Domestic violence survivor speaks out

In 1970, I married the man I was very much in love with. I was 18; he was 23.

From the very beginning, he started being violent towards me. I tried to leave him numerous times during the 12 years we were married.

It was a different world then. If you were married, for better or worse, no matter how bad it was, separation or divorce was unacceptable in some families.

The police were called numerous times, to no avail. Domestic violence was not taken seriously then. Today, men like my ex would be charged and incarcerated.

I still suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder. This never goes away. I just learn to live with it. Today, I am a senior living alone, enjoying time with my three children and seven grandchildren and friends. God has blessed me.

Society has come a long way with domestic violence, but there is still a lack of understanding and compassion.

Some people don’t understand the dynamics of ongoing violence from someone you love, and how demoralizing it is, and how you are rejected, judged by some families and society.

Denise Robillard
Greater Sudbury