The Single Woman’s Dash of Sass: Break the Cycle

Quote of the Day:

“It took awhile for her to figure out that she could run, but when she did, she was long gone..long gone.” ~Keith Urban

The Single Woman Says:

Today, October 13, 2011, marks two years ago exactly that I finally got up the courage to walk away from the toxic, abusive relationship that ultimately inspired me to create The Single Woman. Though I haven’t talked much about this relationship (I will go into it in detail in my upcoming book), it was a relationship that cost me friendships, opportunities, my dignity, and for a time, even my well-being. I always said I was the kind of woman who would throw a man out on his ear if he ever so much as laid a finger on me. Until I actually became that woman. The reality of domestic violence is that it traps you…isolates you…tricks you into believing you have nowhere else to turn except to the person that keeps hurting you. By the grace of God, two years ago today, I broke the cycle and ran for dear life…changing the landscape of my life forever. And I’m here today, stronger than ever, to tell you (yes, YOU) that there is NO relationship that you cannot walk away from. You ARE strong enough to leave. When we’re in the midst of an abusive relationship, and being constantly demeaned and degraded, over and over and over again, it’s hard to remember how we got there or imagine a time when we would be able to break free.

I’m here to tell you that you CAN, and MUST, break free.

No way, no how, will I EVER again, as long as I live, stick around to wait for the apology if a man ever again lays his hands on me. The last thing he will see of me if that happens is the back of my shirt as I walk away from him. I won’t put up with a slap, a pinch, not even the smallest of pushes. There is no room for violence in TRUE love. And I’m asking you to love yourself and your life enough to walk away, right now…without fear, without hesitation.

Today: If you are in a physically, emotionally, or mentally abusive relationship…run. And don’t look back. I’m living proof that you CAN survive, and you CAN thrive, and that there ARE blessings beyond what you can even imagine on the other side of the curb that you need to kick him to.

Sometimes you have to decide when enough is enough and walk away. Like me, I hope you’ll make that day TODAY.