Marie Osmond's Tragic Real-Life Story

In Marie Osmond's memoir, "Behind the Smile," she recorded an observation that can take some people years to come to: "Mistreatment can come in many forms," she wrote. Some are acute and severe at the moment, other types are more insidious. For her, she wrote that the "most damaging, [was] being abused sexually."

Osmond wrote that it was only after having children of her own that she revealed even to those closest to her — her brothers — that she had been sexually assaulted as a child. Each time, she said that it had happened in a place and with a person that her parents had thought she was safe with, and each time, she was told not to tell anyone what had happened, or they would lose everything.

In addition to clarifying that her abuser was not anyone in her family or anyone that she had prolonged contact with, she was candid about the long-term impact it had on her. She wrote that it wasn't the specifics that were important, but "the debilitating effects sexual abuse has on the human spirit and the ability to function on a day-to-day basis." Years later, she was still dealing with the assault that had happened to her as a child, and decades later, she still struggled to "understand that being wronged doesn't mean you've done something wrong."

If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).