Abigail Breslin reveals traumatic two years in domestic violence relationship

Oscar-nominated actress Abigail Breslin has opened up about her horror experience in an abusive relationship, which she hid for two years.

Actress Abigail Breslin has revealed that she survived domestic violence after being in a two-year relationship with an abuser who beat her and made her hide her injuries.

“As a DV survivor I felt compelled to write a little bit about my story. I was in a very abusive relationship for close to two years,” Breslin, 26, wrote in a statement posted to her Instagram along with a trigger warning.

The Little Miss Sunshine star, who was sharing her experience to honour Domestic Violence Awareness Month, explained that the relationship started out “perfectly” and she was “so in love” but that her abuser took advantage of her “innocence and naïveté” before things turned violent.

“I was beaten on a regular basis, locked into rooms and forced to pretend everything was OK and normal while dealing with intense injuries … injuries most people didn’t even see,” Breslin, who didn’t name her abuser, wrote.

She said she would use concealer and foundation to hide her bruises because she wanted to protect her abuser, saying: “In some way, I still cared for this person.”

Abigail Breslin has revealed she was in a physically abusive relationship.

She also said the abuse wasn’t just physical – it was also emotionally manipulative.

“The physical injuries were also accompanied by a plethora of put-downs, shaming and harsh verbal abuse,” she said. “I felt so unworthy of anyone’s love. I felt ugly and hated. I felt like I deserved less than dirt. I was certain, there must be something inherently WRONG with ME.”

The actress, who was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar aged just 10, said that those two years she dated her abuser was a time where she felt the most alone and thanked her family and friends who helped her leave the “horrible” relationship.

“I will forever be indebted to those closest to me for them not only assisting me but, BELIEVING me,” Breslin said.

She also shared that her complex post-traumatic stress disorder is “much better” than it was two to three years out of her abusive relationship, but that she still has “moments”.

Breslin has opened up about her trauma for the first time. Picture: Theo Wargo/Getty Images

She began working as an actress when she was just three. Picture: Reuters/Lucy Nicholson

“I still occasionally have nightmares, and certain things still do trigger me,” she wrote, adding: “I’m healing.”

She ended her post by sharing with fans that if they are in an abusive relationship, they “CAN get out of it”.

“I know it seems impossible and terrifying, but you have survived so much and you CAN survive leaving if you have the right tools and support.”

Fortunately, Breslin shared that she is now in a “wonderful, healthy, happy and amazing” relationship with her fiance Ira Kunyansky.

She is now happily engaged to boyfriend Ira Kunyansky.

Breslin announced that she and Kunyansky got engaged in February.

It’s unclear how long they had been dating but she first shared a photo of him back in November 2017.

This story originally appeared on New York Post and was reproduced with permission

Originally published as Abigail Breslin reveals traumatic two years in domestic violence relationship