Why Princess Beatrice Once Feared She Was ‘Not Good Enough’

Princess Beatrice is the elder daughter of Prince Andrew and his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson. Although she has a close relationship with the rest of the royal family, Beatrice leads a much more private life than her cousins, Prince William and Prince Harry.

However, she recently opened up about an experience from her childhood that impacted her self-esteem. Beatrice shared that, at times, she had doubts about whether she was “good enough” or not.

Princess Beatrice was diagnosed with dyslexia as a child

Like a number of people around the world, Beatrice had learning difficulties as a child. She was diagnosed with dyslexia at the age of 7, and throughout her childhood, Beatrice had trouble with spelling and reading.

According to the Mayo Clinic, those who have dyslexia often have “difficulty reading due to problems identifying speech sounds and learning how they relate to letters and words.”

Princess Beatrice opened up about how dyslexia made her feel not ‘good enough’

Because of her experience with dyslexia, Beatrice is known to support charities which help people who have learning disabilities like her. She recently filmed a video for the organization Made By Dyslexia and revealed how dyslexia made her question her own abilities at school.

“You know, I remember we had different colored books to describe how far your reading levels had got to and I was always on the white books,” Beatrice shared. “My best friends were always on the yellow books or the green books. They were so far ahead. And I think at that stage, those moments of doubt just pop into your head. I’m not good enough, I’m not smart enough. Why am I not like the others?”

Princess Beatrice’s mother Sarah Ferguson helped her become a better reader

Fortunately for Beatrice, her mother was there for her. Sarah Ferguson played a key role in helping Beatrice develop her reading skills.

In 2017, Beatrice shared with the Evening Standard the story of how her mother inspired her to love and appreciate reading.

“I was lucky that my mother, with her great imagination, took the time to work on [stories] with me,” Beatrice said. “By the time I read Harry Potter, aged 11, I tore through the pages of the magical books. My mother writes children’s books and so many of the stories we discovered together came to life in the book series Little Red and through other characters she created for our bedtime stories.”

She noted that both her parents would also record themselves reading stories for her so she could listen to the tapes when her parents were traveling.

These efforts by her parents helped Beatrice learn to become a better reader. By the time she became a university student at Goldsmith College, London, she majored in History and History of Ideas – both of which are reading-intensive study programs. It is clear that Beatrice has come a long way in her learning journey.

Princess Beatrice now sees her dyslexia as an advantage

As an adult, Beatrice has also come to understand that her learning disability does not define her. In fact, she now sees dyslexia as an advantage because it allows her to think differently from other people.

In the video for Made By Dyslexia, Beatrice shared a few inspiring words for people who have dyslexia, saying: “It is not something that is wrong with you. It is a great part of how your brain works and everybody’s brain works incredibly differently. There is nothing wrong, there is just everything that is so right.”