Sonya Williams, 41, Barnstaple
Burying her head in my jeans, my daughter Marlie-Rae, then 2, clung to my leg.
‘It’s OK,’ I said, prising her gently off so that she could join the group.
It was summer 2016, and I’d brought her to a gymnastics class, hoping it’d bring her out her shell.
Marlie-Rae wasn’t as outgoing as some kids. She stuck beside me rather than join in the nursery games.
‘I want to go home,’ she begged, lip trembling.
Eventually, we both joined in with some hops and jumps in a circle of children.
To my relief, Marlie-Rae grew to love gymnastics, going a few times a week to Falcon Gymnastics Academy, Barnstaple.
She still struggled with anxiety, suffered sensory sensitivity but, despite that, gymnastics was her outlet, the…
