THE STORY(S) OF MY LIFE

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Went to my first AA meeting in 1988 and have been sober ever since. I am certain that Alcoholics Anonymous was the link that kept me sober while living in Mike's stealth and cunning violence for an astonishing and remarkable twenty years.

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In 2010 my only sibling, Laura, was killed and lost on the high seas. She was crew aboard the Rule 62. We never found her. She was my best partner of this life. We knew each other's deepest flaws yet always loved and celebrated each other. I trusted her completely, valued her opinion, felt at ease and safe with her.

Her death became the backdrop of my survival. Because then I knew, if I can live through all that, I am strong enough to leave him.

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Laura made medical history when her arm was reattached. Her stagnant arm never stopped her from anything and she exemplified an inspiring can-do, no matter what attitude. 4 IVe HOPE was born from Laura's license plate IV HOPE.

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ME NOW

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My children Drew and Carson are my life's greatest joy. And they saved me in every way a person can be saved.

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I follow activist Tarana Burke, Founder of the Me Too movement. She started using her #MeToo in 2006 with little traction. It went viral in 2017 when women in Hollywood began using it to tweet about the Harvey Weinstein sexual abuse cases.

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Likewise, there was little to no information about NPDV when I started using my hashtag #WhatIsNonPhysicalDomesticViolence in 2016. Non physical violence wasn't a thing then but it is now. Though information about it is convoluted and all over the place. In reality it's simple:

Non Physical Domestic Violence is any combination of the forms of abuse and violence which is not physical violence or sexual violence.

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My story is an excellent example of this definition.

There are millions who are experiencing NPDV right now.