"The Real Housewives of Dubai" star Chanel Ayan got honest about the pain and trauma she endured when she was forced to undergo female genital mutilation as a young child in Africa, E! News reported.

The 44-year-old reality TV star wants to raise awareness about the "barbaric practice" she experienced in hopes of saving young girls from the "torture" and "abuse" of the tradition meant to keep girls virgins until marriage.

"I'm a survivor," Ayan told the outlet after sharing her story in Wednesday's episode of the Bravo series. "I felt that I was utterly betrayed by my culture and my family. This is just a barbaric practice and it shouldn't be happening to young girls. It happened to me 35 years ago and I've never gotten over it."

Ayan recalled her aunt and grandmother bringing her and her sister to a stranger's house where a man "sewed" up their genitals. "I think the trauma is something that I will live with for the rest of my life. This is why I want to talk about it because I honestly don't want this to happen to anyone because I know exactly how it feels and it's not good. A lot of girls get depressed, hormones are imbalanced, a lot of young girls die," she said.

Female genital mutilation (FGM), also known as female circumcision, is a procedure in which the external female genitalia is partially or completely removed for non-medical reasons. The World Health Organization (WHO) warns that FGM has no health benefits at all and can lead to severe bleeding and infections, among other health complications.

Furthermore, FGM is a violation of human rights among girls and women. However, it is still practiced in 30 countries in Africa, the Middle East and Asia, according to the agency.

The Bravo star, who is of Somali and Ethiopian descent, also disclosed in the interview that she has cousins and family members in America who are still able to carry on the tradition "because you don't need a doctor. You just need someone who knows how to do it." She felt the need to talk about the experience so she could help young girls who are "as confused as me."

The celeb also talked about her pain with a hypnotherapy expert during Wednesday's episode and said, "The crying, the sadness, the beatings. That's what I remember. A lot of pain."

Ayan once opened up about how her father used to beat her when she was a young girl. "I've forgiven a lot of people in life but forgiving my father is the hardest thing I could do,' she said in an episode of the reality show in June.

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A man shows the logo of a T-shirt that reads "Stop the Cut," referring to Female Genital Mutilation, during a social event advocating against harmful practices such as FGM at the Imbirikani Girls High School in Imbirikani, Kenya, April 21, 2016. REUTERS/Siegfried Modola