The inspiration behind 'The Ghostly Ex'

On 2nd September 2018, to be exact. I found myself typing away like crazy late at night. What was the inspiration? All the things I would say to my ex if I had the chance.

I found writing the script for this film was very therapeutic, it helped me voice what I had felt for many years...'That I failed at love', when in reality all I did was love the wrong person.

I didn't realise I had even been in an emotionally abusive relationship, until a year after the relationship was over. A guy I was dating in 2017, suggested I had a lot of symptoms that associate with someone who had been emotionally abused.

I recall him cooking me food in my kitchen at halls and I did something wrong, then I panicked and waited to be yelled at. But it never happened, he was a bit confused by my reaction and reassured it was okay.

That was one of the moments I realised my past relationship was not a normal one and it affected me more than I thought.

Not long after that, I discovered the word Gaslighting, which is to 'manipulate (someone) by psychological means into doubting their own sanity.'

My ex would sometimes do or say something that upset me, and I would be call him out on it. Then he would remind me of something I had done or said recently that upset him... So in the end I'd be the one apologising.

Messed up right? Imagine that being an average day?

No one talks about emotional abuse enough and it frustrates me, since it's the reason why a lot of young women end up in unhappy relationships. It becomes their 'norm', especially when it's their first proper relationship, like mine was.

Girls should be educated in schools in how to avoid being in an emotional abuse relationship.

It should be treated on the same level as physical abuse, since it can cause mental health issues, such as depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, eating disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), self harm or suicidal thoughts.

My goal with The Ghostly Ex is to raise awareness for emotional abuse and spark a much-needed conversation.