Shirley Ballas has revealed her secret battle with anxiety.
Shirley Ballas
The 'Strictly Come Dancing' head judge - who has won a string of latin dance championships over the years and is known as the Queen of Latin - has revealed she was as "nervous" as the contestants on the BBC One show after battling with her emotions.
Shirley says that she used meditation before each 'Strictly' show to relax her.
She told Top Sante magazine: "I've had anxiety in the past and two years ago I wasn't in a great place.
"Without a stable mind, it's difficult for anything else to function. I meditate and take time for controlled breathing.
"This was especially useful when I started 'Strictly' - my first TV job. I was as nervous as the celebrities."
Shirley hopes speaking out about mental health will help herself and others after she tragically lost her brother, David Rich, to suicide.
She said: "People get embarrassed about admitting they feel low but you can't help the way you feel.
"Which is why exercise, taking vitamins and having time out for meditation are so important."
The 57-year-old dancing professional also revealed she has struggled with her body image going back to when she performed with her ex-husband Corky Ballas.
She said: "People used to say that my bottom was too big, and I looked overweight.
"Back when I danced with Corky people were always pushing me to go on a diet.
"I've had issues in the past with the way I look and I'm still working through them. But as I get older I'm learning that you just have to be comfortable in your own skin."
Shirley previously revealed she had been "judged and bullied" in the dance industry.
Shirley recalled how she was told she was "not fit material" to judge a competition in Bulgaria before she bagged herself the role on 'Strictly'.
She said: "[I've been] judged and bullied. I feel like coming from a housing estate way back when, the other children used to judge my brothers and I when we got free meals at school ... I moved into ballroom dancing, which is a male dominated industry and for most of my career, from a very young age of about 17, [I was] being bullied in the industry from certain people at the top.
"The reason I originally went for this job at 'Strictly' was because I got offered to do a job in Bulgaria, as an adjudicator, and was all set to go and I was excited to go and then the gentleman let me know I was not fit material to judge the competition. In the end, I didn't get that job. It was my son who said if those certain people don't want you to be in the industry, perhaps you should go to 'Strictly.'"