43. Gabrielle

Gabrielle, 23 from Phoenix, AZ USA

“I often felt like I “never fit in” in the sense of being a woman. I went to school and was shamed for being a bigger girl. A loud girl. A girl that in retrospect, was chronically underloved and misunderstood. I have not been able to live inside my body for the longest time. It was hard to find a home in a place everyone told me was flawed and I needed to change it. I’d go to school and get picked apart by the peers that also had insecurities themselves. I went home to a mother that told me to lose weight. I went to the doctor every year telling me the same. It took a long time for me to accept I was actually beautiful. I was the kind of girl people would ask out as a joke. It took a long time for me to realize I was a little girl who needed love and acceptance. I’ve had to find the peace within myself, I’ve gone down many paths to get to where I am now. I wouldn’t say I have any regrets, because in the end, I wouldn’t know.”