THE 34-year-old mum-of-three, from Cinnamon Brow, says her torment began at the age of 16 when she fell for her older boyfriend.

She said: “He had been drinking and threw me on to a grass verge. He was verbally abusive. He was crying and said it wouldn’t happen again.”

That was the start of the bullying, which would see her beaten unconscious and attacked in front of her children. It resulted in her giving evidence against him in Warrington Magistrates’ Court before he was handed a custodial sentence earlier this year.

She said: “I honestly believed it wouldn’t happen again, I believed I would change him.

“I gave up the family business because he said I was bad at my job. My confidence was low and I wouldn’t question what he said.”

She said she tried to get him help to deal with his alcohol problem but nothing worked.

“It was a case of trying to survive to be honest. He would say ‘I would be dead without you’, it was emotional blackmail.

“I felt deflated, absolutely numb after each beating. I used to wake up dreading what was going to happen.”

One of her worst memories was last Christmas when he banged her face against the mantlepiece and told one of their children to mop up the blood.

She was admitted to hospital after the wound became infected and told she could have gone blind or even died if it had been left untreated.

On a family holiday she was knocked unconscious and punched so badly one side of her face was distorted. She told medics she had been kicked accidentally in the swimming pool.

In court this year she says she felt ‘sickened’ at the thought of giving evidence and came close to refusing. She said police had been called many times over the past six years but she was too scared to press charges.

The final straw was when she was unable to attend an event that was important to one of her sons because she had been attacked.

She said: “I feel stupid for putting up with it for that length of time. My life is beginning again. I have started a job and nobody is walking on eggshells now.

“I am working out now why he did it. He wanted utter control. He had his insecurities and problems.”

She advised any women or men in her situation to get help. She admits that contacting the police can sometimes be daunting so advises getting in touch with The Relationships Centre.

“The name of the charity says it all. They are understanding, I didn’t know whether I was coming or going before them,” she said.

Her help involved counselling and support through court. She also praised the Vulnerable Tenants’ Support Scheme for helping her obtain grants which along with the Relationships Centre deliver services as part of the Warrington Domestic Abuse Forum.