Dancing down her hallway to Mariah Carey’s Fantasy, tennis legend Jelena Dokic can’t wipe the smile off her face as she embraces “starting her day with positivity” while doing a little bit of silly morning dancing!
It’s just one of the many positive changes Jelena Dokic has made recently.
After years of struggling with her mental health, the tennis pro turned commentator is working hard to shift her internal narrative.
JELENA DOKIC JOURNEY
She’s gone from “victim to survivor to thriver” and “let go of hate and approach life with kindness, compassion and gratitude”.
She released her first book Unbreakable seven years ago, which details the emotional and physical abuse she suffered throughout her tennis career at the hands of her father.
And Jelena says she’s still feeling the effects of writing it. It unleashed a profound change in her life.
TIME FOR CHANGE
The child prodigy, who came to Australia as a refugee in 1994 from the former Yugoslavia, is finally able to see that there’s more to life than tennis.
“I always thought that what I do in tennis will define me and who I am as a person and how worthy I am,” she tells Go Behind The Mask podcast. “I believed that for a long time.”
Now through therapy the 41-year-old is realising that she’s worth more than just her achievements on court.
“I only really discovered that through the journey of writing.
“That’s why I’ll say it every single day for the rest of my life: Unbreakable changed my life, and it saved my life. It gave me a voice, I was free,” Jelena tells The Guardian.
FINDING A PURPOSE
Far from being a celebrity issuing empty platitudes on Instagram, Jelena uses the darkest elements of her story to connect with people who have suffered similar traumas.
It’s helping her find “my calling”.
Because finding a purpose after being a professional athlete is tough, says the Wimbledon commentator. She felt lonely and lost after retiring in 2014, while feeling like she hadn’t reached her full potential.
“I was a woman with nothing to aspire to, no goals and dreams left,” Jelena tells The Guardian.
“And to now be doing this – if you told me that 10 years ago, I would have told you that you are literally crazy… I have a lot of joy in my life now, I’m thriving.”
THE POWER OF SPEAKING
She adds that becoming a motivational speaker and consistently speaking up about her experience “has actually saved my life at times”.
Social media has also allowed her to create a community to share her experiences with people, even if sometimes cruel trolls weigh her down.
Recently she took to Instagram to address her weight loss and the “myth of perfection”, after she was trolled online.
WEIGHT LOSS BATTLE
“I had some health issues but also I just wanted to get healthier and fitter and when I turned 40 last year I really started to think about my family history of diabetes, high blood pressure and heart problems.”
Jelena has lost 20kg and adds that while she’s happy she’s lost the weight for health reasons, it won’t change who she is.
“I still want people to value me and others based on whether we are kind and good people. I will always be proud of myself and not hide or be embarrassed no matter what size I am,” she writes.
“Beauty is not what is on the outside. Beauty is not the number on the scale or having a pretty face. Beauty is having a beautiful mind, a beautiful heart and a beautiful soul. Beauty is being kind, empathetic, hard working and a good person.”
We couldn’t agree more!
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