via AOL Kids

Life wasn’t always so beautiful for Christina Aguilera. In an upcoming TV documentary, the superstar singer opens up about her family’s history of domestic abuse, describing how her dad was verbally and physically abusive to her, her mother, and her sister.

Though they eventually left her father, Christina says that the violence she witnessed at home actually helped to inspire her creatively. Says Christina: “I turned to singing as an outlet. The pain at home is where my love for music came from.” Christina is now speaking out about her history of abuse in hopes of helping other women and children who are in similar situations. Read up on child abuse, then sign up to volunteer at a homeless shelter, where many residents may be fleeing violent homes.