Jana Kramer, a domestic violence survivor, is speaking out about abuse and stressing to her social network followers that it's "never okay".
After speaking at a seminar on domestic violence earlier in day, the actress took to Instagram Saturday. The "I Got the Boy” singer shared photos from a 2004 journal entry about her first abuser.
She also mentioned homicide victims like Gabby Petito, whose murder made national headlines last summer.
"I spoke at a seminar on domestic violence this morning. It can be all kinds of things. I was inspired to share this because I looked back at my journal last night. This entry is from 2004 when I was still dating my first abusive partner. It is a sad fact that I was still in the same cycle for many years. This was the life I deserved. It's hard to think about Gabby Petito, the beautiful woman I was.
Hallmark's actress shared that abuse is never okay.
"Mentally and physically, emotionally, etc. It's not okay. It is hard to leave. They can deplete your self-worth. They do this because that's their specialty. You will believe that no one in the world would choose you. This is the truth. That is not what you deserve. Nobody ever does. "And I'm here for you to tell you that you are strong enough and you ARE worthy," she said.
Kramer said that her first abuser tried "killing me and strangling me to death." Kramer now considers herself to be "one of the fortunate ones" that she was able escape.
Jana shared a journal entry on Saturday that was shared to her Instagram. It included a description of a man who said to Jana, "He was going to get his guns and kill me."
She continues with, "I was most confused and hurt in all of my life...and couldn't even remember what started it." Then he went on a psycho-rant, threatening to kill the 101 dogs, burn my clothes and ruin my entire life. It was hard to even write this and still say that I agree with him. I was so weak, I let him in. II want all the things we've always talked about, but I can no longer live like this. Things have changed ..."
Jana, younger than her father, admitted that she was "so tired of hurting" after being "choked to death" by the man. Her journal entry concluded, "I really realized that I deserve nothing less than the best and that I will get it."
Kramer isn't the only one to speak out about past abuse. The star wrote a lengthy Instagram post in September to her 2,000,000 followers, where she talked about her healing journey after being subject to threats and examples from her former partners.
"I have been emotionally and mentally abused in previous relationships. Because I believed the negative voices that were being spoken in my head, I allowed certain behaviors and actions to continue," she wrote.
After examining her past abusive relationships, the mother of two realized how they had hindered her realization of her positive qualities.
"For years, I have repeated the same patterns and fallen into the trap to believe those voices. This has caused me to hurt myself and others as a result of my desire to be selected, to be sufficient. Because it was what I believed I deserved, I have fallen for the same abuse in a couple. Kramer said, "My healing...your healing...our recovery is to stop those negative voices."
"Now is the right time to learn, grow, heal, and love yourself. We are enough. You are enough. She continued, "I am enough."
Last year Kramer filed for divorce with Mike Caussin. Since then, she has announced her new relationship to boyfriend Ian Schinelli.
