I’d love to talk to my older self too, but I think I’ll be alright. This is the start to true happiness. No more being controlled, abused, taken advantage of, lied to, gaslit, used, manipulated, heartbroken, disappointed, sad, and torn down from the core of who I am. As tough as it was, and as tough as it is…I ultimately did it for my kids. It’s not easy being a single mom of 3 kids, but I did it for a year with a newborn, solo parenting while being the caretaker, driver, cook, housecleaner, and everything that comes with being a mom. If you are a victim of domestic abuse, don’t be afraid to get help. If you win your case, your attorney fees are covered by the other party (in California Family Code 6344). In some cases, you can represent yourself like I did. I ended up having to hire an attorney and my trial went on for 7 months, which is unheard of, because DVROs are an emergency situations that need to be handled within a month. But our judge was fair. He gave them every chance t...