Shania Twain recounts how at 13 she saved siblings from abusive stepfather

Shania Twain put herself in the “line of fire” to try to save her family from her abusive stepfather.

The 57-year-old singer was still a teenager when she helped her mother and siblings escape from her stepfather, with Shania fearing for her mother’s life at the time.

During an appearance on The Louis Theroux podcastShania explained: “I guess around the age of 13, when at 13 I said it was the worst year of my life.

‘[I said] to myself, like literally out loud, ‘This is the worst year of my life. And I’m not going to get any worse. I’m going to make sure this is the last horrible year of my life.’

Shania hatched a plan to help her mother and siblings escape the “cycle of violence”.

Teenage years: The 57-year-old singer was still a teenager when she helped her mother and siblings escape from her stepfather, with Shania fearing for her mother’s life. She was only 13 at the time; here we see it in the 80s

However, the chart-topping singer needed her mother’s help to reach Toronto, where they were placed in an abuse shelter.

Shania recalls: “I waited until my dad was at work. And I brought my mom a coffee and a cigarette in bed. I put all the kids in the car.

“And then when everyone was ready, I got her out of bed. And I said, ‘Get dressed, we’re leaving,'” Twain says.

“She was quite confused. But I managed to convince her.

“I said, ‘Listen, everyone’s already in the car. It’s all in the car. All you have to do is get behind the wheel and drive. That’s all you have to do.

And she did. And we drove to Toronto, which was a 10 hour drive. And we find something to do with battered women.

“So I say, ‘Mom, you’re going to have to talk, because they’re going to know I’m a kid. And they won’t take me seriously. So we went to the shelter which looked like a general homeless shelter.

“And then we were put in a shelter for battered women.”

She also said she finds songwriting therapeutic.

The musician started singing and performing at an early age, and Shania insists she hasn’t lost her enthusiasm for songwriting.

The ‘You’re Still the One’ hitmaker told Louis: “My therapy is songwriting. It’s a meditative thing for me.

Tough times: During an appearance on The Louis Theroux Podcast, Shania explained: ‘When I was 13, I said it was the worst year of my life. [I said] to myself, like literally out loud, ‘This is the worst year of my life. And I’m not going to get any worse. I’m going to make this the last horrible year of my life.’

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Shania’s latest album, Queen of Me, was her first new release in six years, and the singer said it was a reflection of her “state of mind”.

The award-winning star wrote the album during lockdown and she used the record to share her “fear” with her fans.

She explained: ‘Queen of Me is my state of mind. My mindset writing the album, taking charge of my mood, my mindset choosing to stay positive in my thinking in a dark time, you know.

“The whole album was written during COVID. I shared, you know, a lot of concerns, anxiety, uncertainty and fear similar to everyone else in the world – you know, we have them all shared together.

Shania has previously claimed she is going through a “period of rebirth”. The award-winning star confessed to having “renewed her confidence” after finding love again with Frédéric Thiebaud.

His past: Seen in a music video for one of his best hit songs

The That Don’t Impress Me Much hitmaker – who married Frederic in 2011 – told PEOPLE: ‘It’s like a time of rebirth for me.

Living it as a relevant artist is gratifying. “I feel a renewed confidence. I have nothing more to prove and I feel free in there.

In 2004, Shania was diagnosed with Lyme disease, which damaged the nerves in her vocal cords.

But after undergoing physical therapy and undergoing open throat surgery, she managed to make a successful return to recording.

Speaking about her long-term future in the music industry, Shania said, “I may not be able to [sing] forever, but right now I’m just enjoying where I am.