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I Felt So Fat, This Was the End of My Career - Linda Jasmine
🇲🇾 Malaysia /Culture & Society

I Felt So Fat, This Was the End of My Career - Linda Jasmine

From Utusan Malaysia · () Malay

Translated from Malay, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • Professional dancer and choreographer Linda Jasmine experienced a career low point after becoming a young mother, struggling with self-confidence and appearance.
  • She felt her career was over and she would only be a mother, especially during the first two to three years after childbirth.
  • A turning point came when she accepted an offer to teach dance for the reality show Akademi Fantasia, which revitalized her career and personal life.

Professional dancer and choreographer Linda Jasmine has shared her struggles with self-doubt and the perceived end of her career after becoming a young mother. At 26, after welcoming her first child, Jasmine experienced a significant dip in confidence, feeling she had become "very fat" and "very ugly." The demands of motherhood, coupled with a lack of support, left her feeling overwhelmed and disconnected from her professional life.

After giving birth and everything, I felt very fat. I felt very ugly and became a young mother without any help.

— Linda JasmineJasmine describes her feelings of low self-esteem and the challenges of early motherhood.

"I was so stressed at home with my hair like this and like that, and I didn't even have time to shower or anything," Jasmine recalled in a podcast. "So, I really felt like this was it, this was the end of my career, and I was just going to be a mother."

I was so stressed at home with my hair like this and like that, and I didn't even have time to shower or anything. So, I really felt like this was it, this was the end of my career, and I was just going to be a mother.

— Linda JasmineShe explains the overwhelming feeling that her professional life was over due to her new role as a mother.

She described the initial two to three years post-childbirth as exceptionally difficult for her as a working woman. Although she had been teaching dance before, her passion and confidence waned. "Honestly, I felt like I had passed my prime. I couldn't dance like I used to," she admitted.

Honestly, I felt like I had passed my prime. I couldn't dance like I used to.

— Linda JasmineJasmine reflects on her diminished confidence in her dancing abilities during that period.

However, her life took a dramatic turn when she received an offer to become a dance instructor for the popular reality program Akademi Fantasia (AF). "But when I did AF, Alhamdulillah, everything was okay. I felt like it was a new beginning and a new breath. I never expected my life to change 360 degrees," Jasmine said. Her involvement with AF, spanning multiple seasons, marked a significant resurgence in her career and personal fulfillment.

But when I did AF, Alhamdulillah, everything was okay. I felt like it was a new beginning and a new breath. I never expected my life to change 360 degrees.

— Linda JasmineShe expresses gratitude and surprise at how the opportunity with Akademi Fantasia revitalized her life and career.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Utusan Malaysia in Malay. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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