'Not in a good space': Jelena Dokic's heartbreaking revelation
Aussie tennis hero Jelena Dokic has penned a heartbreaking message to fans on social media to explain why she has taken a break from posting in recent times.
Dokic regularly posts on Instagram and frequently speaks out about the importance of mental health and body positivity.
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However the player-turned-commentator has been silent for a number of weeks and addressed the issue with fans on Tuesday.
The 38-year-old revealed she's “not in a good space” to communicate with fans, saying she is going through a “very tough period” in her life as she undergoes a “huge change”.
“I am sure you have all noticed that I have been absent from social media for a while now,” Dokic wrote. “Thank you for all your messages of concern and care for me. I really appreciate it.
“I am going through a very tough period in my life right now and a huge change and I just need some time to recover, heal and process the pain and trauma that I am going through.
“I know a lot of you have written to me and I haven’t replied but just know that I do see your messages and I appreciate them very much but I am not in a good space right now to reply and communicate with you all like I usually do and I am so sorry for that.
“The same goes for posting so I will be staying off Instagram for a little while longer. I know so many of you look forward to my posts and find so much inspiration in them and I am so sorry I can’t provide that for you right now.
“And to those that have told me that in person and stopped me on the street to tell me how much I and my posts inspire you, thank you. Please know that I love you all and I am very grateful for all your support and love.
“To my friends and the people close to me that know what I am going through, thank you for all your love and care. Don’t know what I would do without you and you know who you are.
“I will be back and I will be back stronger than ever even if it doesn’t feel like that right now but I will be back. I always am and I know the sun will shine again. Thank you for your understanding.”
Jelena Dokic opens up on sickening abuse
The former World No.4 won six WTA titles throughout her 16-year professional career.
She made the quarter-finals at the Australian Open and French Open, as well as the final of the 2001 French Open women's doubles.
Dokic endured a tumultuous and abusive relationship with her father and coach Damir, as she outlined in her 2017 autobiography.
Jelena alleged that her father beat her so badly after a first-round loss in 2000 that she lost consciousness.
She also claimed Damir whipped her with a leather belt, spat in her face and pulled her hair and ears.
“Not just the physical pain but the emotional, that was the one that hurt me the most,” she said in the book.
“When you are 11, 12 years old and hear all those nasty things … that was more difficult for me.”
Dokic wowed fans last year when she dropped down from 120kg to 68kg - the same weight she used to play at during her professional career.
But she continues to struggle with her weight and is constantly being trolled over it online.
In September she took aim at body-shamers, writing: "I am constantly disappointed and sad to see people treat and look at others differently because of their size.
"People are constantly obsessed over whether someone is big, small, fat or skinny - as they like to put it. Why the obsession with our size, especially what size women are?
"IS OUR WORTH AND IF WE ARE GOOD HUMAN BEINGS REALLY DETERMINED BY OUR SIZE?
"So disappointing to see people treat and talk about people that they consider ‘big or fat’ badly and putting them down, in real life as well as online."
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