How pole dance restored Sarah’s ability to love who she was, and her body.

The minute Sarah walked into The Pole Room, she fell instantly in love and has never looked back. Within a year of starting pole dance classes, the young mum improved her upper body strength and flexibility, which enabled her to perform in the studio competition, Shine. “The TPR environment is nothing like I have ever experienced. I can walk into any class and feel at home. Even if I suck, even if I don’t know anyone, no-one judges and everyone supports each other.”

But her journey to find the TPR family wasn’t an easy one. At only 15, Sarah fell pregnant with her beautiful daughter. The experience of pregnancy and childbirth proved life-threatening to both Sarah and her daughter. It left the teen mum suffering Post Traumatic Stress, Post Natal Depression and anxiety. Self hatred soon set in and Sarah found it hard to get out of bed every day.

“Pregnancy destroyed my body, externally and internally. We barely survived the birth which left me with PTSD, PND and anxiety” she said. Alone and isolated at home with a baby, Sarah said her self esteem dropped to zero. “I hated myself, my body, my inability to fit in,” Sarah said. That was, until she found The Pole Room…

“Early last year my friend Ash mentioned she’d signed up at The Pole Room and loved it. I hated the gym and was struggling to get out of bed and get moving. She convinced me to join her for a week…she had to call and sign me up because I couldn’t even do that.”

Today, everything has changed.

“I love my body and everything it can do. TPR (The Pole Room) turned my life around. When I’m having a bad day I still make sure I get to class and it pushes me to fight through it. I really can’t put into words what my friends and teachers at pole have done for me.”

Inspired by Sarah’s journey? Read more student stories and see how The Pole Room has changed lives.