Lizzie Velásquez facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Lizzie Velasquez
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Velásquez at the 2017 Texas Book Festival
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Elizabeth Ann Velásquez
March 13, 1989 Austin, Texas, U.S.
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| Alma mater | Texas State University |
| Occupation | Motivational speaker |
| Known for | Public speaking, anti-bullying activism, public appearances, and book authorship |
| Parent(s) | Rita Borja Velásquez Guadalupe Fonsi Velásquez |
Lizzie Velásquez (born March 13, 1989) is an American motivational speaker, activist, writer, and YouTuber. She was born with a very rare condition. It's called Marfanoid–progeroid–lipodystrophy syndrome. This condition means her body cannot store fat or gain weight. Because of her condition, Lizzie faced bullying when she was a child. As a teenager, she experienced cyberbullying online. This difficult experience inspired her to become a motivational speaker.
Lizzie's Early Life
Lizzie Velásquez was born on March 13, 1989, in Austin, Texas. She is the oldest of three children. Her parents are Rita and Guadalupe Velásquez. Lizzie was born four weeks early and weighed less than 3 pounds (1,219 grams).
Lizzie studied at Texas State University until 2012. She majored in communication studies. Lizzie is a Roman Catholic. She has said that her faith has been a strong support for her. She finds comfort in prayer and knowing God is there for her.
About Lizzie's Rare Condition
Lizzie Velásquez has an extremely rare genetic disorder. It was not known before and is not a life-ending condition. Her condition is similar to other conditions, especially progeria. Doctors at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center once thought it might be a type of neonatal progeroid syndrome (NPS). This condition does not affect Lizzie's healthy bones, organs, or teeth.
A key part of Lizzie's rare disorder is that she cannot gain weight. She has never weighed more than 64 pounds (29 kg). She reportedly has almost no body fat. To stay healthy, she needs to eat many small meals and snacks throughout the day. She eats between 5,000 and 8,000 calories daily. Also, Lizzie is blind in her right eye. This eye started to become cloudy when she was four years old. Her left eye also has impaired vision.
Around 2015, scientists discovered more about Lizzie's condition. They found that Lizzie and another woman, Abby Solomon, have changes in their FBN1 gene. This gene makes a hormone called asprosin. The changes in this gene cause a lack of asprosin. This is what causes their conditions. The condition is now specifically called Marfanoid-progeroid-lipodystrophy syndrome. Sometimes it is just called Marfan lipodystrophy syndrome.
Lizzie's Career and Activism
In 2006, when Lizzie was 17, a video on YouTube called her the "World's Ugliest Woman." Since then, Lizzie Velásquez has become a strong voice against bullying. In January 2014, she gave a TEDxAustinWomen Talk. It was titled "How Do YOU Define Yourself." Her YouTube videos have been watched over 54 million times. She is known for her positive attitude. For National Bullying Prevention Month in 2015, she led a social media challenge. This was part of Bystander Revolution's Month of Action.
Lizzie's first book was an autobiography. She wrote it with her mother, Rita. It was published in 2010 in English and Spanish. The book is called Lizzie Beautiful: The Lizzie Velásquez Story. It includes letters her mother wrote to her when she was a child.
Lizzie has also written two books for kids. These books share her personal stories and give advice. Be Beautiful, Be You (2012) tells her journey to find what truly makes us beautiful. It teaches readers to see their own special gifts and blessings. This book is also available in Spanish as Sé bella, sé tú misma (2013). Another book, Choosing Happiness (2014), talks about challenges Lizzie has faced. It explains how she learned to choose happiness even when things were hard. Both books were published by Liguori Publications.
Her book Dare to be Kind was first published in 2017. It talks about how important it is to be kind. This message comes from her own experiences with bullying, both in person and online.
A documentary film about Lizzie is called A Brave Heart: The Lizzie Velásquez Story. It first showed at SXSW on March 14, 2015. The movie was later shown on Lifetime on October 17, 2016. Since April 2017, Lizzie Velásquez has also starred in her own Fullscreen original series called Unzipped.
See Also
In Spanish: Lizzie Velásquez para niños
