They are adept at charming the child and they may ingratiate themselves into a family in order to gain the parents’ trust so that they can become closer to the child. Fact: Relative physical strength or weakness is not the issue; power and control are. Far from being a powerless victim, a woman involved in a violent relationship often displays enormous resources of strength in the way she learns to live with fear, navigate unpredictability and intuit her partner’s moods in order to protect herself and her children.