CHICAGO (WGN) - An event held Wednesday aimed to help women impacted by domestic violence learn about programs that exist just for them.

As women like Yolanda Carter attend events for Domestic Violence Awareness Month, they say they can't help but think about the past.

"My partner of eight years on and off, he decided that he wanted to take my life, so he beat me with a hammer and left me in a pool of blood to die," Carter recalled.

Carter said that incident happened nine years ago, as she was nearly beaten to death in her sleep. When she woke up from the attack at her Hyde Park home, many of her facial bones were shattered. One of her eyes was so severely damaged that it had to be removed.

"I had to undergo one reconstructive surgery to repair all the damage. I have a metal plate on m

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