There are wounds that don’t show up on X-rays. Wounds that walk into work with a smile and go to sleep with a scream lodged in the chest. Wounds that come from betrayal.
Every year on August 4, we pause to honor those wounds. To say to every woman who’s ever discovered a double life, every partner who’s ever questioned her sanity, every survivor who’s ever been told “it’s just cheating”—we see you.
August 4 is National Intimate Partner Betrayal Awareness Day, a day created by survivors, for survivors, to shine a light on the hidden trauma of betrayal in committed relationships. Whether it’s infidelity, deception, secrecy, or spiritual and financial manipulation, betrayal ruptures the very foundation of trust and safety in a relationship. And yet, it’s often dismissed, minimized, or met with silence.
We’re here to change that.
It’s Not “Just Cheating.” It’s Trauma.
As Andrea Rogers, founder of the Intimate Partner Betrayal Alliance (IPBA), defines it:
“Intimate partner betrayal is a breach of trust in a committed relationship that violates the safety of the relationship… a form of relational abuse through deception, secrecy, or disloyalty.”
Betrayal shatters more than vows—it disrupts identity. There is a version of you before betrayal, and a version after. You’re not just rebuilding trust—you’re rebuilding your sense of reality, your relationship to your body, your voice, your future.
And too often, women carry that burden alone.
Changing the Narrative, Together
This is not a moment. It’s a movement.
The Intimate Partner Betrayal Alliance was born from the truth that women deserve more than quiet suffering. They deserve to be believed. To be heard. To be held. To be honored.
The IPBA provides betrayed partners with practical healing resources—crisis kits, meals, community care—and empowers them to tell their own stories. Not for punishment. For justice. For reclaiming the narrative.
Introducing the Embers of Light
Survivors are not defined by what happened to them. They are embers—burning with sacred resilience, still glowing even after the fire. And on August 4, we celebrate those embers of light. We honor the women who rise.
How You Can Help
Join the movement:
- Become a monthly donor to help fund resources, healing retreats, and crisis support.
- Share the message. Follow @IPBAlliance on social media and repost with #ChangeTheNarrative #IPBAwarenessDay #EmbersOfLight.
- Tell your story. Use your voice or hold space for someone else’s.
- Pre-order the IPBA Cookbook, featuring stories and recipes from survivors—a fundraiser and a gesture of nourishment.
- Sponsor the mission. Invite your organization to support survivor-centered healing and advocacy.
We can’t undo the betrayal. But we can stop the silence.
This August 4, we say to every betrayed partner: You are not alone. You are not crazy. You are not to blame. You are still burning with light.
