According to the United States Department of Justice, 3.4 million people over the age of 18 are stalked each year in the United States. And three in four of those victims are stalked by someone they know.
That's what happened to Cate, a freelance writer who was stalked by her ex-husband. In a compelling piece published on XOJane.com last week, Cate opened up about living a life of fear at the hands of her ex, who was eventually jailed.
She elaborated on the experience on HuffPost Live this week:
"We had gone through probably about a 10-year relationship and it was just brutal at the very end. He had gone through some issues that just left him emotionally gutted and violent and just not in a good space and we could not work it out, and so I ended up leaving with our children -- literally with two bags and a couple kids -- and that's really when the problems started," Cate told host Nancy Redd. "He was relentless for five years, absolutely relentless -- followed me, trailed me, would leave things on my doorstep, would harass friends, family, would break into my house and call me from my home phone on my cell phone."
Watch the video above for more on Cate's harrowing experience.