Ex-Australian Tennis star Jelena Dokic opens up on battle with depression; 'I almost...'

Veteran Australian Tennis star and former WTA world no. 4, Jelena Dokic took to her official Instagram handle on Monday and opened up about her battle with depression, revealing how she attempted to take her own life. In a lengthy Instagram post, Dokic spoke about how in the last six months, she had been crying constantly, hiding inside her bathroom and experiencing constant feelings of despair and pain. Notably, this is not the first time that the star Tennis player spoke about her hardships as in her autobiography released in 2017, Dokic spoke about how her father used to beat her regularly from a very tender age and used to pull her hair, spit on her face and 

Jelena Zokic's Instagram post-

Taking to the caption, Jelena Dokic elaborated on her battle with depression, writing,

28.04.2022-I almost jumped off my 26th floor balcony and took my own life. Will never forget the day.
Everything is blurry.Everything is dark. No tone,no picture,nothing makes sense…..just tears,sadness,depression,anxiety and pain. The last six months have been tough. It’s been constant crying everywhere. From hiding in the bathroom when at work to wipe away my tears so that nobody sees it to the unstoppable crying at home within my four walls has been unbearable. Constant feelings of sadness and pain are just not going away and my life has been shattered. I blame myself,I don’t think I am worthy of loving and I am scared. I also know that I still have so many things to be grateful for and then I start to hate myself because by feeling this way I feel like I am not grateful because I mustn’t be since I want to end it all.
Such a vicious cycle in my head. The result:almost jumping off my 26th floor balcony on April 28th.
Will never forget the day,I just wanted the pain and the suffering to stop. I pulled myself of the edge,don’t even know how I managed to do it.Getting professional help,saved my life. This is not easy to write but I have always been open,honest and vulnerable with you all and I deeply believe in the power of sharing our stories to help us get through things and to help each other. I am writing this because I know I am not the only one struggling. Just know that you are not alone. I am not going to say that I am doing great now but I am definitely on the road to recovery.Some days are better than others and sometimes I take a step forward and then a step back but I’m fighting and I believe I can get through this. I believe in the following: it’s ok to feel what I am feeling. It’s ok to feel sad just keep fighting and come back. That’s what I am trying to do and that’s what keeps me going. Don’t be ashamed of what you are feeling. It’s ok to feel this way and you can come back from it.It’s possible,just keep believing. Love you all and here is to fighting and surviving to live and see another day. I will be back stronger than ever.

'Don’t even know how I managed to do it,' says Jelena Dokic

Having made her last professional appearance in December 2013, Zelena kept a low profile after her playing career. However, in her Instagram post, Zelena said there are many things she is grateful for, but she had started hating herself because of how she felt. “Such a vicious cycle in my head. The result: almost jumping off my 26th-floor balcony on April 28th. Will never forget the day, I just wanted the pain and the suffering to stop. I pulled myself of the edge, don’t even know how I managed to do it,” she added. 

Jelena reveals how getting professional help saved her life

Jelena then acknowledged the power of sharing stories and said she saved her life by getting personal help. She went on to reveal the reason behind writing the message and said, “I am writing this because I know I am not the only one struggling. Just know that you are not alone. I am not going to say that I am doing great now but I am definitely on the road to recovery”. In conclusion of her message, Zelena added that no one should be ashamed of how they feel and it is possible to come out of such situations. 

What did Tennis Australia say?

As per AP, Tennis Australia lauded Dokic’s courage in exposing the truth while answering questions from the media, about why the governing body didn’t intervene in the matter. “There were many in tennis at the time who were concerned for Jelena’s welfare and many who tried to assist with what was a difficult family situation. Some officials even went as far as lodging police complaints, which without cooperation from those directly involved, unfortunately, could not be fully investigated,” Tennis Australia clarified in a statement.

(With inputs from AP)

(Image: @dokic_jelena/Instagram/@WTA/Twitter)