Community Life

A Plymouth woman has ended years of silence about her childhood by writing a book about the abuse she suffered as a youngster in the 1950s and '60s.

'A House Full of Whispers' by Sharon Wallace is a harrowing tale, not for the faint-hearted - but it's a story Sharon, now 50, felt she had to tell.

Sharon hopes that by letting the world know about the child abuse she endured, it will encourage children who are being abused to come forward.

She said: "I decided to write the book because of a lot of things that have been in the media.

"There's a lot of people out there who are abused within the home that never comes to light. They live under a dark cloud, afraid to come forward and make the accusation, so the abuser is then allowed to go on and abuse others.

"It's not until someone speaks about abuse that others then have the courage to come forward."

Sharon, who has been happily married for 30 years and has five sons, fears that the issue won't be tackled properly as long as abuse remains secret.

In her case, she feels she was sent away like a dirty little secret. Now three decades later she has taken a lie detector test to prove to herself and others what really happened. The result strongly suggests that she was telling the truth. 

"In my case, it was sexual, physical and mental abuse. Many doors hold dark secrets and many minds hold those secrets within those walls.

"I called mine the House of Whispers because there was a lot of whispering but no talking. There were a lot of things going on which nobody spoke of.

"There are a lot of children out there who are abused by uncles, by visitors to the home.

"But we don't hear about that - it's the unsaid sin. Society and people don't like to admit it was going on in their home because they somehow feel responsible for it.

"I feel the more we speak out about this, it will make it better for generations to come. They've got to have the courage to come out and say 'it did happen, whether you believe me or not.'

"Then the abuser will stop and think that if people are going to come out and say it happened, then maybe they're not going to be able to control any more, and go into a home and abuse children."

If you have been affected by this subject or need advice, you can contact the National Association for People Abused in Childhood (NAPAC) on 0808 800 0122 for men, and 0808 800 0123 for women.

In Plymouth, another useful contact number is: Sexual Abuse Listening Therapy on 01752 600599.     

If you suspect that a child is being abused you can call in confidence to Childline on 0800 11 11.

* BBC Radio Devon's Esther White interviewed Sharon, and you can hear the five part series using the audio links on this page.

You can also listen to Sharon Wallace talking on John Govier's Late Night Show on BBC Local Radio in the South West from 10pm to 1am on 9 July 2007.

For more details about the book, visit Sharon's website which is linked from this page.