The acclaimed stand-up comedian Beth Stelling shared details of a past abusive relationship and rape in a moving Instagram post on Monday.
Stelling, who started her career in Chicago and is now based in Los Angeles, described how she survived an abusive relationship with an ex-boyfriend that ended last summer on Instagram. She shared photos of her bruised legs and arms and explained how she was afraid to open up about the experience because women who report rape and physical or verbal abuse are often doubted or deemed untrustworthy or unprofessional.
"There are many reasons not to make an abusive relationship public, mostly fear," she said. The ex-boyfriend asked her not to reveal details about the relationship in her stand-up comedy, and she said at first she respected his request.
"I abided. I wrote vague jokes because we both live in LA and I didn't want to hurt him, start a war, press charges, be interrogated or harassed by him or his friends and family," she wrote. "I wanted to move on and forget because I didn’t understand. I don't want revenge or to hurt him now, but it's unhealthy to keep this inside because my stand-up is pulled directly from my life."
Without identifying the ex, she also said another woman who dated him confided in her about experiencing similar abusive behavior.
"Unfortunately, I'm in a line of smart, funny women who experienced this from the same man in our L.A. comedy community," she wrote.
Here's the full Instagram post and a second post in which she shared the end of her message, which was cut-off because it was too long for the social media site.