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*The following article contains discussion of sexual assault.
Country music star Shania Twain has a lot to look forward to with a new album and tour in the near future.
Even with so much hope on the horizon, Twain's memories from the past are met with pain and darkness.
In a recent interview with The Sunday Times, she recounted the lengths she would take to try to avoid physical and sexual abuse from her stepfather Jerry.
Twain—who revealed some of the abuse in her 2011 memoir From This Moment On, told The Sunday Times:
"I hid myself, and I would flatten my boobs."
"I would wear bras that were too small for me, and I'd wear two, play it down until there was nothing girl about me."
"Make it easier to go unnoticed."
"Because, oh my gosh, it was terrible - you didn't want to be a girl in my house."
Twain and her two sisters were adopted by Jerry when she was 4 years old. In 1987, he and Twain's mother were killed in a car crash.
Twain also shared her related struggles to "play the glamorous singer."
"I was ashamed of being a girl."
"All of a sudden it was like, 'Well, what's your problem? You know, you're a woman and you have this beautiful body?'"
"What was so natural for other people was so scary for me."
"I felt exploited, but I didn't have a choice now."
"I had to play the glamorous singer, had to wear my femininity more openly or more freely."
"And work out how I'm not gonna get groped, or raped by someone's eyes, and feel so degraded."
People on Twitter were heartbroken to learn what she had to endure and thanked her for sharing her story.
\u201cThank you for you bravery @ShaniaTwain \n\nVideo Shania Twain speaks out about surviving child abuse - ABC News https://t.co/T5HuXAX0wf\u201d— Eliza (@Eliza) 1670343722
So sad that she had to grow up with this!!! Where the hell was her mom, obviously not protecting her child!!!
— Colleen Blackman (@coneill2712) December 5, 2022
So sad that she had to grow up with this!!! Where the hell was her mom, obviously not protecting her child!!!
— Colleen Blackman (@coneill2712) December 5, 2022
Oh my gosh that’s so sad.
— Dorine Belliveau (@DorineBelliveau) December 6, 2022
She’s an amazing survivor 🇺🇸
— Brenda Criss (@Brendacriss3) December 5, 2022
Very sad 😢
— Linda Kindopp (@kindopp_linda) December 5, 2022
Nobody should go through any abuse period.... But that being said shouldn't your mother take responsibility for picking a toxic man over her children 🙄
— Freed From Delusion (@LifeOfAHumanist) December 6, 2022
Very #mindache when children aren't #safe in their own homes... 🤦
— GoryYogi® (@GoryYogi) December 5, 2022
I am heartbroken to hear this story about your Stepfather. I am so sorry you had to endure that time in your life. Big Hug.
— BostonMike (@BostonMike1954) December 5, 2022
In September, Twain released her single Wake up Dreaming, her first in five years.
The complete album Queen of Me is set to be released early next year before she embarks on her tour in April. Twain is also set to appear as Mrs. Potts in ABC's Beauty and the Beast special on December 15.
Twain told The Sun she is looking forward to the next chapter in her life.
"I'm really excited about cheering people up."
***
If you or someone you know experienced sexual assault, help is out there. You can reach the RAINN National Sexual Assault Hotline by calling 1-800-656-4673, use their Live Chat tool: https://www.rainn.org/get-help, or visit the National Sexual Violence Resource Center’s website.
In Canada, help is available through the Ending Violence Association of Canada website.
International resources can be found through the Rape Crisis Network Europe website.