Better Homes and Gardens host and former competitive swimmer Johanna Griggs was recently interviewed by Prevention, where she opened up about her past health struggles.
As a teenager, Johanna was diagnosed with a debilitating health struggle that almost ended her swimming career.
WATCH NOW: Johanna Griggs speaks with TV WEEK on the 2022 TV WEEK Logie Awards Red Carpet. Article continues after video.
Johanna was diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome at 17, however, she later learned to be “thankful” for this experience as she learned so much about herself.
“You learn more about yourself during a tough period than you do during a great one,” she said in her interview with Prevention.
“One of the most important things that it taught me was to be able to be by myself and to be comfortable in my own skin.”
Johanna won her first Commonwealth Games medal in 1990, when she was only 16 years old, however, following her diagnosis that came just one year later, she was forced to press pause her swimming career.
In the next few years following her break, everything seemed to be “one step forward, two steps back” for Johanna.
However, her fight to regain her health proved to contribute to Johanna’s growth in more ways than one.
“It’s asking yourself, ‘Can you put your head on the pillow and know in your heart of hearts you’ve done everything within your power that day to get better?’,” she told Prevention, reflecting on that time in her life.
“But also, not beating yourself up on it, just working out what was working (and) what wasn’t working.”
Johanna was eventually able to continue training and by 1993, she won the 50m backstroke at the Australian Swimming Championships.
This marked the peak of her swimming career… it was at this point that Johanna made the decision to end it.
“For me, it was a massive milestone to get to say I could be the best, but I also knew when I hit that (pool) wall, I did not want to keep living like that,” she told Prevention.
“I told my mum I was retiring that night and remember her voice going up a couple of octaves higher than normal.”
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