In this episode of Survivor Stories, host Emma Kay is joined by Juliana Terlizzi - former pastry chef and Founder of Food Trip, now a campaigner and advocate for victims of rape and serious sexual assault. Juliana moved from Brazil to London to build the career and life she'd always dreamed of, before her relationship with her then-partner turned into a nightmare of manipulation, control and abuse.

Juliana shares what happened: discovering she had been drugged, sexually assaulted and filmed without her knowledge, and reporting it to the police alone. She speaks candidly about the failures that followed - misinformation about his bail, eight months without leaving her flat, and finding around a dozen other women he had also abused - and the two-and-a-half-year wait for a trial that ended in his conviction and an 18-year sentence.

Juliana and Emma also discuss what came next: her fight to access her own court transcripts, the campaign for victims' rights that led to a partial amendment to the Victims' Rights bill, and how she found her strength again - with the support of other survivors, her therapist, her dog, and, in time, love again with her now husband. Her message is one of hope - that healing isn't linear, but there is always light at the end of the tunnel.

Content warning: This episode contains detailed, first-hand accounts of rape, drug-facilitated sexual assault, coercive control and institutional failure. Listener discretion is strongly advised. Please prioritise your wellbeing and pause or come back when you're ready.

TRAILER: In this episode of Survivor Stories, host Emma Kay is joined by Juliana Terlizzi - former pastry chef and Founder of Food Trip, now a campaigner and advocate for victims of rape and serious sexual assault. Juliana moved from Brazil to London to build the career and life she'd always dreamed of, before her relationship with her then-partner turned into a nightmare of manipulation, control and abuse.

Juliana shares what happened: discovering she had been drugged, sexually assaulted and filmed without her knowledge, and reporting it to the police alone. She speaks candidly about the failures that followed - misinformation about his bail, eight months without leaving her flat, and finding around a dozen other women he had also abused - and the two-and-a-half-year wait for a trial that ended in his conviction and an 18-year sentence.

Juliana and Emma also discuss what came next: her fight to access her own court transcripts, the campaign for victims' rights that led to a partial amendment to the Victims' Rights bill, and how she found her strength again - with the support of other survivors, her therapist, her dog, and, in time, love again with her now husband. Her message is one of hope - that healing isn't linear, but there is always light at the end of the tunnel.

Content warning: This episode contains detailed, first-hand accounts of rape, drug-facilitated sexual assault, coercive control and institutional failure. Listener discretion is strongly advised. Please prioritise your wellbeing and pause or come back when you're ready.

David Challen a domestic abuse advisor, campaigner and author, who successfully campaigned to free his mother, Sally Challen, in a landmark 2019 appeal that helped define coercive control in UK law.

David shares his own story: growing up in a household shaped by his father's coercive control, years of witnessing humiliation and isolation, and the day he learned his mother had killed his father in 2010. He speaks candidly about identifying his father's body, standing by his mother through her conviction for murder, and the years-long fight - alongside his lawyer and the evidence of coercive control - that led to her retrial and eventual release.

David and Emma also discuss the media's role in reporting domestic abuse, why so many survivors go unheard, and what intergenerational trauma looks like. They talk about what it means to be a male ally, and about rebuilding a relationship with his mother since her release. David's book, The Unthinkable, is available now.

Content warning: This episode contains detailed, first-hand accounts of coercive control, domestic homicide, sexual violence, and childhood trauma, along with references to suicide. Listener discretion is strongly advised - please prioritise your wellbeing and pause or come back when you're ready.