Abuse and Betrayal

So many of us have lived through it. The hand that was supposed to protect us. The words that cut deeper than any blow. The partner, parent, friend, or leader who smiled in public and broke us in private. And so many of us hide it, telling no one, doubting ourselves, asking whether it was really that bad, knowing deep down that none of it was fair.

In Abuse and Betrayal, Jonathan Anthony Burkett speaks plainly about the wounds that leave no visible mark and the ones that do. He names the many forms abuse takes, from physical and sexual to emotional, financial, and spiritual, and the betrayals that come from family, love, friends, church, and work. He writes about why we stay silent, why men rarely speak, and how childhood pain follows us into adulthood.

Then he shows what abuse and betrayal do to the heart, the mind, and the body, and how so many people find their way through: telling someone, getting help, staying safe, rebuilding trust, and learning to love again. Healing does not mean forgetting. But a scar is not a wound, and a survivor can become someone who lives.