She has been trying everything she can think of to make things better, but they have only gotten worse. As with anyone in such circumstances, she has come to expect failure. She may feel more and more helpless as a normal response to constant resistance to her efforts. This phenomena is recognized among prisoners of war, people taken hostage, people living in poverty who cannot get work, etc. And her efforts are doomed to fail because she has no power over the abuser's behavior and choices. Nothing she does or doesn't do can make him stop abusing her. It's up to him to take responsibility for the abuse, and for stopping it.