BBC Strictly Come Dancing's Tasha Ghouri opens up on 'toughest years' in heartbreaking admission
BBC Strictly Come Dancing star Tasha Ghouri has opened up on the 'toughest years of her life'. The former Love Island contestant ranked third on last night's leaderboard alongside pro dancer partner Aljaž Škorjanec.
The pair earned 37 points with their Samba to I Like To Move It Move It by Reel 2 Real for the show's iconic Halloween Week. While gruelling rehearsals and long-hours training might take its toll on some, Tasha has built up an impressive resilience from her time in secondary school.
The 26-year-old was diagnosed deaf at birth and wears a cochlear implant. She has often told how being deaf has become her 'superpower'.
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In an interview with Grace Beverley , Tasha said: "Teenage years were definitely the toughest years of my life. It was kind of more because when you're a teenager you're figuring out who you are as a person, you're going through hormones etc - and it's kind of like that time when I was trying to figure out who I was as a person, but I was the only deaf student in my school. That added pressure as I was always comparing in such a negative way and I was so horrible to myself.
"I didn't love myself. I had no self love. I had no self confidence. It wasn't until I actually left school that's when I actually started to gain a little bit of confidence. [Getting into the] dance industry massively helped me with that, but through school it was tough."
Tasha said she was 'lucky enough' to have a supportive friendship, Mirror reports. She also was not 'horribly bullied' at school - but was cyber bullied.
But Tasha struggled to excel in her exams due to a lack of school support. She said: "I was kind of pushed to the sides and my grades weren't great because I was deaf kind of thing.
"There wasn't enough awareness. I would often get seated at the back of the class where I needed to be at the front so I could lip read.
"Teachers would write on the white board but turn away from me so I would miss out on notes and important information. There were times where I would just go in my bedroom and just cry for hours."
Reflecting on her adolescence, Tasha said she wished she embraced her differences. She added: "With social media there's so much pressure to look and be perfect all the time... but take your time.
"Confidence doesn't come in a day."
Strictly Come Dancing airs every Saturday on BBC One.