It can be very difficult to leave a controlling or abusive relationship. It takes courage. It takes support, and it takes education into these dynamics.
“Love Addiction 101
Love addiction is a complex and foggy condition that manifests differently in everyone. Particularly common in people suffering at the hands of a person with narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) or victims of narcissistic abuse, love addiction commonly appears as a deep fear of being rejected by the abuser, even though the relationship is deeply toxic.
Neurologically, love addiction is similar to drug or alcohol addiction, in that the addicted person feels unable to quit the habit of loving the abusive person, even though the relationship has disastrous effects on your health, wealth, and happiness. It’s considered a “process addiction”, which is a set of behaviors that is considered obsessive or compulsive.
Unlike other forms of addiction, though, love addiction is often difficult to see from the outside and may even go unnoticed by the person suffering from the addiction.”
https://letmereach.com/2017/05/13/trauma-bonding-addicted-toxic-love/