Abuse is a heavy topic for anyone to discuss. Often times people look at abuse victims and think why did they not just walk away? Although, it is not that simple. In this article by Rhonda Freeman, she discusses how the brain can work against abuse victims. She talks about the chemicals that are released in order for us to form bonds like dopamine, oxytocin and a few others. Freeman also discusses trauma bonds, cognitive dissonance and how to eventually break trauma bonds and the best way to do it. All of these are why it is so difficult to leave abusive partners.

According to the text Griffin defines Cognitive dissonance as, “The distressing state caused by inconsistency between a persons two beliefs or a belief and an action.” (194). This means that it is two conflicting thoughts or beliefs that cause this mental state. Another point made was that, “The fox’s retreat from the grape arbor clashed with his knowledge that the grape was tasty. By changing his attitude toward the grapes, he provided an acceptable explanation for abandoning his efforts to reach them.” (194). This goes off of the definition that Griffin gave. He changed his attitude to give up on the grapes even if he knew they were good. A final point made was that, “… Festinger and his followers focused on attitude change as an end product of dissonance.” (203). Meaning that dissonance and your mental attitude about something is the product of dissonance.

Cognitive dissonance can be a way to understand abuse victims, the actions that they take and why they do what they do. What goes on in our minds is very complicated but thanks to the article you can understand it better. There are multiple chemicals that affect how we form attachments and its not easy to just get rid of. Some that were previously mentioned cause longing, craving, bonding and dependence. In abusive relationships it is very emotionally charged meaning that these can affect us more. Because these relations are often times with partners or families it leads to an addiction to the relationship, making it that much harder to leave it.  This can also cause cognitive dissonance. Freeman gave an example of a relationship and the victim was between the thoughts of he was a horrible person and that he was a good a man. The woman knew that what he did was toxic and abusive but changed her attitude that he is a good man and he did not mean it. These two thoughts are very contradictory. People in these situations also put blame on themselves which does not help and they self-deprecate or even make excuses. There are many steps to help like given in the book. Outside help can also reduce cognitive dissonance, such as inducing compliance by helping them get away. Additionally, things like selective exposure can help a lot. The best way ( but hard to do in practice because victims are isolated from everyone) is to completely cut contact, this way your brain can not release any of the chemicals that cause attachments.