Journals

Joanne Rogers

Dr. Gilliland

HSCO 508- Reflective Journal Entries 7 and 8

W1 #7

Empowerment of Low-Power people by High-Power People.

Stewart (2012) Empowerment of Low-Power people by High-Power People. - “Sometimes it is clearly to the advantage of higher-power groups or individuals to purposely enhance the power of the lower-power groups or individuals. Without this restricting of power, working or intimate relationships may end or rigidify into bitter, silent, passive aggressive, and unsatisfactory entanglements” (pg. 370). Communicating with an abusive individual is very complicated, there’s no understanding. Before I met my fiancé, the love of my life. I was in a prior long term relationship for three years and after six months in the relationship it became verbally and emotionally abusive. He didn’t like what I’d said. I mistakenly thought that if I could say the right words, then he would understand (love me again) and our relationship problems would dissolve. Communicating with him was impossible. He didn’t like what I’d said. I mistakenly thought that if I could say the right words, then he would understand (love me again) and our marital problems would dissolve. For a very long time, I thought the marathon talks/lectures would end if I could somehow make him understand I wanted the best for us and that I wasn’t out to do him harm. I believed he was a good man at heart. I believed that it was my fault that our problems remained problems. I believed with all my heart and soul that if I could just communicate in a way that helped him understand, he would see how simple our problems’ solutions could be. According to Stewart (2012) “communication spiral occurs when the actions of each person in a relationship magnify those of the other” (pg.400). I believed I could fix our communication problem because I believed I was the cause of it. That was not true. I couldn’t fix the problem because he wouldn’t accept my ideas (or me) so long as I spoke my...