Essex Life

From the age of four until she was seventeen years-old, Sharon McGovern was sexually, physically and mentally abused by her stepfather.

She had to wait another forty years before she was able to see him convicted for the crimes he committed against her.

Sharon insists that she should not be seen as a victim of abuse, rather a survivor: "To be a victim of somebody is to be under their control in some way." Explains Sharon. "I was never under his control. He had control of my body, but I had control of my mind".

Whilst she was being subjected to the abuse, Sharon would make sure that she was able to separate herself mentally from what was happening to her body. She would do this by entering what she describes as 'little boxes' in her mind, which were free of the bad things.

Her stepfather was eventually convicted on a number of charges of abuse towards Sharon, some forty years after they took place. Despite the long time difference, she always knew justice would take place: "I believe in fate, I believe that what is happening in your life is happening for a reason.

"I don't know how I knew, but I knew I would see him in court."

Looking back on her experiences with the judicial system, Sharon says that whilst organisations such as the the Victims Contact Unit do a great job, there still needs to be more help for the survivors of crime.

One particular aspect that needs improving, she says, is in preparing people for what to expect in the court itself: "The only people who can teach you that are survivors of those cases, which is why I am helping other people now."

Despite her experiences, Sharon insists that she hasn't allowed it to affect the rest of her life: "I've always separated me and the child. The child is still there within me, but I have always kept me totally different from the abuse." She says.

"I don't dwell on what happened to me because you can't change the past. You cannot make the past better - it's gone, it's dead."

To hear Sharon's story, click on the links below: