A WOMAN has hit back at trolls who claims she’s lying about her age after hundreds of strangers picked apart her appearance online.
Amanda Martin is just 34, but received comments on likening her to someone in their sixties.
One cruel commenter said they’d “eat their hat” if she could prove she’s really 34 while another said she looks 30 years older.
Amanda said the comments “opened up some old wounds” after she was bullied about her looks for much of her life – but has hit back at expectations placed on women, made worse, she believes, by the normalisation of filters, and other cosmetic treatments.
“Personally, I think a lot of our distorted idea of what different ages are supposed to look like comes from advertising, the media and now social media too,” the mum and carer, from Lowestoft, , said.
“We’re constantly surrounded by images of women with incredibly smooth skin and very few visible signs of ageing, and we don’t always know what’s behind those images – whether that’s editing, filters, cosmetic treatments or simply very expensive beauty routines.
“I have absolutely nothing against anyone choosing Botox, fillers or other treatments if that’s what makes them happy, but I do think women can feel under enormous pressure to have them because we’re constantly being sold an unrealistic and often expensive version of beauty.
“We’ve almost reached a point where seeing completely normal things like lines, texture and signs of ageing can surprise people.
“I think we need to see more real faces and remember that getting older isn’t something women should have to hide or apologise for.
“Some of the comments genuinely made me laugh, but I’d be lying if I said they didn’t affect me at all
“I’ve been bullied in one way or another about my appearance for most of my life, so seeing hundreds of strangers picking apart the way I look and questioning whether I’m really 34 did open up some old wounds.
“At first it really hurt because it brought back feelings I thought I’d left behind.
“But putting myself online has also helped me develop a much thicker skin.
“I’ve realised that there will always be somebody with an opinion about how you look, especially on social media, and I don’t want those opinions to stop me doing something that I genuinely love.
“I’m still human and sometimes a comment will get to me, but I’m learning that somebody else’s opinion of my face doesn’t have to become my opinion of myself.”
Amongst the comments was one that asked “what happened to your skin” and said it “isn’t normal” for a 34-year-old.
Another cruel quip asked if 34 was in ‘dog years’, while someone else said ‘more like 64’.
Amanda, who has spoken openly about struggling with body dysmorphia, said she spent much of her life hating the way she looked.
She said she was “incredibly critical” of her appearance for years and struggled to see herself positively.
But in recent years, she has started learning to accept herself – with makeup and content creation becoming an important part of that journey.
Amanda said: “isn’t one thing.
“We’re all beautiful in our own individual way, so why should any of us have to look a certain way, or look a certain age, to be considered beautiful?
“And when you’re making comments about somebody’s appearance on social media, remember there is an actual person with feelings on the other side of that screen.
“Something that takes you five seconds to type could stay with that person for much longer.
“You never really know what somebody has been through or what insecurities they might already be carrying, so if there’s one thing I’d ask people to remember, it’s kindness – always.
“I’m 34, this is what I look like, and I’m learning to genuinely love the person I see rather than spending my life wishing I looked like somebody else.”
She now wants other women and girls to feel able to pursue their ambitions regardless of their age or appearance.
Amanda said she hopes her story will encourage anyone who has held themselves back because of insecurity to finally take the plunge.
She added: “I want other women and girls to realise that they don’t have to look a certain way to be allowed to do something they love.
“Your age, your appearance, your skin, your body or whether you fit somebody else’s idea of beauty shouldn’t be the thing that stops you from going after something you want.
“For a long time I allowed how I felt about my appearance to hold me back, and I don’t want other women and girls to lose years doing the same thing.
“I’d also love to see the beauty industry continue becoming more inclusive.
“Beauty should represent real , appearances, skin types and backgrounds.
“You shouldn’t have to fit one particular image to feel like you belong in the beauty world.
“If somebody reads my story and thinks, ‘Maybe I can do it too’, regardless of what they look like or how old they are, then sharing everything I’ve been through will have been worth it.”
