lab Director, who hired me and became my friends right after my arrival; it really touches me emotionally or, at least did, when I have to be in litigation with my former employer because of them; although we are long time adversaries now, the door is still open to either of them to make amends with me; but, at the same time, they've really made me hardhearted to really having emotional feelings for anything or anybody anymore; I just have a type of (or only capable of a) Godly love, right now.

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Chris-Sama

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Emotional abuse is targeting deep fears/insecurities.

Verbal abuse is basically from anybody and just rude/derogatory.

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Dextersinister1

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I really don't think there's a good discussion to be had here. The only discussion here is minor semantics and you may confuse people by trying to place any importance here.

Verbal abuse can be said by anyone, emotional abuse is personal.

If I call you a stupid idiot, that's verbal abuse.

If I call you a stupid idiot, and that's why your wife left you and your son hates you, that's emotional.

Comments like these will just confuse the issue. Calling someone stupid will negatively impact someone's mood.

All abuse has an emotional impact, even physical.

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Jonez_

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You don't have to speak to emotionally abuse someone. You just somehow traumatize them emotionally.

Verbal abuse, by definition, is abusing someone through your words.

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Shazam99

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Verbal abuse can be said by anyone, emotional abuse is personal.

If I call you a stupid idiot, that's verbal abuse.

If I call you a stupid idiot, and that's why your wife left you and your son hates you, that's emotional.

This seems like a pretty accurate distinction.