I’m Better Than You AND You’re Dumb
My story of surviving domestic violence and using luxury fashion to spread awareness
BY TRACEY MAYER
t’s been 15 months
since I rescued
myself from a very
abusive relationship, followed by 10 months of stalking. I must have asked myself a hundred times how something like this could happen to me- an intelligent, educated professional woman with amazing kids who grew up in a great family with great friends. I didn’t think domestic violence happened to women like me, but it does. There are no barriers.
After two years in a long-distance relationship, I made the choice to relocate from Chicago to the east coast. Shortly after I moved there, things began to change. Over time, the relationship became filled with control, manipulation, threats, and gaslighting- a pathological cycle of what I label “The Three A’s” Abuse. Amnesia. Affection.
The kicker is the abuser is a perceived pillar in the community. Great family man, friend, highly successful high-profile businessman, and philanthropist- A man who would wave at all the neighbors as we would drive down the street, open my car door for me, and hold my hand as we walked through the neighborhood drawing comments of envy. The man who would leave me cards and flowers throughout the house, insist I fly first-class, and bode about how talented I was- so much so that he was willing to invest a large amount of money in my jewelry business.
I