Abuse survivor Celeste Louw talks to Stephanie van der Plank about her troubled previous relationship, and how she began her road to recovery
CELESTE LOUW, 49, lives in Kimberley with her husband Neil, 45. She has three kids from a previous relationship. Neil also has two children. Celeste is vice president of Optimystic Bikers Against Abuse, an organisation that offers support to victims of physical and emotional domestic abuse.
“My ex is awfully charismatic – charming, outgoing, the life and soul of the party – and when I met him as a young woman, he made me feel special; something I hadn’t felt for a very long time. I had a difficult childhood. My adoptive parents split when I was very young, and my two older brothers and I lived with my dad; when he passed away shortly after I turned 10, we moved in with our mom. Her partner at the time was less than savoury and I never quite felt safe with him.
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