Warning: This article contains images some readers may find distressing.
Former Love Island contestant Malin Andersson has shared a graphic photograph on social media depicting the injuries she says she once received in an abusive relationship. In the upsetting image, Malin can be seen with a black eye, a swollen lip, and what looks like an arm in a sling.
The reality TV star posted the picture on Instagram in an effort to empower any followers who have had similar experiences to believe they can find the strength to leave. Beginning her caption with a trigger warning, Malin wrote about how the physical injuries she sustained were not as bad as the mental damage.
"The external isn’t as bad as the internal," Malin captioned the shocking image. "Damage not to my physical body but my mental health also. PTSD. Constant thoughts of 'am I crazy, did any of this happen?' Questioning myself. Wondering how I kept quiet for so long.
"I lost myself completely. I wasn’t Malin, I was someone else," the heartbreaking post continued.
Malin described feeling trapped in a former relationship, believing that the abuse was her fault. "I kept going back because I thought I was in love. I thought this was all love. It’s not," she wrote, echoing an explanation often spoken by other women in abusive relationships.
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Miraculously, the Love Island contestant eventually found the strength to bravely leave the relationship.
"I woke up one day and decided to break the cycle. I knew enough was enough," she posted on Instagram. "I didn’t know if I would ever see this day... but I promise you the day I set free came to me, it will come to you," she wrote, speaking to others who might be in similar situations.
"They will make you out to be crazy. You’re not," the TV star wrote before urging women to "please seek help before it’s too late."
This isn't the first time Malin has had the courage to speak out about the abuse she says she suffered; in October, in aid of National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, the 26-year-old posted a photograph of extensive bruising on her under-arm. It's not known when the pictures were taken.
Malin used the post to list traits and warning signs of abusive behaviour among her followers. The traits of a narcissist, she explained, can be:
- Grandiosity
- Lack of empathy
- Emotionless
- Self perception of being unique
- Needing continual admiration
- Sense of entitlement
- Exploitive of others
- Envious of others
- Pompous and arrogant demeanour
- Very good at acting
Highlighting how behaviour doesn't always have to be physical in order to constitute an abusive relationship, Malin described the feelings someone might experience when involved in a narcissistic relationship. They are as follows:
- Feeling not good enough / lack of worth
- Self-doubt and second guessing
- Chronically apologetic
- Confusion and as though you are losing your mind
- Helplessness and hopelessness
- Sadness and depression
- Feelings of anxiousness, shame, worry
- Unsettled
- Mental and emotional exhaustion
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic abuse, visit Women's Aid's website for information and support. Alternatively, you can call the Freephone 24-hour National Domestic Violence Helpline, run by Women’s Aid in partnership with Refuge, on 0808 2000 247.
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Cat is Cosmopolitan UK's features editor covering women's issues, health and current affairs. news, features and health. The route to her heart is a simple combination of pasta and cheese (somewhat ironic considering the whole health writing thing), and she finds it difficult to commit to TV series so currently has about 14 different ones on the go.
