I dated a guy like this who wasn't even a witness for a few years. My life was absolutely miserable. He was so controlling, I lived in fear of doing anything or even saying the wrong things, because I was afraid that it might upset him. Even after the relationship was over I would often stop to think whether he would approve of me doing certain things. For a while I was basically a hermit with no friends who worked and stayed in.
Sometimes these kinds of people can oppress you so much that it literally sucks the life out of you. It has taken me a few months to get out of the mental prison I was in with him. But I am slowly allowing myself to enjoy life and do things that I like to do. I am the happiest that I have ever been. Of course financially I don't have alot but I would rather be broke and have my peace of mind than spend another second with someone like that.
I understand that its hard to let go sometimes I went through the stages of anger and resentment. But I realized that I now had my freedom and that he could no longer hurt me anymore. So why should I use my precious time thinking about him? If I continued to sit and think about him and feel resentment and anger that would just keep me stuck forever and I would never be trully free from him.
I also agree with the other comments that you don't need alot of money to do things. I find when I get stuck in a bad mood sometimes. It helps to just get up and get out away from my thoughts. I absolutely love driving and watching the beautiful scenery it helps to take my mind off of things.