Gabby Douglas implied on Instagram Thursday that she has continued preparing and is planning to contend in the 2024 Paris Olympics, sharing a photograph of herself rehearsing her structure on the equilibrium bar.
She wrote in the caption, “it’s so easy to suppress and run away from facing darkness and fears,” adding, “as you all know I stepped back from the socials and in that time I did a lot of journaling, reflecting, and soul searching and found myself back where it all began.”
She went on to say, “For many years, I’ve had an ache in my heart,” adding, “but I didn’t want to continue carrying anger, pain, sadness, or regret, and through my tears and hurt, I’ve found peace.”
Douglas said she “needed to find delight again for the game” and realizes she has “a gigantic undertaking in front of me,” closing the post with: ” and, surprisingly, more appreciative for the entirety of your help and love. There is so much more to say about it, but for the time being…. Let’s do this #2024! Douglas, 27, wrote in another Instagram post last year that she was taking a break from social media to “work on myself and focus on my mental health.”
“Never has my life been easy or smooth. I have conveyed a significant burden on my back for a long while and it has overloaded me, genuinely, intellectually, and inwardly,” she composed. ” Numerous individuals and things have attempted to crush and break me.
She went on to say, “I refuse to be defeated by this weight, I refuse to be hardened by this weight.” I need to feel light and blissful once more. I want to be the best version of myself and the best representation of you all.
Douglas added in the caption, “Sometimes we fall, we break, we fail, but then we heal, we rise, and we overcome.”
Gabby Douglas on Being a ‘Legend’ to More youthful Age: ‘ Douglas has been open about her mental health, particularly how it affects her athletic career, in her book “Every Day I Wake Up Grateful.”
Beforehand, the Olympic tumbler addressed USA Today, saying the 2016 Games “truly destroyed me.”
Sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up to date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, including celebrity news and compelling human interest stories. “Coming from that [I focused on] really healing myself, healing my mind and my body,” she said. “Signing up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter will ensure that you never miss a story.” I’m not via web-based entertainment a great deal since online entertainment caused harm to my character, as it were. So, I’ve just been kind of getting back to who I am by giving up social media and my phone for years.
Douglas likewise communicated her help for Naomi Osaka after the tennis star’s choice to pull out from the 2021 French Open because of reasons connected with emotional wellness.
Gabby Douglas Offers How She Keeps Her Pets Solid Like Her — Including Natively constructed Food and Joint Exercises
“Each individual understands how they need to fix themselves, to recuperate themselves, and everybody’s unique,” she said, adding, “Being a competitor, we go through such a lot of as of now. Assuming you really want to step back, that is the very thing that you want to do.”
The legendary gymnast, who did not compete in Tokyo, previously spoke with PEOPLE about the criticism she received at the Rio 2016 Olympics.
She stated to PEOPLE, “Maybe people weren’t being fair on social media, but that’s social media for you.”
“I just observed things to be sure about,” she said. ” Furthermore, there’s a ton to be content about. We won the gold decoration collectively, and it was simply a particularly astonishing encounter. I participated in the Olympics and received a gold medal! Still, that is amazing. I can only do what I can, and I can’t stop people from saying what they want on social media.
She continued, “It felt really good to have people support me.” It was a decent update that where there is disdain, love is more.”