EMOTIONAL ABUSE

My Marriage Made My Hair Fall Out

I had to leave to make it stop

Photo by Verne Ho on Unsplash

I drew my foot back quickly as a sharp pain radiated from my heel. Bringing my right foot up into my hand while balancing against the kitchen countertop, I saw the glass pressed into my heel.

After pulling it out and cursing, my eyes surveyed the rest of the kitchen floor. Small, twinkly dots shone everywhere in the morning sun.

Grinding my teeth in frustration, I carefully backed out of the room. Once I had pulled on my sneakers, I reentered the kitchen with a dustpan and brush and began sweeping up the small shards of glass.

There was no need to question what had happened or why it had been left. There was no need to complain. It would fall on deaf ears. After sweeping and vacuuming twice over, I found the larger parts of the broken whiskey bottle in the trash.

Feeling exhausted from a lack of sleep, I slid onto a chair at the breakfast table and placed my face in my hands. I allowed my mind to wash my body with calmness to settle the frantic twists and turns of the baby nestled inside my belly.

Once the movements had slowed and the resulting nausea had subsided, I pushed my hands up my forehead and ran my fingers through my hair. As my hands cascaded down…