GRACE VICTORY

27, VLOGGER

‘I was 12 when I was first called fat. It stung and, combined with a childhood growing up around drugs and emotional abuse, it was enough to trigger an eating disorder. I’d starve myself; then binge; then throw up. The cycle was addictive.

Despite this, I set up a successful Youtube channel about body image: The Ugly Face Of Beauty (now called Grace F Victory). By 2011, people were telling me I was inspirational. But when the camera wasn’t rolling, I was self-harming and sometimes felt too low to shower.

I felt like a fraud, so I decided to speak out about the body image issues that haunted me. The response made me realise I wasn’t alone.

My audience and regular therapy have been invaluable, and I’m determined to help others. I want to pass on the message that 12-year-old Grace needed to hear: you

are good enough.’