Shauna Rae has gotten candid about her life as an adult with the body of an eight-year-old.
The 22-year-old TLC star, who is the subject of TLC docuseries I Am Shauna Rae, was diagnosed with brain cancer at six months old. After receiving life-saving chemotherapy, she stopped growing. As a result of this medical dwarfism, Shauna Rae only stands at 3 feet and 10 inches.
E! Online reported that the reality star has faced many difficulties due to her age not matching her appearance. In the docuseries, Shauna Rae details her struggles trying to get a tattoo, buying alcohol, and even dating.
Shauna Rae discusses her health issues at the start of the series, revealing that she weighs just 50 pounds. "I live life trapped in the body of an eight-year-old," she says.
It was Shauna Rae's mother who noticed a lump on the back of her head as a baby, prompting her to take Shauna Rae to the doctor, where it was later discovered that the lump was actually a malignant tumor. Though, it wasn't until she turned five and started kindergarten that Shauna Rae's parents noticed something was wrong.
"They noticed that every kid was significantly taller than me - there's at least a foot difference between me and these other kids," the 22-year-old states.
"That's when they took me back to the children's hospital, and learned that my pituitary gland was very close to dormant. So, all of my hormones - my growth hormones, my sweat hormones, all of that - produces much slower. I got on growth hormones but, unfortunately, the doctor told me I was done growing at 16," Shauna Rae added.
One clip in particular from the series shows the issues Shauna Rae faces when simply going to the beach. "When I think beach I think bathing suits," she says in the episode.
"It's difficult because now that I do have maturity in my chest, I need padding, and no children's swimsuits have padding. The bottoms are even worse - they're uncomfortable somewhere. If they don't work on the bottom, they work on the top, and if they don't work on the top, they work on the bottom," she added.
In a recent podcast episode, Shauna Rae also explained the struggles she has when it comes to sex. "I know sex is a huge topic when it comes to disability and just dwarfism in general, so it is something that is touchy. But it's something that needs to be talked about. I don't think sex should be so taboo as it is in our society," she stated, via E! Online.
She added that, in her experience, sex should be viewed in a positive way as it helps connect people: "At least for me, it was confirmation that I can kind of do whatever I want, because growing up I was told that it might not be a possibility. And when I found the boyfriend that I had and we dated for a couple years and it finally happened, it made me feel like a normal woman."
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