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Is emotional/verbal abuse just as harmful as physical?

Growing up, my mother would sometimes slap me or spank me in anger with a wooden spoon or leather sandals. A couple times it was for not getting my math homework correct. Then another time, she smacked me a couple times on the shoulder with her hands for accidentally burning the rice or dripping a glass of milk on the floor.

My father never laid a hand on me but I feel he was no better. He was a yeller and sometimes would criticize me. A bunch of times, he used to tell me ''Why can't you be more sociable like your friend, why can't you ever do things better, etc''.

Eventually my parents divorced. Since abuse comes in all forms, is what my father did just as bad too? He keeps saying that at least he never laid a hand on me. But I feel the yelling, denigrating me and comparing me to others had an effect on me for years. What do you think? Obviously my mother abused me but is getting yelled at and criticized just as bad too?

Updates
9 mo
Till this day, my father doesn't see yelling as abuse. He has said a bunch of times in the past ''I might be a yeller but I never hit you''.
Is emotional/verbal abuse just as harmful as physical?
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