Former Disney star Bella Thorne has opened up about being sexually abused as a child.
The 20-year-old, who starred on the Disney Channel's Shake It Up from 2010 to 2013, told her story in an Instagram post using the "#TimesUp" hashtag on Monday.
"I was sexually abused and physically growing up from the day I can remember till I was 14... when I finally had the courage to lock my door at night and sit by it. All damn night," Thorne wrote, not naming her alleged abuser. "Waiting for someone to take advantage of my life again. Over and over I waited for it to stop and finally it did."
The actress added that "some of us aren't as lucky to get out alive".
"Please today stand up for every soul Mistreated [sic]," she wrote.
Thorne continued her story on Twitter, writing, "I never knew what was right or wrong growing up. I didn't know the person sneaking into my bed room at night was a bad person."
Raised by a single mother in Florida, Thorne has spoken about pursuing acting as a child and moving with her mother to Los Angeles to support her family.
In an interview with Harper's Bazaar last year, the actress - who came out as bisexual in August - said she made a conscious effort to be open and honest with her younger fans on social media, after years of altering her public image to fit the Disney star mould.
"When I was younger I thought about killing myself; it's very normal in a way that, if you're upset with who you are and how your life is going, you could think these things," she said. "I want people to know that it's okay to talk about it. And the more I do it, the more my fans will do it with each other, and with other people in their life."
Fairfax Media
