Lilly Velasquez: Only One of Three in the World to Have Rare Syndrome is Labeled the "World's Ugliest" Latina, But She Redefines Beauty
How do you define beauty in America?
While many would jump to say a Victoria Secret model or an actress, or singer, there are all types of beauty and Lilly Velasquez, who has a rare condition that prevents her from gaining any weight, has a kind of beauty that is unlike any other.
Only one of three people in the world born with the condition, Velasquez, a college student-turned motivational speaker and author, has never weighed more than 64 pounds, and she was also born without sight in her right eye.
"Doctors say she has many symptoms of neonatal progeroid syndrome, a rare disorder characterized by premature aging and an extreme lack of fat. One of just three to six people in the entire world with her specific symptoms."
"Things have been scary, things have been tough ... I had to deal with bullying a lot," she said.
During high school, a time that isn't easy for many teens struggling to fit in, she discovered a video of herself on YouTube that was labeled "The World's Ugliest Woman." It was only 8 seconds long, with no sound, and was just a picture of her face. The video went viral and got over 4 million hits and with the attention came the horrible comments.
While her parents tried to get the video off the site, the unidentified user wouldn't take it down because of the amount of clicks and buzz it generated. One commenter was so cruel and heartless and told her to put a gun to her head and kill herself. Despite the pain the comments caused, Velasquez turned it around and decided to focus on the positive.
"'Am I gonna let the people who called me a monster define me? No. I'm gonna let my goals and my success and my accomplishments be the things that define me,' she said in a new YouTube video that has gotten more than 100,000 views since it was posted on Dec. 20," the International Business Times reports.
Now 24 years old, she has become a powerful motivational speaker and is touching the hearts of millions. She shared her life story at a TED Talk in Austin, Texas, where she talked about what it's like to be different and how she wouldn't let it define her.
"What defines you as a person?" she asks in the video.
"For so long I thought my outer appearance defined me ... I remember thinking could I just rub this syndrome off? ... I have an amazing support system around me who never pity me, who are there to pick me up when I am sad, and they taught me that even though I have this syndrome and things are hard, I can't let it define me."
Velasquez has a wonderful sense of humor and sense of self, and besides the tough times that come along with her condition, she admits that she has great hair! She also notes another "perk" that she can eat as much and as often as she wants without having to worry about calorie intake or gaining pounds.
Watch Velasquez wow the audience with her kind heart, humor and love of life. Her parents must be so proud.
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