A Brave Heart (2015) The Lizzie Velasquez Story Full Movie HD

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A Brave Heart (2015) is an inspiring documentary that follows the life of Lizzie Velásquez, a woman born with a rare thing that prevents her from gaining weight. Despite facing years of challenges , Lizzie becomes a motivational speaker and advocate, spreading a message of resilience, positivity, and kindness. This uplifting film highlights the power of courage and determination to overcome obstacles and inspire others.  A Brave Heart 2015, A Brave Heart documentary, Lizzie Velasquez story, inspirational documentaries, motivational documentaries, A Brave Heart full movie, A Brave Heart review, uplifting documentaries 2015, A Brave Heart trailer, Lizzie Velasquez movie, positive life stories, inspiring documentaries, courage and resilience films, A Brave Heart online, motivational speaker documentaries, documentaries about overcoming challenges, heartwarming true stories, A Brave Heart analysis, documentaries on kindness, must watch inspirational films, powerful documentaries 2015, uplifting true stories, A Brave Heart cast, resilience documentaries, motivational life documentaries, Lizzie Velasquez inspiration, positive message documentaries, A Brave Heart plot, courage documentaries, A Brave Heart streaming  A Brave Heart 2015, A Brave Heart documentary, Lizzie Velasquez story, inspirational documentaries, motivational documentaries, A Brave Heart full movie, A Brave Heart review, uplifting documentaries 2015, A Brave Heart trailer, Lizzie Velasquez movie, positive life stories, inspiring documentaries, courage and resilience films, A Brave Heart online, motivational speaker documentaries, documentaries about overcoming challenges, heartwarming true stories, A Brave Heart analysis, documentaries on kindness, must watch inspirational films, powerful documentaries 2015, uplifting true stories, A Brave Heart cast, resilience documentaries, motivational life documentaries, Lizzie Velasquez inspiration, positive message documentaries, A Brave Heart plot, courage documentaries, A Brave Heart streaming

Transcript

00:00:00Transcription by CastingWords

00:00:30CastingWords

00:01:00CastingWords

00:01:29CastingWords

00:01:59CastingWords

00:02:29and I couldn't run that fast or I would get tired really quickly or I would start coughing

00:02:34and I would get frustrated and to avoid it I just stayed sitting there which secluded me even more

00:02:41I would look at everyone and just wish I could be them

00:02:49I would just wish that they could understand me

00:02:59I never thought it was ever possible for me to be accepted

00:03:07and to just think that 20 years later the world knows who I am and it's for something good

00:03:29it was just a normal pregnancy

00:03:36everything was fine every time I went in there was no sign of anything different or wrong

00:03:42I didn't feel different I wasn't sick nothing I was gaining weight and my stomach was growing

00:03:48so everything was meeting where I was supposed to be at each month

00:03:52things were going well during a pregnancy and no big red flags

00:03:57Rita's ultrasound done around 12 weeks had no real indication of problems early on in the pregnancy

00:04:05I was way too early to deliver

00:04:08we were here at the house and we had just spent the day at Silver Park walking

00:04:13and that night I started having contractions

00:04:16I thought I just overdid myself at the park

00:04:20but through the whole night it was just the contractions over and over and over

