I’m not sure where to even begin with this post, but I could really use some clarity, advice, or even just someone to talk to who gets it. This week something happened that I never expected.

So, the other day, I was attacked by my STBX. I don’t want to get into all the details here, but I panicked and called 911. I didn’t even expect her to be arrested—I genuinely thought the police would just tell her to leave and that would be the end of it. But they took it seriously. She was arrested and booked. The prosecutor ended up charging her with domestic assault.

The judge issued a no-contact order as a condition of her bond, and now, I currently have the kids with me. It’s a lot. I’m trying to keep things together for them, but inside, I’m still in shock that things even got to this point.

What’s messing me up is the emotional whiplash. For years, I felt like I was always walking on eggshells. But now that something has finally happened—it feels surreal. I’m not even sure what to do next. I want to protect my kids and keep things stable, but I’m scared this is going to spiral into an even bigger legal battle, or that I’ll somehow get painted as the bad guy, even though I stayed calm and did what I thought was right.

Has anyone else been through something like this? How did you handle it, especially with kids involved? What should I be preparing for next?