Lizzie
was born in 1989 13th March, 4 weeks premature in Velasquez was born in Austin, Texas.
She was diagnosed with an extremely rare condition that made it impossible for
her to develop muscle or body fat. The condition itself is so rare that it
doesn’t even have a name, and it’s believed to only affect to other people in
the world. Initially, doctors didn’t believe Lizzie would have a
fulfilling life – there were even concerns she might not survive. They had
no idea how she’d been born alive, and they couldn’t imagine her ever being
able to walk, or talk. Lizzie, however, has always been one to defy
expectations, and although she was incredibly small, Lizzie’s brain, internal
organs and bones developed normally.
Lizzie
describes her condition as “one big mystery.” At 4 years old, she went
blind in her right eye, for reasons doctors still don’t understand. That eye
clouded over and changed colour, so she now has one brown eye and one blue
eye. She also has facial features most commonly associated with progeria,
including a small mouth, pointed nose, and aged skin – although her disorder
differs from progeria in that doctors now don’t believe it will be terminal.
While they didn’t understand her condition, Lizzie and her family became
very proficient at dealing with it.
Honestly, she had no idea she was
different from other kids until she started kindergarten. To her family, she was
just Lizzie. It was a big slap of reality for a 5-year-old. The other kids were
scared of her, pointing at her, not wanting to sit with her. She couldn’t
process it. she wasn’t doing anything to them, so why was it happening to her?
Finally, she told her parents
and they said, “There is nothing wrong with you, you are just smaller than the
other kids. You are beautiful and smart and can accomplish anything.”
However, when Lizzie was 17
years old, She decided to be brave and
join activities and make friends and learn how to be outgoing. It was scary,
but she knew it would pay off. She was staff writer for the school newspaper
and took photos for the yearbook. She tried out for cheerleading. The uniforms
were really cute and every time she wore it around the school, She felt like a
superhero. She was more herself around her peers.
Then,she
did an interview for a local tv station. When the video clip was posted on
YouTube, it was labelled “The World’s Ugliest Woman.” When Lizzie found
the clip, it had already received 4 million views and was accompanied by a
plethora of appalling comments. with comments saying the world would be a
better place if she took myself out of it. She read every single comment
thinking there would be one person to stand up for her. Not one person said,
“She’s a child, leave her alone,” or “You don’t know her story, why she looks
like that.”
Lizzie
was heartbroken. She had already spent most of her life being bullied, but in
this moment, she felt truly overwhelming pain. Fortunately Lizzie’s parents had
a different take on it and reportedly said to her “You can have your one good
cry and let it out, but then you have to pick your head up and move on to
something positive.”
Since then, Lizzie has devoted her life
to speaking out against cyber-bullying and negative body image. In 2013, she
did a TEDx talk in Austin. Her Ted Talk on true beauty has been watched more
than 7 million times, and she has become an internationally sought-after
motivational speaker. She’s also written 3 inspirational books, and The
Lizzie Project, a film inspired by her life, was funded through an
incredibly successful Kickstarter project, which reached its $180,000
fundraising goal in less than a month. Hers is a considerable contribution
to a world much in need of reformed attitudes to these issues, and although we still
have a long way to go to fulfill Lizzie’s mission of eliminating cyber-bullying
entirely, there’s no question that the world is a kinder – and more beautiful –
place because Lizzie is in it.
“Now I actually look at my condition as
a gift… it’s something that I’m blessed to have and I want to share this gift
with anyone who will have it.”
source:
http://www.today.com/health/lizzie-velasquez-ugliest-woman-video-changed-my-life-better-t41361
http://www.theheroinecollective.com/lizzie-velasquez/
source:
http://www.today.com/health/lizzie-velasquez-ugliest-woman-video-changed-my-life-better-t41361
http://www.theheroinecollective.com/lizzie-velasquez/