by Jeanette R. Harrison, MPH I was talking to someone the other day, and I was relaying to them how I had been mentally abused. The person responded that I "don't have any self-respect" because I "allowed it." Let's break this statement down a little bit. Abuse is about the behavior of the abuser. It is never okay to victim-blame or to say that being mistreated is the target's fault. Second, telling someone they don't have any self-respect is a form of bullying, especially when it is meant to demean or belittle them. Comments such as these directly attack an individual's self-esteem and self-worth. That brings me to my next point, what exactly is self-respect? Self-respect often gets bundled and confused with self-esteem and self-worth. According to the American Psychological Association, self-respect is comprised of components of self-esteem and self-worth. Blanket statements like "you don't have any self-respect" chip away at an
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