Lizzie Velasquez, 24 years old, was labeled the world’s ugliest. The people who labeled her didn’t about her medical issues. Lizzie was born with no amnoiotic fluid around her at birth, causing a rare syndrome that only one other person in the world has. Lizzie cannot gain weight due to her syndrome.The syndrome has caused her to never weigh over 64 lbs. The syndrome has also caused her to become blind in one eye.
Lizzie’s parents tried to raise her normally. They did not treat her differently because she had this syndrome. However, Lizzie became the victim of bullying when she went to school because she looked smaller and different compared to everyone else. When Lizzie asked her parents why children didn’t like her, her parents told her she had a syndrome and that it was not going to define her. Her parents encouraged her that if she smiled and stayed confident everyone would realize she was just like them.
In middle school, she wished she looked like everyone else. She prayed that she didn’t have this condition that made her look different. Lizzie claimed that her support group helped her get through the emotional strains. She said she realized her life was in her own hands. She had the power to choose which way her life was going to go. She could stay sad and miserable, or she could choose to be happy.
In high school, the video labeling Lizzie the world’s ugliest women was posted, and 4 million people viewed the video. People posted horrible comments, even going as far to say “do a favor to humanity by killing yourself .”Lizzie became very upset by the video. But, once again, Lizzie realized that her life was in her own hands. Lizzie decided that she was going to make what she did define her and not how she appeared. Lizzie says that although she can’t see out of both eyes, she is not blind because she can see out of one. She added, “I may get sick a lot, but I have nice hair.”
All in all, Lizzie is not going to let the bullies define her. She wants to make successes her revenge. She set her goals on graduating college, becoming a motivational speaker, having a family and writing a book. Lizzie has graduated college. Lizzie has been a motivational speaker for nearly eight years. Lizzie also has written three books.
Lizzie made her bullies and negativity her motivation. Lizzie encourages all of us to use negativity as motivation because we will win out in the end. Lizzie also encourages us that it is brave to take your own life into your hands. We have the power to transform every negative into a positive by taking control of our own lives. We are the only ones who define ourselves.