Woman overcame her fear of swimming to become a mermaid

Kirsten Waddle, 24, has always been a fan of the animated Disney classic 'The Little Mermaid' however has always had "anxiety" about swimming and it wasn't until she attended a mermaid convention in London with her friend that she vowed to conquer her fear and purchase a tail to start swimming in local pools.

"I spent half of my childhood pretending I was a mermaid and playing mermaid-themed games, but I'd always been really afraid of the sea and deep water.

"Somewhere along the line I'd developed anxiety about what was swimming underneath me in the sea - I even started to panic that there were sharks in my local swimming pool.

"Nothing really changed until earlier this year, when I saw a photo of an old friend, Scarlette, wearing a gorgeous green tail on Instagram - I needed it to be a reality for me too.

Kirsten now does paid appearances as the Disney princess Ariel.