Amy left her Spanish husband, Stefan, following years of controlling behaviour which escalated to physical violence. She fled to her sister’s house in the UK to break free from the invisible power cord holding her and Stefan together and determined to protect their daughter from harm. Amy found much-needed breathing space and started to plan where and how, as a separated family, they would heal and move forward.

The outcome for victims of coercive control and domestic abuse varies drastically depending on which path they find themselves upon leaving the abusive relationship.

The family court judge resolves disputes between separated parents and regards the child's welfare as their paramount consideration when deciding child arrangements. Or so society is led to believe.

It feels like there is no end in sight for parents trapped in unsafe family court-ordered contact arrangements. You are living in a constant state of stress; you are worried, scared and desperate to know how and when it will come to a close so that you can heal and rebuild your lives.

If you are a victim of a narcissistic individual, you are dealing with excruciating psychological and sometimes physical abuse, which society often doesn’t see. If you are in the family court system with this individual, then you are dealing with an extraordinary injustice, which society often doesn’t hear about. To be trapped in a cycle of abuse and to be harmed and silenced by a cruel and unfair system causes you to suffer enormously; I know it will push you to breaking point on more than one occasion.

Women and children experiencing the family courts over a long period must cope with traumatic circumstances. The family courts hand down ill-judged contact orders to victims of abuse that can trap them in extremely unfair and unsafe situations; victims can feel helpless and scared, often with no end in sight.

Narcissistic abusers take an exploitative approach to relationships; they demand a constant source of adoration and attention from their partner. They target empathetic, nurturing individuals who will satisfy their needs.

When women raise claims of abuse in the family courts, the judge will often appoint an expert to carry out an assessment and write a report to help guide their decision on contact or custody. That expert holds a tremendous amount of power; they can be a lawyer, a social worker or a mental health professional, and they become the eyes and ears of the court.

Richard Ducote, one of America’s leading child abuse and domestic violence attorneys, recently cross-examined parental alienation ‘expert’ Robert Evans in a court in Pennsylvania. Ducote’s expertise shone through, while Evan’s testimony left readers horrified as he described his extreme and shocking beliefs, reminiscent of his idol and inventor of parental alienation syndrome, Richard Gardner.

To all the mums out there trapped in family court proceedings and contact arrangements with a coercively controlling, narcissistic ex. I know you are suffering right now. I know how frustrating it is when no one believes you and no one can see what you see. It’s torturous when you are forced you to have a constant evil in your life.