Your  most comprehensive list on forms of Humiliation

Last time we took a look at dealing with humiliation.  We feel humiliated because we feel, that our dignity has been assaulted.  It comes because humiliation is all about control, the ‘humiliator’ often being the one in control.

Humiliation comes in different forms and some are far more serious than others.  For example, if one has been assaulted or raped, that form of humiliation cannot be compared to someone is being laughed at. 

Yes, both experiences may be painful, but there may be deeper emotional scars in the former than in the latter.  Note, I said ‘may be’ as everyone deals with different situations differently.  And often our reactions to a situation can come not just from one isolated incident but a a build up of other circumstances that preceded the humiliation.

Humiliation can be direct or indirect, and comes in various degrees of severity.  Of course, not all of these necessarily spell humiliation. 

Here is our comprehensive list on how humiliation can arise:

1. Abuse (all forms)
2. Assault
3. Being put down/Belittlement
4. Betrayal
5. Bullying
6. Treated with contempt
7. Inappropriate control
8. Engaging in criminal activity
9. Unbalanced criticism
10. Degradation
11. Dehumanization
12. Being demeaned
13. Demotion
14. Denial of rights
15. Discrimination
16. Disgrace
17. Embarrassment
18. Exclusion
19. Being insulted
20. Harrassment
21. Hostility
22. Inappropriate punishment
23. Insults
24. Intimidation
25. Invasion of privacy
26. Made fun of
27. Manipulation
28. Being marginalised
29. Mistreatment
30. Mockery
31. Oppression
32. Rape
33. Harm someone’s reputation
34. Rejection
35. Ridicule
36. Treated with scorn
37. Shaming
38. Being singled out
39. Stigma
40. Threat
41. Torture
42. Unfairness
43. Unrequited love/being jilted
44. Violation

Regardless of how humiliated we feel, we must never feel we are deserving of it!  To think one is deserving is to be in agreement with the situation.  It is allow the control to remain in the hands of the humilator.

What do I mean?  You have made a great blunder at work.  Your boss finds out and is ‘boiling’ with disappointment and seething anger.  Your boss tells the team, that thanks to you, the team will not get its bonus this year because you have made a very costly and stupid mistake by Mr Clever.  (Mr Clever is said in a manner dripped with sarcasm).

What do you think or even say to yourself?  Do you say, “yes I am stupid, I deserved to be shamed”.   If you did, that kind of negative self affirmation drives the wounds of humiliation deeper.  But lets say, you think and say, fine I made a mistake, and I know what to do next time; my bos however could have handled the situation a little more delicately…and I am Mr Clever.  If we think and speak this way, then we give ourselves control of the situation. We can then go on to apologize about the blunder without shame and fear, and move on to ensure we become more productive, learning from our mistake.  Remember, we took a look at this the last time when we said that we must know our self worth.

It is not what you are called that matters.  It is what you ANSWER TO THAT IS KEY.

About The Author

Zoe

Zoe met Eze (Chuck) in the 14th year of what turned out to be an 18 year ‘journey’ with mental illness. They got married less than a year of meeting with Zoe fully knowing Chuck had a diagnosis of mental illness. In the 18th year, Chuck defied the odds of mental illness. A consultant psychiatrist signed him off the mental health system with a bill of NO MENTAL ILLNESS. The consultant was so amazed by Chuck’s astonishing recovery that he even questioned how Chuck was diagnosed with mental illness all those years before, in the first place! Today Chuck is free from medication, its dependency and hospitalizations. Zoe’s award nominated book, DEFYING THE ODDS, chronicles the highs and ‘lows’ of this journey. Zoe, often writing from the standpoint of a caregiver, clearly understands that mental illness does not only affect an individual challenged with the disease, but also families, marriages and society as a whole.

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