Sitting in a courtroom feeling frightened, lonely and uncertain, Farah Mak's life changed when a woman gently sat down next to her.
The woman was a court support officer from Safe Steps, an organisation that provides immediate, life-saving support to Victorians experiencing family and domestic violence.
"I can't remember her name or her face, but a decade on I remember how she made me feel," Ms Mak told AAP.
"Facing a perpetrator in the judicial system is very difficult, but having a Safe Steps court support worker made the biggest difference and I felt like I had my mum or best friend with me through the process."
On National Domestic Violence Remembrance Day, Safe Steps held its annual candlelight vigil at the Family Violence Memorial Garden in Melbourne.
Vigils were held across Australia on Wednesday night to honour the lives lost to family and domestic violence.
The vigils started in 2005 and are held annually.
Twenty-four women and seven children have died in 2025 as a result of violence, according to the Australian Femicide Watch website.
There is no government-run national domestic violence register, which advocates say is needed to track the issue.
One in four Australian women has experienced violence by an intimate partner or family member, while 12 per cent of adults witnessed partner violence as children.
Up to almost 40 per cent of children have experienced exposure to domestic violence before the age of 18.
"Domestic and family violence is still a national crisis, affecting 21 per cent of adult Australians and leaving a devastating toll on individuals, families, and communities," Safe Steps chief executive Chelsea Tobin said.
According to Safe Steps, it can take seven to 12 attempts for a victim to leave their abuser.
"This highlights the urgent need to raise awareness about available support services, ensuring victim-survivors know where to turn and feel empowered to seek help when ready," Dr Tobin said.
As a survivor, Ms Mak now advocates across various platforms, breaking down stigma and helping others to seek help.
She wants to give other women hope when escaping domestic violence and transform their pain into healing and empowerment.
"Domestic and family violence rates in Australia are only increasing and it's pretty devastating," she said.
"Simple things could start to make a change like school education, empowerment programs for survivors and trauma-informed legal practices."
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