Mum 's shocking before and after video of leaving with her baby at Xmas

"Us the day after we left... Us a month after we left... Us two years later." Please note: sensitive topics 

Image: Lauren Cook/TikTok

Christmas is a time of joy for many, but the pressures of costs and the mental load mean that it's also dangerous for those living in unsafe environments.

Mum Lauren Cook can testify to that.

Two years ago, in early December, she left her violent relationship - escaping with her baby.

Now, she's living proof that there's light at the end of the tunnel for anyone who's able to do, or thinking of doing , the same.

Want to join the family? Sign up to our Kidspot newsletter for more stories like this. 

RELATED: ‘I grew up witnessing domestic violence before I knew it was a crime’

"Us the day after we left, a month later, two years later"

The mum of one, who has 41k followers on TikTok, shared an emotional clip of her experience in early December. It's now been viewed 20 million times, and has attracted 38k comments.

Lauren gave Kidspot permission to write about her post, in the interests of raising awareness.

The short but incredibly impactful video begins with footage of Lauren, her face literally purple from bruising. The text over it reads, "Us the day after we left."

The next snapshot is "Us a month after we left", with Lauren's face healed, and lots of smiles.

Finally, we see "Us two years later", and the joy of mum and bub can literally be felt through the screen.

Lauren says in the caption, "I will celebrate this day every year… 2 years free 💜 #dv #domesticviolenceawareness."

Image: Lauren Cook/TikTok

RELATED: If you ‘spank’ your kids, you’re parenting wrong and I know why

"Never been more proud of a stranger"

The colossal response to Lauren's clip proves how increasingly understood domestic violence is in society - and how prevalent.

One of the top comments reads: "Never been more proud of a stranger!" It's an acknowledgement of family violence, how difficult it is to leave when you want to, and respect for making it to the other side.

Lauren replied, "Thank you so much! This means the world 🥰❤️."

She wrote the same response to this post: "As someone who watched my dad hit my mum growing up. You saved your son from a lot of trauma. Amazing mum."

One viewer noted, "Even with the bruises, you look so happy because you knew you were free after leaving."

And way too many others shared their personal experiences, such as this mum who shared: "I gave birth looking like this."

But there were stories of hope, too.

"I'm so glad you got away," this viewer said. "As a child that grew up in an environment like this, I'm still trying to undo the damage at 44 - but your child won't have to."

Finally, this comment nailed it: "So proud of you! So easy for people to say “just get out” but I cannot imagine how terrifying that truly is."

"What did you do to make this happen?"

The video also prompted a vital discussion.

One viewer wrote: "It takes a lot of anger for a man to punch someone in the face. What were you doing to him to make this happen?"

Many quickly explained to him why that was the wrong question:

"Probably breathing! That’s how psychos work!"

"Are you serious?! It doesn’t matter what she did, there is no excuse for a man hitting a woman out of anger."

"What we’re not gonna do here is put any responsibility on her at all. Hard stop."

But the best response to the man was: "This must be his burner account or his Mum's."

Indeed.

Why Christmas is the most dangerous time of year for family violence

Domestic and family violence is at crisis point in Australia.

According to Destroy the Joint’s Counting Dead Women Australia project, 72 Australian women have lost their lives this year because of it.

Data from the Crime Statistics Agency shows the number of recorded family incidents by Victoria Police steadily increases from September of each year, peaking in December. The number of incidents remain high in January, before reducing in February.

Crisis support data in recent years has seen usage rates spike by 25 to 30 per cent on Christmas Day and Boxing Day alone, while crisis relief and emergency housing programs can see spikes of around 40 per cent.

Speaking to news.com.au, Monash University’s Dr Kate Fitz-Gibbon said, “we hear from frontline responders that there is an increase in domestic and family violence reporting over the holiday period”.

Dr Fitz-Gibbon added, "It can be a time of heightened stress and conflict for many families," and factors such as cost pressures, alcohol consumption and increased social occasions can exacerbate tensions.

Originally published as Mum 's shocking before and after video of leaving with her baby at Xmas