A CITY woman who lost her memory after being brutally beaten has finally been able to bring her attacker to justice – thanks to hypnotherapy.
Zoe Dronfield, local hero and co-founder of charity I Want My Mummy, has finally been able to speak about the near-death experience at the hands of a former boyfriend after having no recollection of the events of one fateful evening in February last year.
The mother of two was attacked in her sleep and held hostage by 30-year-old Bell Green resident, Jason Smith, for six hours while she was subjected to a horrific ordeal – being hit and stabbed multiple times, with an eight inch knife and a meat cleaver – including one gash which missed her jugular by 1mm.
Awaking days later in hospital following extensive surgery to fix the heamorrhaging and blood that had seeped under her skull as a result of being hit so hard, Zoe had no memory of what had taken place.
Suffering from headaches and amnesia, she found help in the form of Earlesdon-based cognitive behavioural hypnotherapist, David Kilmurry, who used Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) techniques to help rebuild her memories of the evening of the attack.
In December 2014, Jason Smith was found guilty of Grievous Bodily Harm (GBH) with intent and, while he is to be sentenced early next month, is expected to be behind bars for nine to 16 years.
Moving forward, Zoe’s charitable work sees her fulfilling her pledge to change the situation of other families affected by domestic violence.
In sharing her story, she hopes to help others who could be in similar situations and inspire them to learn more about the warning signs of abusive or violent partners.
She added: “You should not feel ashamed as a victim or survivor of domestic violence.
“It is the shame of the abuser and if we break the silence, access the new laws and document abuse to obtain convictions, in time, generations to come will realise that this kind of relationship os not acceptable and is unhealthy.
“Violence is never an option.”
Jason and Zoe, before the brutal attack. s
Zoe co-founded I Want My Mummy – a charity which helps victims of domestic abuse. s
