🖤 What Tried to Destroy Me Only Made Me Stronger: Alicia’s Story of Survival & Rise

I am a 49-year-old domestic violence survivor.

I was in a 3-year DV situation with a man I had dated off and on since high school. I ignored the red flags in the beginning, because I so badly wanted this to be my happy ending.

The abuse started with pushing, name-calling, screaming, lying, and cheating. Over time, I learned that if I kept my mouth shut and didn’t respond, the abuse was less frequent. But one day, he sexually assaulted me — and from there, it got worse. I remember him shoving me with a baby in my arms. It kept escalating every single day for months. I was terrified. He was over 6 feet tall and around 300 pounds. I was only 125, and I was scared to death of him.

I had just started college to earn my high school diploma — something I had dreamed of for years after dropping out at 16 to become a mother and wife. He didn’t want me to succeed. He made it very clear. And when I finally started making progress toward a better life, the abuse intensified. He didn’t want me to have anything.

Without my mother, I don’t think I would’ve had the strength to leave him. He had threatened to kill me and said he’d make my body disappear. He had even threatened to burn down my house. I was living in constant fear.

Eventually, I got a restraining order — but I wasn’t strong enough at the time to press charges. I just couldn’t face him in court.

What finally gave me the strength to turn it around? I heard the baby in the other room, and I knew I had to live for him. That moment changed everything.

Three things I’ve done to move closer to happiness:

• I’m graduating and getting my high school diploma in June 2026.

• I have a 4.0 GPA.

• I’m planning to become a domestic violence counselor or advocate after receiving my diploma.

My favorite Beautiful Disaster collection?

That’s a hard question, because I love them all — but I finally bought a piece that says:
"What tried to destroy me only made me stronger."
Everyone says that’s my personal motto — and now I wear it with pride.