I was married to a freaking psycho wife beater for 14 yrs, (and before you ask, yes, I left, and yes, I had him arrested.), and while I do feel a little sorry for myself now and then due to the lasting physical damages, I just shake it off, know that my life is really pretty good now, and just get on with it. My ex wasn't your typical tv movie abuser, as in he didn't just get mad and escalate, he had serious mental issues that I wasn't aware of when we married at 20. He would stalk me if I left, he would hide in drainage ditches of parking lots, etc., and basically abduct me. I left 7 times, but the laws are not that great for women, and especially if you have children. They made me let him see the kids, because he could hide teh crazy well, and had good jobs. So, whenever we got together for him to see the kids, he would track me down, or he would cajole info out of the kids. It's a strange life, and the law doesn't like to get involved in domestic issues sometimes in small towns.He was arrested 6 times, and never spent a night in jail. Even when I was in ICU, and nearly died. Weird world. These people haven't figured out that you can marinate in the bad, or you can mentally decide you want to live a real life. It really is as simple as that.