Jessica Mauboy
When Jessica Mauboy didn’t take the stage for her National Anthem performance at the Melbourne Cup earlier this week, rumours naturally began circling as to why backup singer Nadia Aya took her place with under a minute’s notice.
While Jessica’s rep ambiguously said she faced issues with “clothing and preparation”, a widely believed explanation was that the singer refused to wear shoes by the race’s official sponsor, Myer, thanks to suggestions by 2GB radio’s Alan Jones.
After a public apology by Jessica on Facebook, which still neglected to address the wardrobe rumours, the Australian Idol alum has opened up to The Daily Telegraph about what really happened on the day. A panic attack.
“Four minutes before I am about to be walked out from the green room, people on one side are bickering with people on another side and it started to suffocate me, it was crazy and I didn’t know what to do,” Jessica explained. “All I could feel was all the bad energy coming from people, time stopped and I could see it all going on around me, I could see me stuck on the lounge and I’m thinking, ‘Why aren’t you getting up and getting going?’ It was really horrible.”
Anyone who has experienced a panic attack will know how scary it can be. Jessica has met with a counsellor following the ordeal to work through the reasons of why she became so overwhelmed. She suspects that it probably has something to do with her demanding schedule.
“I have been working extremely hard and it got to work overload but that’s the person I am,” she said. “I guess I discovered through all of this that I am only human and I can’t do everything.”
We’re so proud of her for stepping forward and explaining what she went through. If you feel like you need to talk, call the beyondblue Support Service 24/7 on 1300 22 4636, or go to beyondblue’s website to chat online (3 p.m. til midnight AEST).
[Via The Daily Telegraph]
