Jeff Bezos' Fiancée Lauren Sánchez Gets Emotional While Revealing Her Struggles With Dyslexia: I 'Felt Dumb'
While promoting her upcoming children's book 'The Fly Who Flew To Space,' Lauren Sánchez opened up about her childhood struggles with dyslexia.
The former news anchor and entertainment reporter appeared on 'Good Morning America' to discuss the book, but ended up sharing a bit more about herself on Tuesday.
"This book is for my 8-year-old self who really felt dumb. And I did, I sat in the back of the class, I was quiet and they pushed me along in public school," she confessed. Her struggles not only impacted her academic pursuits, but her career goals. She called the condition "horrible" because it dampened her dreams of becoming a journalist.
"That's all I wanted to be," she told co-host Michael Strahan. "And I was like, 'I can't write.' "
Upon enrolling in community college, she rediscovered her confidence thanks to a teacher who helped her. "Every time I talk about this, I get emotional," Sánchez said, recalling how the teacher helped her receive an official dyslexia diagnosis.
" 'You are not dumb, you just can't spell,' " she remembered the teacher encouraging her.
This support and diagnosis were instrumental in helping Sanchez advance on her career path. She raised her grade point average (GPA) to a 3.8 from 2.0. With this increase, she was able to get into the University of Southern California where she studied broadcast journalism.
Some of the proceeds from 'The Fly Who Flew To Space' are being directed towards the International Dyslexia Association.
The 54-year-old says she wants to ensure dyslexia is identified early "so they don't have to go through what I went through, just thinking that [they are] not smart enough."
Sánchez went on to anchor several different shows. She won a Los Angeles Area Emmy award for her work on 'UPN News 13' on Los Angeles' KCOP in 2001.
Sanchez is engaged to former president and CEO of Amazon Jeff Bezos. An insider told 'PEOPLE' Bezos, 60, proposed to her four years after they publicly started dating in May 2023.
