Protecting Ourselves Against Abuse When We Are Vulnerable

Will we be abused when we are vulnerable?
by Alison Bonds Shapiro, M.B.A. in Healing Into Possibility
Originally published online by Psychology Today

Recently a dear friend of mine, an attorney, talked to me about a case of elder abuse she encountered. Elders are abused because they are vulnerable. This is not a dissimilar to the situation we can find ourselves in when we are suddenly sick or injured.

The story my friend told me started me thinking. What can we do to lessen the likelihood that we will be abused when we are vulnerable?
People abuse other people. We might not want to think that someone will abuse us when we are vulnerable but it happens all the time. There are laws and penalties for abusing elders or others who are helpless. The laws are necessary and helpful but don't often function as a deterrent. And the laws are enforced after the abuse has already happened. No crime, no enforcement.

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