Actress and Fox News contributor Stacey Dash revealed Wednesday that a gun saved her life nearly 25 years ago when she was raped by an ex-boyfriend.

Ms. Dash told People magazine that she endured a physically abusive relationship with a man for years.

“I didn’t feel like I was a person,” the 49-year-old said. “I was so starving for love, that I held on. Some of the time he took care of me, and I got [beaten up] in order to have those moments.”

Ms. Dash’s ex-boyfriend continued to stalk her after their break up, even as she became pregnant with another man’s child, People reported.

She said her son Austin, now 25, was asleep in his crib right next to her as she was raped by her abuser.

“He had a gun to my head and I thought, ‘My son is in that crib right there,’ ” Ms. Dash said. “[I thought], ‘No you are not going to do this. My son’s life was more important to me than my own.’”

When her attacker came back, Ms. Dash said she picked up a gun and fired several shots at him but missed.

“I wanted to kill him,” Ms. Dash said, “but it scared him away.”

She said it was that moment that solidified her belief in the right to self-defense.

“A gun saved my life,” she said. “That’s why my Second Amendment right will not be taken away from me.”

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