by Shannonn Kelly
7:43AM, EST, November 06, 2009

While I normally don’t report on celebrity domestic violence, I wrote in my blog on February 20, 2009, that I think a picture is worth a thousand words. Here is the picture obtained by TMZ of the badly bruised and swollen Rihanna.

Now  21-year old Rihanna is back from the battle of domestic violence and she’s telling her story.

Rihanna says she believes domestic violence is a big secret that many woman carry around with them. Rihanna explains:

“No kid goes around and lets people know their parents fight. Teenage girls can’t tell their parents that their boyfriend beat them up. You don’t dare let your neighbor know that you fight. It’s one of the things we (women) will hide, because it’s embarrassing. My story was broadcast all over the world for people to see, and they have followed every step of my recovery. The positive thing that has come out of my situation is that people can learn from that.”

The fact is, most victims of abuse don’t report or talk about their abuse because they are embarrassed and humiliated. Most experts say is takes around 10 attempts to get out of a abusive  situation (which explains why Rihanna originally got back with Chris Brown). A staggering one in five teens are victims of abusive relationships. These are who her fans are so her telling her story is important to let it be known that abuse can happen to anyone. Even a multi-million dollar star.

In her new interview with Glamour magazine, where they have named her Woman of the Year, Rihanna opens up about her February abuse from ex-boyfriend Chris Brown, saying she was unprepared for the media scrutiny the incident would cause.

“It has taught me so much. I felt like I went to sleep as Rihanna and woke up as Britney Spears,” she said. “That was the level of media chaos that happened the next day. It was like, ‘What, there are helicopters circling my house? There are 100 people in my cul-de-sac? What do you mean, I can’t go back home?’”

The “Umbrella” singer also said she felt especially betrayed to learn that the two LAPD police officers who leaked the photo of her bruised and bloodied face were women.

“It was humiliating; that is not a photo you would show to anybody. I felt completely taken advantage of. I felt like people were making it into a fun topic on the Internet, and it’s my life. I was disappointed, especially when I found out the photo was (supposedly leaked by) two women.”

“My story was broadcast all over the world for people to see, and they have followed every step of my recovery,” she said. “The positive thing that has come out of my situation is that people can learn from that. I want to give as much insight as I can to young women, because I feel like I represent a voice that really isn’t heard. Now I can help speak for those women.”

As well as her magazine interview, Rihanna does an interview with ABC’s Diane Sawyer. Teasers were aired Thursday and this morning on Good Morning America with the full interview being aired on 20/20 tonight at 10PM,EST.

In Sawyer’s interview, Rihanna acknowledges getting back together with Brown in the weeks after he assaulted her was a mistake.

“It’s pretty natural for that to be the first reaction,” Rihanna tell Sawyer. “The moment the physical wounds go away, you want the memories to go away.” Love, she said, had blinded her at the time. Given how many victims of domestic violence do go back to their abusers, it’s important for the public to hear an explanation of that toxic thought process.

Rihanna tearfully told Sawyer that she eventually ended things with Brown after thinking about the example she was setting for fans in abusive relationships of their own. “When I realized that my selfish decision for love could result in some young girl getting killed, I could not be easy with that.” She said she became ashamed that she had ever been with someone who was capable of what Brown did to her: “I fell in love with that person. That’s embarassing.”

In her interview with Sawyer, Rihanna doesn’t mention Brown by name, who by the way pleaded guilty to assault and was sentenced to probation, anger-management classes and community labor. But she expresses sadness and disappointment, she also says that the experience has made her “stronger, wiser and more aware.”