American woman, Lizzie Velasquez, suffers from a rare syndrome that has prevented her from ever gaining weight, and has left her with only partial vision.
Medical experts believe the 24-year-old has
Neonatal Progeroid Syndrome, a condition that only three known people in the world have been diagnosed with, causing the ageing and fat loss process to accelerate.
The Texas woman, who has been the subject of ridicule and the victim of bullying her entire life, is now an inspirational and motivational speaker, channelling all her energies into taking the positives from her situation.
Once dubbed "the world's ugliest woman", by a video she found online of herself that had several million hits, Lizzie admits that life for her has been incredibly difficult, "but that's okay", she tells the audience.
Witty, warm and endearing, Lizzie jokes about the benefits of being visually impaired and not being able to gain weight. The inspiring woman then addresses how she consistently redefines what it means to be beautiful.
Promising not to let her conditions define who she is, Lizzie asks the audience to have a think about what defines each individual.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c62Aqdlzvqk
The video description reads:
"In a time when beauty is defined by supermodels, success is defined by wealth, and fame is deified by how many followers you have on social media, Lizzie Velasquez asks the question how do you define yourself? Once labeled, "The Worlds Ugliest Woman," Lizzie decided to turn things around and create her own definitions of what she defines as beauty and happiness."
We are truly in awe of this woman.
Video via YouTube/Lizzie Velasquez