I'm a mum from Fleetwood and I'm sharing my injuries to encourage other domestic abuse victims to speak out

Miranda Bury, 35, had black eyes, bruises all over her body and swollen lips after being abused by her then-boyfriend Joshua Carney, 30.

A shocking video, that was captured on a Ring Doorbell, even shows Carney grabbing Miranda by the throat and punching her.

He was sentenced to 23 weeks in prison earlier this month after pleading guilty to two counts of actual bodily harm and harassment towards Miranda.

Miranda has now spoken out about her ordeal and is encouraging other domestic abuse victims to come forward and get the help they deserve.

The mum-of-four said: "It's easy to say to someone 'talk to someone' but that's the hardest thing in the world.

"He made me believe that nobody would ever listen to me or believe me.

"Once you say it out loud to someone, it makes it real and you realise what situation you are actually in.

"It's very, very scary how much another human can actually destroy your self worth.

"But you don't have to accept it, there is so much more out there for yourself and for your own worth.

"I wish I never had to experience any of this but I think it's made me aware when it comes to friendships and other relationships and what I should and shouldn't stand for."

Miranda met Carney on social media in 2019 and she said he made her feel like "she was the only person in the world."

But she says that after around four or five months, he started to make derogatory comments about her appearance and he then started to attack her physically.

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Miranda said: "There would be the odd push or shove but again, I dismissed it because I didn't want to believe it.

"I blamed myself and said it was my fault - I convinced myself that I caused him to push me and be verbally abusive.

"But looking back, it wasn't my fault. My mental health took a dip because I didn't know what was normal anymore.

"I had spoken to him about past relationships and how I was feeling and he would use that as a weapon and would use that against me.

"He made it so I had no self worth or self confidence, he took everything from me."

Miranda said that Carney, of Fleetwood, would force her to wear hoodies and leggings in the summer and she even stopped wearing a full face of make-up because of the small comments that he would make.

He would also ignore Miranda, a beauty therapist, for hours until she was distressed - and then he would pretend like nothing was wrong.

The beauty therapist said: "He came into my house one day and he never left.

"He made me feel like I was the only person in the world, nothing was too much trouble for him.

"He ticked every single box and I didn't think there were any red flags at the time, he was too good to be true.

"As soon as he got his feet under the table, he basically moved in.

"Little things started happening, he would make little comments here and there, but it went downhill from then.

"He would make comments like 'what are you wearing that for?' or 'wear something else.'

"He made me second guess myself all the time and because I wanted to keep him happy, I complied.

"In the summer, I would wear hoodies and leggings.

"We had a scorching summer one year and I was sat in my garden wearing shorts up to my knee caps and was in a hoodie.

"I didn't want to think about his behaviour because I wanted to make him happy, there wasn't anything that I wouldn't do for him.

"If he was happier because I was covered up or because I had my hair extensions taken out, then I didn't mind.

"He made it so I was so dependent on him.

"I used to wear a full-face of make-up, and have done since I was 15, but it slowly went down to wearing nothing."

In 2023, Carney was given a short prison sentence after pleading guilty to non-fatal strangulation and actual bodily harm.

But Miranda, of Fleetwood, got back together with him after this because he was able to manipulate her and he knew how much she wanted him to change for her.

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She regretted this and split up with Carney again after he attacked her - but she now feels "like a much stronger person."

Miranda said: "When I was pregnant, it wasn't a fairytale and it was really hard for me to know if I was doing the right thing or not.

"I was promised the world - I wanted him to change and I wanted to be the person to change him.

"I always thought that he loved me that much, that he would change.

"We had split up but had contact for our son but then he wormed his way back in.

"Instead of it being about her son, it would be about how my day was going and he would show his caring side.

"I thought I was strong but I wasn't.

"Then he hit me once again and that was the final point - I thought that enough was enough.

"I feel like a completely different person now."

Joshua Carney pleaded guilty to two counts of actual bodily harm and harassment against Miranda and was sentenced at Preston Crown Court on March 5.

He was sentenced to 23 weeks in jail, but because he has already served time on remand he was allowed to walk free.

Miranda was also given a restraining order against Carney but thinks this sentence was "very lenient" because of how bad their relationship was.

She said: "He was inside for seven months so he has already been punished but to me, it was very lenient because of how bad our relationship was.

"I am still trying to digest it but I was granted a restraining order, which was the main thing that I wanted."