Experience: I have the biggest mouth in the world
As a little girl, I used to pore over the Guinness Book of Records every Christmas. My family and I would spend Christmas Day looking at all the brilliant people who were using their unusual quirks and talents for good – whether that involved raising awareness, making people laugh or spreading the idea that “you are enough as you are”. I was in awe.
Flicking through pages of people with special skills and talents was very inspiring to me. I loved seeing so many people celebrated for their gifts and was hopeful that, one day, I would be too. I grew up wanting to become an entertainer. Before the pandemic, I had a day job in medical sales and spent my evenings showing up to acting and singing auditions or comedy open-mic nights. I was also in a band and sang at weddings.
Many other creatives will understand the hustle. While I have always admired people who love their day jobs, I knew that performing, not medical sales, was my dream job. Though inperson opportunities stalled during the Covid-19 lockdowns, TikTok started to really blow up. I thought it offered a good opportunity to showcase my comedy skills. I started filming and sharing sketches.
A lot of people found my facial expressions and my big mouth really funny, and I was happy I could offer them light relief in a difficult time. My account grew pretty quickly – my videos were short and silly. They seemed to be the fun, easy watch that people were craving.
I had a lot of time to post during lockdown, and I began getting thousands more followers. People started asking me what my mouth measurements were, tagging the Guinness World Records account. By winter that year, Guinness had got in touch with me and confirmed that I was, in fact, the woman with the biggest mouth in the world – it stretches to 6.52cm tall.
My mouth used to make me feel very self-conscious and insecure growing up. “Pitbull” or “frog” were the kind of names I was called when I was younger. When I was trying to find work as an entertainer, people would always tell me I was “too much” or tell me to show “less mouth”. It really hurt.
The title helped me accept and embrace my mouth. I started making more videos of me doing silly things like trying to fit supersized sandwiches in my mouth. I tried it with a huge bean burrito – it just exploded when I tried to cram it all in. From then on, I stuck to foods that weren’t going to fall apart. Pastries are good.
And if you’re wondering whether
I can fit a whole apple in my mouth – yes, I can. I don’t think I’d be winning any competitive eating matches anytime soon, though. That takes a different skill.
The popularity of my online videos has surpassed all my expectations. Some of my videos now reach up to 75m views. I was over the moon when I was able to quit my day job to follow my passion for comedy full-time. That was always my dream and it’s now a reality. My family were constantly saying “this is insane” when I started, but I don’t think anyone was surprised that I stuck at it. They are hugely supportive.
Embracing my big mouth has helped me to be true to myself and to care less about what other people think. People are mainly really supportive and I get lots of messages from people about how I inspire them to be their true selves. I think that when you learn to truly accept yourself, others gravitate towards your confidence. I always think: why live life as a smaller version of yourself ?
I like to embrace my weirdness. Your insecurity can also be your superpower. I made something I always considered odd and ugly about myself into one of the best things about me, and I hope others can see that in themselves too. If I can help people escape the craziness of the world, then I’m happy to do that, one largebite of a sandwich at a time.
• As told to Elizabeth McCafferty Do you have an experience to share? Email experience@theguardian.com
I made something I always considered odd and ugly about myself into one of the best things about me
via a series of “fake” accounts for 13year-olds, said the results were “every parent’s nightmare”. TikTok said the study did not reflect the experience or viewing habits of real-life users of the app.
A TikTok spokesperson said the company aimed to make the app “a place where people can share their true selves, raise awareness for important causes and find community”. Indeed, the EU-backed mental health report flags how TikTok can help people in recovery from eating disorders. The company also announced this month that teenagers joining TikTok would be limited to an hour of use each day, although the restriction can be altered or removed entirely in the app’s settings.
TikTok is also far from the first social media app to be subject to concerns about mental health. Mark
Zuckerberg’s Meta was accused by the whisteblower Frances Haugen in 2021 of failing to address internal research showing the negative impact of its Instagram platform on teen mental health.
That may be the paradox at the heart of TikTok. From its aggressive data collection, to fears it is harming the mental wellbeing of its young users, and even the central importance of the app on youth culture around the world, the app can sometimes feel as American as it comes. But in the only way that matters, it is not – and that could be an unsurmountable hurdle.