"Rita never imagined that her marriage could feel like a prison. For the first 10 years of it, she told herself that her husband, Sam, controlling the money was practical. He was better at numbers, and she was focused on raising our two kids. It started small. He would handle the bills, remind her to save receipts, and discourage her from buying things for herself. Then, somewhere along the way, it became suffocating."
"For years, Rita told herself that if she could only avoid his bad moods, everything would be fine. But the fear was still there, a constant weight on her chest. She was terrified of what would happen if she left. How would she support the kids? How could she survive with no savings, no credit in her name, and no job history since her twenties? The thought paralyzed her, yet staying was no longer feeling like an option."
Financial abuse is more prevalent than most people realize and often accompanies other kinds of abuse. It can include restricting access to money, controlling spending, withholding bank access, and giving a limited cash allowance. One survivor, Rita, experienced escalating control: small household money management turned into demands for receipts, restrictions on small purchases, and needing permission for a $40 school trip. She lacked a debit card, online passwords, savings, credit, and recent job history. The control produced fear, threats of escalation to physical violence, and paralysis about leaving. Hotlines and survivor resources can offer support.
Read at Psychology Today
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