Appreciation and Citations
Thank you for reading my story. I am deeply grateful to my family, friends, coworkers, Imam, and therapists who supported me through one of the darkest periods of my life. Thank you to my copy editor and attorney for the care and attention they provided to my story. Thank you to my partner, who handled my pain with my ex with understanding, love, and empathy. Now that what was hidden has been brought into the light, I feel a renewed sense of hope. I can finally do the thing so many people, including my abuser, told me to do: move on.
WORKS CITED
Bancroft, L. (2024). Why does he do that?: Inside the minds of angry and controlling men. Berkeley Publishing Group.
Bliss, S. (2024, October 27). The yellow rock method: Navigating narcissism with compassionate detachment. Medium.
https://medium.com/@selfhelpchampion4/the-yellow-rock-method-navigating-narcissism-with-compassionate-detachment-dbe69f0fc9c8
Carnes, P. (2019). The betrayal bond: Breaking free of exploitative relationships. Health Communications, Inc.
Cuncic, A. (2025, October 28). What is triangulation in psychology? Verywell Mind.
https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-triangulation-in-psychology-5120617
Domestic Abuse Intervention Project. (2025, March 6). Power and control. The Hotline.
https://www.thehotline.org/identify-abuse/power-and-control/
Ferrara, N. (2013, October 17). DA Vance: Two convicted at trial of assault on Massachusetts man and friends. Newman Ferrara LLP.
https://www.nyrealestatelawblog.com/manhattan-litigation-blog/2013/october/brutal-attackers-get-a-good-bashing/
Freyd, J. J. (n.d.). What is DARVO? Jennifer Joy Freyd, PhD.
https://www.jjfreyd.com/darvo
Film Bilder & Friends. (2014, October 13). Nuggets [Animated short film]. YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUngLgGRJpo
Gupta, S. (2025, September 26). Understanding reactive abuse: Signs and solutions. Verywell Mind.
https://www.verywellmind.com/reactive-abuse-signs-impact-and-tips-to-break-the-cycle-7567483
Lahav, Y. (2022). Hyper-sensitivity to the perpetrator and the likelihood of returning to abusive relationships. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 38(1–2), 1815–1841.
https://doi.org/10.1177/08862605221092075
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9709555/
Lee, B. Y. (2024, July 2). How future faking can be used to manipulate you. Psychology Today.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/a-funny-bone-to-pick/202406/how-future-faking-can-be-used-to-manipulate-you
Leno, M. (n.d.). What is stonewalling and why does it damage relationships? Psychology Today.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/mind-matters/202409/what-is-stonewalling-and-why-it-damages-relationships
Marks, T. (2025, November 12). Why healthy love feels “boring” (The dopamine trap explained) [Video]. YouTube.
https://youtu.be/zWzjdl2dLjM
Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Gaslighting.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gaslighting
New York State Law Reporting Bureau. (n.d.). People v. Rizk. Justia.
https://law.justia.com/cases/new-york/appellate-division-first-department/2017/2459-353-13.html
Psychology Today Staff. (n.d.). Emotional abuse. Psychology Today.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/emotional-abuse
Rosenberg, R. (2014, January 9). Mother cries as thug son gets 3 years in bat attack. New York Post.
https://nypost.com/2014/01/09/mother-cries-as-thug-son-gets-3-years-in-bat-attack/