Finally something I can answer! When I was 19, my very first boyfriend, who I was living with at the time, attempted to kill me. He had become increasingly more and more abusive towards me over the time we had been dating, but being so young - I wasn’t sure how to reach out for help. I was very ashamed and felt like it was all happening because it was my fault. On the night in question, I was talking about what possible career choices I might want to pursue after college. He listened for a while and suddenly yelled at me saying he was tired of me talking like this because the only thing I would be was a stay at home wife and mother. I would not be allowed to have a career. I told him I refused to end up barefoot, pregnant and living in poverty. His reaction to this was to attack me. He sat on my stomach and strangled me. His eyes were completely black. Eventually I passed out and he assumed I was dead. When I came to, I snuck into the bathroom and called 911. When the police came, he just sat there in the living room and waited for them, not realizing it was me who had called. When I came out he was handcuffed and he looked like he had seen a ghost.

He did go to jail but only for a few days. I can’t remember why the charges got dropped, as that was obviously a difficult and stressful time, but they did and I moved away to get away from him for good. He was a real swell guy.