What is and is not DBing

[TimeHeals]

I'd add that if at any point somebody is hurtling insults at you, that they aren't interested in communicating. They are attacking you. Why in the world would you try to validate that?

It's OK to have even passionate discussions and even validate negative emotions, but you don't validate bad behavior, and that's what name calling is. Once somebody makes it personal and attacks you, communication has already stopped, so don't fool yourself into thinking that walking away isn't appropriate, and if it is continual... something more drastic to end the abuse is needed.

That's just how life is. No magic words are going to make somebody who is being abusive stop being abusive if you've already asked them to stop and they continue, and it's codependent magical thinking to try to find the right combination of words to change somebody else's behavior.