Real Housewives of Dallas star LeeAnne Locken opens up about surviving abuse

This isn’t LeeAnne Locken’s first rodeo.

The tough-talking, charity-loving Real Housewives of Dallas star was well prepared for the drama of reality TV after growing up on the carnival circuit. As she put it on Dirty, Sexy, Funny with Jenny McCarthy on Monday, “A lot of people have balls on our show, but I have fangs.”

She’s also a survivor. Locken, 48, said she was domestically abused by a fiance after experiencing trauma as a child.

“My mother left me with my grandmother when I was 2½ – 3, and then my best friend’s father across the street was ‘friendly’ every other weekend for eight years,” she said.

Still, she said her childhood has only made her stronger.

“I got mugged, I got beat up,” she said of her time as a carnival kid. “But I will say, I’ve learned a lot of good things, too. I’ve never done an illegal drug because I saw people jump from the top of the Ferris wheel, like ‘I can fly!’ ”

Hear more from Locken, including where she stands now with her fellow Housewives, below.

RHOD airs Monday at 10 pm ET on Bravo. Dirty, Sexy, Funny airs weekdays from 10 am to 12 pm on SiriusXM Stars (Ch. 109).

For a free 30-day trial, check out http://www.siriusxm.com/freeTrial.