Something clicked in Emma Murphy's mind when she saw her fearful toddler in the car backseat as she drove away from her allegedly violent partner.
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"It was like I had a light bulb moment. I had had enough," she said.
"I had put up with his emotional and physical abuse for so long but I didn't want to leave because of the children. I stayed because I felt weak and lonely. But now I am alone, and I am not lonely."
The fitness blogger from Ireland made global headlines in 2015 when she posted a confronting video online after suffering alleged abuse from her former partner of 3.5 years.
This week she journeyed from Dublin to Canberra to share her story at the National Family Violence Summit. She said she was shocked to learn of the urgent family violence crisis facing Australia, where one in four women have faced physical or sexual violence by an intimate partner.
Her contastly full facebook inbox seemed evidence that women from Australia - including Canberra - could relate to her journey.
She said what began as a fairytale relationship slowly became toxic, full of manipulative and controlling behaviours that she brushed off because she loved her partner.
When the emotional abuse allegedly turned physical, she said she stayed as she thought it was best for her children.
But in the moment she sat in her car and looked at her son, she knew she wouldn't go back to him. That moment lead her to make a video which shared with the world a secret she had hidden for years.
"I changed for the better as soon as I posted that video, because I understood domestic violence, I understood it was wrong and I began to stop blaming myself," she said.
"The whole journey has been draining and even the other day I had a woman say I didn't know real abuse just because I had a black eye. But so many people cheer me on - because a lot of people have a voice in there that they are afraid to use it so they see me as a voice for them."
She hoped sharing her message would help Australian women find their own voice and seek support for an issue that is believed to be vastly underreported in this country.
Ms Murphy was one of several domestic violence survivors and services providers to speak at the National Family Violence Summit hosted by the Tara Costigan Foundation and sponsored by BaptistCare on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The aim of the summit is for people for shared knowledge and experiences to help end family and domestic violence in Australia.
