‘I went to prison 5 times – now I help other abuse survivors rebuild their lives’

Natalie was first sent to prison at just 17 years old (Picture: Supplied)

Natalie Russell can still remember her first day in prison.

‘I was playing pool with a girl and she told me: “oh, me and my partner are in here for murder. The only reason we got caught was because the ground split open so the stench came through, and people were having a barbecue right by the area.”’  

‘The way she chatted, it was like she was talking about popping into Tesco…’

Speaking to Natalie on Zoom, the light streaming onto the chic cream sofa cushions in her living room, it is difficult to imagine that the mum-of-two has spent time behind bars – let alone five times. 

But a traumatic childhood, which included her being sexually abused by someone outside her household at age five, set Natalie on a dest...