A survivor of physical, sexual and emotional abuse has shared her story in an attempt to help anyone who has suffered at the hands of an offender.

The young woman, who lives in the Ross-on-Wye area, has written a book to show her readers that abuse is a problem happening locally. The author has written her book under a pen-name, Amelia Hill.

The book, entitled Just a Few More Steps, also raises awareness for a condition, called ‘dissociation,’ a condition which is experienced by victims of abuse. She said that she experienced physical, sexual and emotional harm, and she endured it for many years.

In her book, Amelia writes about the abuse she experienced, and how it affected her afterwards. Her story is set in the first person, and in it she explains that her abuser began to hurt her from a young age, and this affected her development into her teenage years, as she tried to keep what was happening to her a secret.

As a result of her abuse, Amelia developed dissociative identity disorder (DID), a condition where a person will have two or more distinct identities, or personality states.

These identities are present in, and alternately take control of, the individual. With her condition, Amelia explains that she has, at times, regressed into a childlike state. During one of her episodes where she was in the childlike state, Amelia told her mother about the abuse, and she has received unlimited support from her family ever since.

Because dissociation and DID?are not widely-known about in this country, it took a very long time for Amelia to receive a correct diagnosis. She told the Ross Gazette that she received a wrong diagnosis from doctors on the NHS, which caused her a great deal of stress, but she had support from the West Mercia Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre, and one of their support workers suggested that she may have dissociation. She and her family then travelled to Northern Ireland, to a specialist centre. There, she received the right diagnosis of DID. She told the Gazette that she did receive some closure from this, “It proved I wasn’t insane,” she said.

Amelia told the Ross Gazette that she wrote everyday for two years to get her story into words. “I was writing bits about what I’d learned, about abuse and dissociation, and Mum and Dad suggested I write a book,” she said.

She is also planning on writing a second book, and she has already begun the process, although she said she is mainly focusing on the launch of Just a Few More Steps for the time being.

Amelia has written tips for others who are being abused. She said she also wants to raise awareness of the fact that abuse can happen in the local community. She said a lot of people still don’t believe it happens in Ross-on-Wye. She also wants to raise awareness for the condition of dissociation itself, because it is still not widely known, recognised or understood in the UK. Her book is available on Amazon, both as a hard-copy and a digital edition. She has also had some interest in local bookshops and some independent business owners have ordered copies to sell in their shops. However, Amelia told the Ross Gazette that some other bookshops in the area have told her they don’t want to stock her book, as they don’t believe abuse is something that happens in the area.

Amelia also hopes to have her book sold in Waterstones and WH Smiths in the not too distant future.