Australian influencer Amelia Bonnici has gone viral by showing what a “normal” body looks like in 2024.
The 22-year-old, who works in a cafe while completing her law degree, has shared videos of her body online.
In a TikTok, she shows how her ankles and lower legs “swell” from standing all day and sometimes look “swollen”.
That clip alone garnered over 700,000 views, and she has over 200,000 likes on the social media platform.
The 22-year-old is passionate about talking about her body and body image in general because she has struggled with it in the past.
Bonnici was diagnosed with lipedema when he was just 17 years old. It is a long-term condition that causes abnormal accumulation of fat in your lower body.
Six years later, she was also diagnosed with endometritis, a painful disease where tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows outside the uterus.
Bonnici said she first became aware that her body was different when she was a teenager and that it was difficult to be comfortable.
“When my body started changing at the age of 13,” she told news.com.au.
“I knew that I was always much bigger in my legs compared to my friends.
“I didn’t understand why at the time, because I was fit and eating well, it led to the development of an eating disorder that lasted four to five years.”
The 22-year-old said that during high school, people would make unwanted “comments” about her body.
“Peers at school commented on how big I was and how much cellulite I had on my legs. As a 15-16-year-old girl, this crushed me,” she explained.
“When I was diagnosed, it was a bittersweet relief. I finally had an answer to why my body is the way it is.â€
“Now I knew that I punished myself for no reason and that now this is a lifelong battle to manage the disease.”
Bonnici said she’s been recovering from surgery for the past 12 months and it’s allowed her to reset with how she’s been treating her body.
“I could barely exercise with debilitating pain. Before that I had been going to the gym for 4 years and really trying to fight this disease,” she said.
“I was still dieting and going through ‘loosing’ and ‘cutting’ phases.
“When I stopped going to the gym, I noticed that my body remained almost the same to my surprise, but my mind was relieved because I was finally done fighting myself and who I was.”
The law student said she still goes through “phases” of feeling like she’s not enough, but overall she’s in a really positive place with her body image.
“I think the biggest turning point was when I realized I was punishing my body and mind for no reason,” she said.
“It was a really big full circle moment because I finally felt proud of my body for putting up with me for so long.”
She explained that she was “nervous” about starting to post about her body online, but is now so glad she did.
“Many women and young girls have thanked me for raising awareness and making them feel more comfortable in their bodies,” she explained.
“Many young women have messaged me with their stories. One girl said she finally felt confident with her body now, which almost made me cry.â€
#teased #bloated #body #proud
Image Source : nypost.com