My Sil Traumatized Me For Years Calling It A “Love Tap.” Then My Cousin-in-law Showed The Family A Video That Changed Everything. Was I Truly Too Sensitive?

The Family Reacts

Denise’s face went from that smug smile to completely white as more people crowded around Bradley’s phone. She started talking fast, saying the video didn’t show everything and that Bradley must have edited it somehow to make her look violent.

But people were shaking their heads and whispering to each other. I saw Tom’s aunt cover her mouth. His uncle took a step back from Denise. A couple of cousins were staring at her like they’d never seen her before.

Someone said they couldn’t believe what they were watching.

Tom pushed through to see the screen, and I watched his face as he saw his sister hitting me over and over. His expression went confused, like he couldn’t match what he was seeing with what he thought he knew.

He kept saying it looked worse on video than it was in real life, that the angle made it seem more violent than it actually felt.

Bradley cut him off and said it looked exactly as bad as it was because that’s what assault looks like. Tom tried to argue, but Bradley played the video again and asked Tom to watch his wife’s head snap forward and tell him that was playful.

Tom’s mouth opened but nothing came out.

That’s when Josephine came rushing over asking what all the noise was about. Bradley held up his phone without saying anything and let her watch. She stood there completely still as the video played through all four hits.

When it finished, she was quiet for a long moment before saying she had no idea Denise was hitting me that hard. Her voice was small and shocked.

Wallace appeared behind her and immediately started making excuses about camera angles and how phones distort things and make everything look more dramatic than it is. But several relatives were shaking their heads in disagreement.

Someone said the video showed exactly what happened and there was no distortion. Another person said they’d seen Denise hit me earlier in the night and thought it was weird but didn’t want to say anything.

The Emergency Room

I was still on the floor holding my neck and the pain shooting down my left side was getting worse by the second. Every breath hurt. Moving my head even slightly sent sharp stabbing pains through my neck and shoulder.

Sabine pushed through the crowd and knelt beside me, asking if I needed to go to the emergency room. I tried to nod, but the movement made me gasp. She helped me stand up slowly while supporting most of my weight.

The hallway tilted and I had to close my eyes until the dizziness passed. Tom reached for me, but I pulled away from him hard enough that I almost fell again. The hurt look on his face would normally make me feel guilty and want to apologize, but I was too angry.

Three years of him telling me I was being dramatic and too sensitive and that Denise was just being affectionate. Three years of him choosing his sister over me every single time.

Bradley stepped between us and told Tom to back off. Then Bradley offered to drive me to the hospital while Tom just stood there looking lost and confused like he didn’t know what to do. I accepted Bradley’s help without even looking at my husband.

We walked past the crowd and I heard people talking in low voices behind us. Someone asked if we should call an ambulance, but Bradley said his car would be faster. The drive to the emergency room took 15 minutes, and Bradley kept asking if I was okay while I sat in the passenger seat trying not to move my neck at all.

The emergency room was busy and bright and too loud. Bradley helped me check in and explained what happened to the nurse at the desk. She took one look at my neck brace from Bradley’s car and got me into a room pretty fast.

Diagnosis: Domestic Violence

The doctor came in and started examining my neck, asking me to rate my pain and describe what happened. I explained about Denise hitting me at the party and how this had been going on for three years. The doctor’s hands were gentle as she felt along my spine and neck, but even light pressure made me want to scream.

She ordered X-rays and an MRI right away to check for serious damage. When she asked how this injury happened, I told her about the assault and the three years of repeated head hits. She got very quiet and wrote something in her notes.

Then she said she was required to document this as domestic violence.

The words hit me hard because I’d never thought of it that way, but she was right. This was violence happening in my family, and everyone had been acting like it was normal.

The X-ray tech was careful moving me onto the table, and the machine hummed and clicked around my head. Then they took me for the MRI, which was worse because I had to lie completely still in a loud tube while my neck screamed.

After all the tests, the doctor came back with results. She said I had acute cervical strain and aggravation of chronic neck injury. The MRI showed inflammation and some damage to the soft tissue that would need time and physical therapy to heal.

She recommended I see a neurologist soon to evaluate cumulative head trauma effects because repeated hits like that could cause lasting problems. She gave me stronger pain medication than I’d been taking and fitted me with a proper neck brace that would keep my head stable.

Then she handed me a bunch of papers about domestic violence resources and support groups. She looked me in the eye and said what was happening to me wasn’t normal family behavior and I didn’t have to accept it.

I took the papers and tried not to cry because someone was finally saying out loud what I’d known for three years.