It's an unfortunate by-product of the world that we live in, but even those who have won the genetic lottery still feel the pressure to live up to unattainable ideals. Case in point - bona fide goddess, and one of the most successful models out there right now - Gigi Hadid.
The 23-year-old recently opened up about her struggles with body confidence while serving on a panel alongside Kendall Jenner and plus-size models, Ashley Graham and Paloma Elsesser at the Vogue Forces of Fashion event last week.
Despite being one of the most recognisable - and beautiful - faces on the planet, Gigi Hadid still can't escape the unsolicited comments of body-shaming trolls. After spending years in the industry, however, she now knows how to filter out hate like a pro.
"I loved my body when I was curvier," she said when speaking on the panel, alongside two of her fellow models. "Then, as I lost [the weight], people were still mean."
"Yeah, I know I'm skinny. I'm looking in the mirror. I'm trying to eat burgers and do squats. I want an a**, too," she continued. "I get it. I got it. Thank you!"
Graham went onto divulge that she too attracts similar online criticism. "People feel that they have ownership over your body in society today, and I think that it's ridiculous, because you don't — my body is mine," she asserted. "I work out because I want to stay healthy, and if I happen to gain 10 pounds or lose 10 pounds, it's nobody's business."
This is not the first time that the model has spoken about her journey with body positivity, and all the changes that her physique has undergone in recent years.
Back in April, after Hadid was repeatedly shamed on social media for being "too skinny", she clapped back, revealing that she had recently been diagnosed with Hashimoto's disease which requires her to eat healthier and work out more.
"When I started at 17 I was not yet diagnosed with Hashimoto’s disease; those of you who called me 'too big for the industry' were seeing inflammation and water retention due to that," the wrote on Twitter. "Over the last few years I’ve been properly medicated to help symptoms ... I have always eaten the same, my body just handles it differently now that my health is better."
"I will not further explain the way my body looks, just as anyone, with a body type that doesn't suit ur “beauty” expectation, shouldn't have to. Not to judge others, but drugs are not my thing, stop putting me in that box just because u don't understand the way my body has matured," she continued.
And in a subsequent interview with Harper's Bazaar - conducted by Blake Lively - Hadid stated that she has always been proud of her body, especially when she was told she was "too big" for the industry.
"I’m not skinny because I gave in to the industry. When I had a more athletic figure, I was proud of my body because I was an amazing volleyball player and horseback rider," she said. "But after discovering that I have Hashimoto’s, I needed to eat healthy and work out. It was weird as a teenager, dealing with this when all of my friends could eat McDonald’s and it wouldn’t affect them."
"If I could choose, I would have my ass back and I would have the tits I had a few years ago. But, honestly, we can’t look back with regret. I loved my body then, and I love my body now."
The model summed it all up, however, when she concluded: "Three years from now you will look back at a picture from this time period and be like: 'Wow, I was so hot. Why did I feel so bad about myself because of some stupid thing someone said?'"
Amen to that.
