After struggling with dyslexia and dyspraxia as a child, Jasmine turned to dance. Throughout her life, it has been the on constant thing to support her through tough times with her mental health.

Jasmine’s Story

When I was about eight I was diagnosed with Dyslexia and Dyspraxia. I was really struggling at school. I remember being humiliated by teachers who used to stand me up and question why I didn’t understand the work. The whole thing really affected me. My confidence dropped massively. I wouldn’t speak to anybody and was really shy. To be honest I think I was depressed.

My mum spoke to a learning assessor and they suggested she try and get me into something outside of school that would help boost my confidence. They suggested something not academic where I could socialise. I tried loads of drama classes and different things, but only one thing stuck. Dance!

I don’t know why, but the dance just clicked. I could just move with the teacher’s flow and I picked it up quickly. When school was telling me I couldn’t do things, it was the one thing I felt I was good at. Dance was the one place I didn’t have to speak. I didn’t have to do anything but watch and copy and the beat just clicked.

How dance has kept me going

At the end of 2018, my grandfather died and it turned my world upside down. I had an abnormal grief reaction which led to a complicated case of psychosis. This resulted in me losing a lot of weight. It was bad. I came back to teaching dance at the start of 2019. It was scary, I had gone from a size 12 to a size 6. I wasn’t myself. I kept going with it. Dance kept me going.

Dance has always been there through these hard times. It’s 100% my coping mechanism. Dance has always interested me and I’ve stuck by it. It gives me an escape. It’s the one thing I can do where I am confident in my abilities.

I’ve recently been diagnosed with Bipolar. It’s like dance has hugged me in and told me, hand on my shoulder, it’s going to be alright. I think when people are going through a diagnosis or having a hard time it’s important to know that things like Dance and exercising are there as a tool you can use to help you cope in the meantime.