A mother has spoken out about the harrowing ordeal she experienced when she was physically abused by her own son.
Stacey Dvorak spoke to Australia’s 60 Minutes about the abuse which only stopped six months ago.
She says her son Jack abused her for five years from the age of 11 after witnessing the volatile relationship she had with Jack’s father.
Jack, now 16, said he began lashing out at his mother because he thought it was “normal”.
“I could hear mum yell everyday, my dad yell. Just always fighting. Which I thought normal relationships were,” Jack told 60 Minutes.
Jack abused his younger siblings, as well as his mother.
The pair appeared on the current affairs show to remind people of the cycle of violence that can come from domestic abuse.
“He’d be amazing and then one second out of nowhere I would be abused, the walls would be belted, my car was smashed, he’d hurt the little kids,” Stacey explained.
“It’s a shameful thing to live with. Because I lived it with his dad, I could see where this was going to end… I was in a cycle,” she said.
The abuse culminated in Jack threatening to kill his mum.
“I remember mum yelling at me and then I yelled at her and I said: ‘I’ll slit your throat and put a bullet to your brain’,” Jack said.
Stacey called the police and Jack was arrested.
After two months away from home, and with help from a counsellor, Jack was able to turn his life around.
He’s now started an apprenticeship and the pair are trying to raise awareness to help other troubled teens.
“I take one day at a time,” Stacey admitted. “At the moment, he’s the best I’ve ever seen him.”
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