Supergirl’s Melissa Benoist opens up about being a domestic violence survivor

Supergirl star Melissa Benoist doesn’t just play a superhero on screen, she’s one in real life too. The actress revealed her personal experience with domestic violence, in the hopes sharing it will help others.

Supergirl star Melissa Benoist is opening up about her past history with domestic abuse. In an  emotional 14-minute video shared to her Instagram, the actress revealed she spent months in an abusive relationship.

“I am a survivor of domestic violence, or IPV, intimate partner violence,” Benoist declared candidly, “which is something I never thought I would say let alone be broadcasting into the ether.”

Benoist, who is now 31 and married to fellow Supergirl actor Chris Woods, never names her abuser, merely indicates that he was younger than she was and describing their relationship like a “runaway freight train.”

She says the abuse began as “emotional manipulation” and escalated to the point where her work was affected, as her partner would get extremely jealous whenever she was required to film romantic scenes with male co-stars.

“Work in general was a touchy subject,” Benoist says in the video. “He didn’t want me ever kissing or even having flirtatious scenes with men, which was very hard for me to avoid, so I began turning down auditions, job offers, test deals, and friendships, because I didn’t want to hurt him.”

Watching the video in its entirety is heartbreaking, particularly when you realize that several of the actress’ initial public appearances promoting Supergirl were while sporting injuries received from her abusive parter.At the time, the actress tended to claim she was simply “accident prone.”

It’s difficult to imagine the strength it must have taken to finally share her story with the world. Not all heroes wear capes, indeed.

At the end of her video, Benoist says she hopes telling her story “will prevent more stories like this from happening.”

“If you are enduring what I went through and you see this,” she said, “you might be able to find the tiny straw that will break the camel’s back.”

Supergirl producers Greg Berlanti and Sarah Schechter released a statement in support of their series’ star shortly after the video was posted.

"“Melissa Benoist is a hero, both on and off the screen. She is an extraordinary woman and we are proud to stand with her and behind her.We applaud her bravery and strength and we join her in hoping this incredible act of honestly encourages other people to speak up and find safety and support. We love you Melissa.”"

And you know what? We do too.

According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, one in four women and one in four men have experienced some kind of violence from their partners; one in seven women and one in 25 men have been injured by their partners.

If you or someone you know is suffering from domestic violence, please know that you’re not alone, and there is help available. Contact the National Domestic Violence hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233).