Serena Williams Shares Mysterious Post About ‘Difficult August’ and Focusing on Her Mental Health
Tennis legend Serena Williams is opening up about focusing on what’s most important after a “difficult August.”
The former professional tennis player and Olympic gold medalist, 43, took to Instagram on Tuesday to share a quartet of photos featuring her dressed in a long, red silk dress and silver pointy-toed heels. With her long, blonde hair in curly tendrils, Williams stood in front of a massive bookshelf and opened up about “learning to let go.” The post comes less than a month after her announcement that she lost 31 pounds using a GLP-1 medication.
“Dearest gentle reader, My summer started out well but I was plunged into a difficult August. Like many of you, I faced challenges that tested my spirit and resilience. Life can sometimes feel overwhelming and it’s easy to lose sight of what truly matters—your mental health and well-being. I took some time away to breathe, to reconnect with myself, and to remember that it’s perfectly okay to pause and reconnect. Even if it’s just a quiet night to yourself. Anything counts,” Williams wrote in the caption.
READ: How and Why Serena Williams’ Old Coach Critiqued Her Body After
The athlete, who has two daughters, Alexis Olympia, 8, and Adira, 2, with husband Alexis Ohanian, continued by saying that she’s “learned that the end of a matter is better than its beginning. And even though things haven’t reached their end yet, I’m also learning to let go and live life one moment at a time. The only thing I’m dealing with in this moment here is how good this dress looks against first editions.”
Williams ended the post by asking her followers how their summer was, and adding the hashtag “Lady Serena of Stockton Street.”
Williams Has Spoken About the Challenges of Motherhood
In the past, Williams has opened up about her public image as a sports icon and how she doesn’t believe that’s a true representation of one’s worth. Instead, she has shared how she feels the real sign of being a star is being someone your children can count on.
“I feel like everybody’s a champion,” Williams told PEOPLE last year. “You don’t have to be winning Wimbledon or a gold medal to be a champion. Being a champion is really just being there for your kids. I think that’s a huge champion.”
But with a lot on her plate as an athlete, founder, spokesperson, and mother, Williams can get overwhelmed.
“Being a champion is understanding that you’re not going to be a champion every single day. There’s no way you can win every single day. I need to take this advice to myself,” she shared. “But it’s really just about giving your best effort in whatever you’re doing, just do the best that you can on that day. Some days, you will be able to make a better effort. Some days, just waking up is a big effort. You just have to give what you can on that day.”
