Bella Thorne’s fans rally round actress after revealing she was sexually abused throughout her childhood
BELLA Thorne has been flooded by messages of support after emotionally revealing that she was sexually abused until she was 14.
The actress took to Instagram to speak about her ordeal in response to the Time's Up movement, which saw women wear black to the Golden Globes in solidarity with victims of sexual assault.
And her legion of fans immediately stepped up to offer their support on social media - with some claiming the Disney star inspired them to share their own stories.
Bella, who rose to fame on Disney's Shake It Up, shared her story on Instagram during the Golden Globes broadcast on Sunday night.
She wrote: "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.
"Waiting for someone to take advantage of my life again. Over and over I waited for it to stop and finally it did.
"But some of us aren't as lucky to get out alive. Please today stand up for every soul Mistreated. #timesup."
One supporter wrote: "I just wanna hug you so hard right now", with another adding: "I’m so proud of how strong you are. Keep smiling, I always love you".
A third added: "Thank you for your courage. You are so strong and brave. Nobody deserves anything like that. You encouraging other people to use their voice and I think that is heroic."
In a tearful Instagram video, the 'Famous in Love' star said: "I'm on Twitter reading about all the people sharing sexual abuse stories with me from mine and I just want to say I'm really proud of all you guys," she said. "Stay strong, peace, I love you guys."
Last night mum Tamara said: "I only just found out now.
She told : "I hadn’t heard about it before. I want to talk to my therapist first about it.
"I’m actually going to see a therapist, a psychologist about it."
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