Lauren Sanchez breaks down in tears live on Good Morning America
Lauren Sanchez was left holding back tears as she recalled the moment when a teacher helped her realize that she wasn't 'dumb' after she spent decades struggling with undiagnosed dyslexia.
The 54-year-old businesswoman - who is engaged to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos - made a moving appearance on Tuesday's Good Morning America to promote her new children's book, The Fly Who Flew to Space.
The former TV star explained that she was inspired to write the tome in order to uplift children who are currently experiencing the same struggles she once faced - before going on to admit that son Evan Whitesell, 18, has also been diagnosed with the learning disorder, which causes problems with reading and writing correctly.
Opening up to host Michael Strahan, Sanchez began: 'This book is for my eight-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.
Lauren Sanchez broke down in tears as she recalled the moment when a teacher helped her realize that she wasn't 'dumb' after she spent decades struggling with undiagnosed dyslexia
She also revealed that son Evan Whitesell, 18, has also been diagnosed with the learning disorder, which causes problems with reading and writing correctly
'I really, really wanted to be a journalist, it's all I wanted to be, and I thought, I can't write, it was horrible.'
The glamorous star then became overwhelmed with emotion as she recalled the moment when she was able to better pursue her dream job thanks to the help of a teacher who asked her to write for the school paper.
'I said, "I can't really write,"' the brunette beauty recalled.
'[The teacher] said, "Just write without thinking about spelling or punctuation."'
At that point, Sanchez became teary eyed and had to pause to get control of her emotions before she continued: 'Every time I talk about this, I get emotional.'
The former journalist added: 'I don't remember what the story was about. She literally looked at me after I turned it in, and she was like, "You are not dumb, you just can't spell," and she got me tested for dyslexia.
'This was community college teacher who took an interest in me. I went from a 2.0-[GPA] student who was barely making it to a 3.8, got into USC and became a journalist.'
Sanchez then went on to explain that some proceeds from the book would go to the International Dyslexia Association, which helps diagnose children at a younger age.
The 54-year-old journalist - who is engaged to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos - made a moving appearance on Tuesday's Good Morning America to promote her new children's book
The former TV star explained that she was inspired to write the tome in order to uplift children who are currently experiencing the same struggles she once faced
The passionate advocate explained: 'So they don't have to go through what I went through, just thinking that [they are] not smart enough. They can really help kids, that are struggling with dyslexia, helping diagnose them.'
She then went on to reveal that her son was diagnosed with the same disability during his younger years, and has given her permission to speak about it publicly now that he is 18.
'My son said I could talk about with it, he has dyslexia, diagnosed in second grade,' Sanchez stated.
Sanchez shares eldest son Nikko Gonzalez, 23, with former NFL player Tony Gonzalez, and also shares Evan and daughter Ella, 16, with ex-husband Patrick Whitesell.
Sanchez previously said that she dreamed of being a journalist from a young age - but because she suffered from undiagnosed dyslexia throughout her childhood, she began to believe that she couldn't do it.
The glamorous star then became overwhelmed with emotion as she recalled the moment when she was able to better pursue her dream job. Seen in high school
So instead, she decided she wanted to become a flight attendant, and at age 18, after finishing high school, she moved to Los Angeles, where she applied for a job as a Southwest Airlines stewardess.
However, the then-teenager, who weighed just more than 120 pounds, told The Wall Street Journal last year that she was forced to stand on a scale during the interview process - a standard practice for flight attendants at the time - and she ultimately didn't get the job because she was told she was too big.
Unsure of where to turn, a heartbroken Lauren decided to go to back to school, and enrolled at El Camino College in Torrance, California.
It was there that she rediscovered her love for journalism after the teacher encouraged her to get tested for dyslexia and she finally realized that she was suffering from a learning disability.
Sanchez transferred to University of Southern California in 1992, which she attended for two years while working as a desk assistant at the LA-based news company KCOP-TV.
In 1994, she left to school to pursue her career as a reporter full time after she was offered a job at KTVK in Phoenix, Arizona.
In the years that followed, she moved around quite a bit - working briefly for Extra before heading to Fox Sports Net.
Sanchez then went on to host Good Day LA for six years before starting her own aerial film and production company called Black Ops Aviation.
She also served as the host on the first season of So You Think You Can Dance, and contributed to Larry King Live, The Joy Behar Show, and Showbiz Tonight over the years.
