Even a near-death experience can't keep a good woman down.

Christy Martin is making another return to boxing after testifying against her husband after he attempted to take her life.

Known as the female Mike Tyson, Martin was in vogue during a career that saw her appear on Jay Leno's Tonight Show and make the cover of Sports Illustrated in the 1990's.

At the age of 23, she married her much older trainer, Jim Martin. Despite things appearing normal on the outside, Christy says her marriage wasn't the stuff dreams are made of. "The whole time it was mental and emotional control and abuse. Physically, I'd never been knocked out except by Jim," Martin told WCNC-TV.

In November of 2010, Martin filed for divorce, and her husband responded with a violence. "I'm like 'you stabbed me, you stabbed me' and then I tried to get away," she said. "I couldn't so I kicked at him and when I kicked at him he just cut my leg." Martin was also shot and left for dead.

Somehow, she miraculously survived and last month her testimony led to Jim Martin's conviction for attempted murder.

Recovered from her attack, Martin, 43, has been training in Charlotte, North Carolina, for a return to the sweet science. “Boxing is the worst drug ever because you get so addicted to it, you can’t get it out of your system,” Martin says.

Martin, with 49 wins and 31 knockouts on her resume, says she only wants one more fight. "That was the whole goal, to get to 50 wins, that's been my goal for years. After the 50 then I can sit down and think about 'do I want to continue?'...It's a number I picked a long long time ago. It has that nice round big fat number to get to 50 wins, I think it makes a statement."

In addition to eyeing 50 wins, Martin wants to use the limelight to help get her message out about domestic violence victims.

"People looked at me probably as a really strong woman ... tough, she fights hard. Probably don’t realize at home how manipulated I was and abused. So I think people can hear my story. It will give them more confidence to walk away from a bad situation they may be in," she said.

By the way, Martin, known as the Coal Miner's Daughter, lost to Dakota Stone in a 6th round TKO last June at Staples Center in Los Angeles. Her light middleweight title fight against Mia St. John is booked for Aug. 14, 2012 in Friant, Calif. That fight date was pushed back from June 19, as Martin deals with the fallout from testifying against her husband.

"As the trial grew closer, my anxiety rose daily, if not hourly as the fear for my safety mounted. Jim Martin is a monster and had always told me he would kill me or have someone else do it," she said in part of a statement explaining her decision to push back the fight. "Due to these threats, and his previous actions, as the trial date grew closer, I knew this was a real possibility and was literally paralyzed with fear. After having endured a nearly fatal attack, and not sure I would ever walk again, this was overwhelming. I felt as before, boxing would heal me but this was different. I love this sport and am equally excited to return to the ring for my 50th victory, but I am mentally and physically exhausted and need to heal."

Christy plans to become a boxing commentator after picking up her final win.

-- Follow Ben Maller on Twitter @BenMaller.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter to read them first!

Popular Stories On ThePostGame:
-- Two-Time Cancer Survivor Gabriele Anderson Gears Up For Olympic Run
-- The Olympics' Most Controversial Athletes
-- Mother's Day Has Extra Meaning This Year For Olympic Decathlete Ashton Eaton
-- New Nike Olympic Track And Field Suits Were Inspired By Golf Balls