The 'Westworld' star testifies about 'toxic mental, physical and sexual abuse' she experienced almost a decade ago which leads her to 'depression, addiction, agoraphobia, night terrors.'
- Mar 1, 2018
AceShowbiz - Evan Rachel Wood opened up about her domestic violence and sexual abuse she experienced. On Tuesday, February 27, the "Westworld" actress went before the House Judiciary Committee to testify about her experiences on behalf of the Sexual Assault Survivors' Bill of Rights Act as a way to fight for legal protections for abuse survivors.
"My experience with domestic violence is this: Toxic mental, physical and sexual abuse that started slow but escalated over time including threats against my life, severe gas-lighting and brain washing, and waking up to the man who claimed to love be raping what he believed to be my unconscious body," the 30-year-old actress revealed to the panel. "Sick rituals of binding me up by hands and feet to be mentally and physically tortured until my abuser felt I had proved my love for them."
"In this moment of being tied up and beaten and being told unspeakable things I truly felt that I could die, not just because my abuser said to me 'I could kill you right now' but because in that moment I felt like I left my body and was too afraid to run because he could find me. I froze," she continued. Wood added that it brought her "utter shame and despair" and made her feel "deeply terrified and that fear lives with me to this day."
"Not a day goes by when I don't hear the words this man whispered into my ear over and over. 'You're going to be fine, you're going to be fine.' And my small voice saying back 'no, no, no, no no,' until it faded into nothing," Wood continued detailing. "And I remember the feeling of shutting down and freezing and utter shock taking over and I couldn't even make a sound. I felt a piece of me disappear, a piece that has never returned. In other words I was not fine, and I am not fine."
Wood also shared that "seven years after my rapers--plural--I was diagnosed with long-term PTSD. I struggled with depression, addiction, agoraphobia, night terrors." She continued, "I struggled with self-harm to the point of two suicide attempts, which landed me in a psychiatric hospital for a short period of time. This was, however, a turning point in my life when I started seeking professional help to deal with my trauma and mental stress, but others are not so fortunate."
The actress took to her Instagram account to share a photo of herself during the Congress. "Making herstory with these incredible women, testifying in front of #Congress today. Still spinning," she captioned the snap.
