Has anyone been cross-examined in court for a child abuse case? (as the victim)

[Inanotherlanguage]

I am considering filing charges against my childhood abuser. The police want to do formal interviews etc. They mentioned that I'd be cross-examined in court. I want to know if there's anyone out there who's been through this & what was their experience like? I'm trying to work out if I'm up to coping with it? Is it brutal? Do they try & twist your words against you? Please pm me if you don't want to post your experience. Many thanks.

Hi there, I'm sorry you have had this experience. As part of the witness service I have supported many victims of sexual abuse when giving evidence in court.
Yes you will be cross examined - basically what happens is that firstly you will be asked questions by the prosecution lawyer (the lawyer trying to get a guilty verdict for the defendant - your abuser). That's fairly straight forward and is designed to elicit for the court (who won't know anything before the hearing) what happened in your own words.
The cross examination happens after this - the defendant (the person who abused you) will be represented by a defence lawyer - it's their job to try and get the defendant a 'not guilty' verdict.

There's no question that many victims find it difficult - you need to be prepared. You will be supported - you will be kept in a witness waiting room until it's time for you to go into court, there is usually support from a ISVA (independent Sexual Violence Advisor) and from a member of the witness service. The witness service member can come with you into court - you may also be allowed to give your evidence behind a screen)
You can also visit the court before you go to give evidence.
I hope that helps a little in terms of understanding what will happen - good luck.

Which country are you in? The rules of court, evidence and questioning do vary between countries.

I ask because 'filling charges' is an American turn of phrase. I'm a retired UK cop, so my area of knowledge is UK-specific.

I'm in the UK