1. The
Honeymoon Phase: usually a happy and hopefull
time is which the man satisfies many of the
woman's needs and expectations.
2. The
Tension-Building Phase: The man becomes irritable,
impatient, demanding, and perhaps verbally abusive.
The woman attempts to calm him, usually by
trying to be agreeable, accommodating, or "invisible".
3. The
Violent Episode: Some incident, large or small,
triggers the abuser's rage, and the woman's
attempts to appease him fail. He hits her of abuses
her in other ways.
After the
violent episode, the man promises he will never
hit her again and he brings
the relationship back to the
honeymoon phase. The woman wants to believe
his
promises and the return to relative peace in the family
convinces her
that is worthwhile to continue working
at the relationship. Generally,
as time progresses, the
honeymoon period gets shorter, the tension buildup
gets
greater, and the violent episodes become more frequent
and more serious.