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

Shania Twain put herself in ‘the line of fire’ in a bid to save her family from her abusive stepfather.

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

During an appearance on The Louis Theroux Podcast, Shania explained: ‘I guess around the age of 13, while at the age of 13, I declared that that 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 am not going to get any worse. I’m going to make sure that this is the last horrible year of my life.”‘

Shania came up with a plan to help her mom and her siblings to escape the ‘abusive cycle.’

Teen time: .The 57-year-old singer was still a teenager when she helped her mom and her siblings to escape her stepdad, with Shania fearing for her mom’s life at the time. She was only 13 at the time; here she is seen in the Eighties

However, the chart-topping singer needed her mom’s help in order to reach Toronto, where they were put into a shelter for abuse victims.

Shania recalled: ‘I waited till my dad was at work. And I brought my mother a coffee and a cigarette in bed. I got 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 recounts.

‘She was quite confused. But I was able to convince her.

‘I said, “Look, everybody’s already in the car. Everything’s in the car. All you got to do is get behind that wheel and drive. That’s all you got to do.”‘

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

‘So I say, “Mom, you’re gonna have to talk, because they’re gonna know I’m a kid. And they’re not going to take me seriously.” So we went to the shelter that was like a general homeless shelter. 

‘And then we were placed into a battered woman’s home.’

She also said she finds songwriting therapeutic. 

The musician started singing and performing as a young child, and Shania insists she hasn’t lost any of her enthusiasm for songwriting.

The ‘You’re Still the One’ hitmaker told Louis T: ‘My therapy is songwriting. It’s a meditative thing for me.’ 

Hard times: During an appearance on The Louis Theroux Podcast , Shania explained: ‘I guess around the age of 13, while at the age of 13, I declared that that 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 am not going to get any worse. I’m going to make sure that this is the last horrible year of my life.”‘ Seen in April

Happy these days: Seen with husband Frederic Thiebaud at the Billboard Magazine’s 2018 Country Power Players in Nashville

Shania’s latest album, Queen of Me, was her first new release in six years, and the singer explained that it’s a reflection of her ‘frame 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 frame of mind. My frame of mind in writing the album, taking charge of my mood, my frame of mind 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 similar concerns and anxiety and uncertainty and fear as everyone around the world – you know, we all shared it together.’ 

Shania previously claimed that she’s enjoying a ‘renaissance period’. The award-winning star confessed to having a ‘renewed confidence’ after finding love again with Frederic Thiebaud. 

Her past: Seen in a music video for one of her top hit songs

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

To be experiencing it as a relevant artist still, that’s rewarding. ‘I feel a renewed confidence. I don’t have anything to prove anymore, and I feel freedom in that.’ 

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

But after undergoing physical therapy and having open-throat surgery, she’s 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.’