00:04:23then the scary part started

00:04:25I was a little nervous

00:04:27I remember driving about 6.30 in the morning on the highway

00:04:31still dark going to the hospital

00:04:33silence really other than your pains

00:04:35we went into the emergency room and that's when I was admitted

00:04:39because I was having contractions

00:04:41and I was dilated

00:04:43I remember them saying we're going to get the superman of sonogram

00:04:49and so I remember him sitting there

00:04:52and he was saying he just kind of looked and he says

00:04:54we got to get this baby out tonight

00:04:56the doctors had said they had never seen a child like that

00:05:02and they didn't know exactly what was going on with her

00:05:05Lizzie was small

00:05:09and had the appearance of size 4 skin

00:05:15around a size 2 baby

00:05:17but Lizzie did not have a specific chromosomal disorder

00:05:22and I can't think of any baby that has essentially had no diagnosis

00:05:29when I woke up Lupe was next to me

00:05:34and he started telling me

00:05:36she's very small

00:05:37she's in ICU

00:05:40and we don't know what's going to happen

00:05:43so

00:05:44the doctors took a Polaroid picture of me

00:05:50and showed it to mom

00:05:51because they thought she was going to be too scared to see me in person

00:05:55I had a giant forehead

00:06:04and I still do

00:06:05if I had bangs

00:06:06I'd do the side bang

00:06:07when I was a baby too

00:06:08this picture makes me happy

00:06:16I loved her

00:06:22I was just excited

00:06:23it didn't matter

00:06:24I mean to me

00:06:25she was already Lizzie

00:06:26she was our daughter

00:06:27she's tiny

00:06:28it doesn't matter

00:06:29she's our baby

00:06:30and there was never a sense of

00:06:33I can't believe this is happening to us

00:06:35or why did this happen to us

00:06:36it's just like

00:06:37I can't wait to get her home

00:06:38oh two pounds

00:06:43ten ounces

00:06:43I was a real big baby

00:06:46that's funny

00:06:48did they write this

00:06:49when I wasn't named yet

00:06:51since it says

00:06:52baby girl Velasquez

00:06:53what if that's what my parents named me

00:06:57baby girl

00:06:59but it's funny to think

00:07:04like this little card

00:07:05is what like started

00:07:06this is how I started

00:07:10through this card

00:07:11here she comes

00:07:12Elizabeth

00:07:16hi honey

00:07:18basically all we had known

00:07:20all my life

00:07:21was that I had a syndrome

00:07:22where I can't gain weight

00:07:24hi Lizzie

00:07:26she's too busy

00:07:29hi Lizzie

00:07:29it's delicious

00:07:31the doctor's main focus

00:07:33was getting weight onto her

00:07:35and it was always

00:07:36a dietitian

00:07:37a nutritionist

00:07:38coming in

00:07:39saying she needs to drink

00:07:40these shakes

00:07:41add this to her food

00:07:42you know

00:07:43we went through that whole thing

00:07:44with them

00:07:45and she still wouldn't gain weight

00:07:46Elizabeth

00:07:52I would get scared

00:07:54but we tried not to show her

00:07:56that we were scared

00:07:57and a lot of it was

00:07:59when she would be put in the hospital

00:08:00for different surgeries

00:08:01growing up

00:08:03there was always

00:08:05something wrong with me

00:08:06I was in and out

00:08:08of the hospitals

00:08:08it was one thing

00:08:10after the next

00:08:11I used to be able

00:08:13to count how many surgeries

00:08:14I had on one hand

00:08:16appendix

00:08:18intestines

00:08:19foot surgery

00:08:20eye surgery

00:08:21ear surgery

00:08:23studies

00:08:24panels

00:08:25MRIs

00:08:26bone density scans

00:08:28DEXA scans

00:08:29of my whole body

00:08:30it's like a whole other language

00:08:32a lot of blood work

00:08:33tests

00:08:34a lot of

00:08:35having to start IVs

00:08:37over and over and over

00:08:38because my veins collapse

00:08:39I had total reconstruction

00:08:42on my foot

00:08:43because all of these toes

00:08:44were stuck

00:08:45like this

00:08:47so my doctor

00:08:48put metal plates

00:08:49back here

00:08:50he cut

00:08:51whatever this is called

00:08:52back here

00:08:53and I had pins

00:08:55that stuck

00:08:56out of every toe

00:08:57to keep them straight

00:08:59and we went back

00:09:00into the doctor

00:09:01and he pulled out

00:09:02the pins

00:09:03from my toes

00:09:04one by one

00:09:05to this day

00:09:08I'm still being tested

00:09:09until they find

00:09:12a diagnosis

00:09:12I have to keep going

00:09:14I would always

00:09:17convince myself

00:09:18one more thing

00:09:19is done

00:09:19it sucked

00:09:20but now we're

00:09:22going to do

00:09:22something fun

00:09:23just get through it

00:09:31I wanted to make

00:09:37this video today

00:09:38to speak out

00:09:38about an issue

00:09:39that has gotten

00:09:40completely out of control

00:09:41bullying

00:09:42and no

00:09:44it's not something new

00:09:45that we're just now

00:09:45learning about

00:09:46our grandparents

00:09:47our parents

00:09:48our friends

00:09:49our siblings

00:09:50even the cool kids

00:09:51who you think

00:09:52have the perfect life

00:09:53they've been bullied too

00:09:54that's not the same

00:10:04that was my classroom

00:10:09right there

00:10:10you know every child

00:10:15comes in with their parents

00:10:16when Lizzie first

00:10:17entered my classroom

00:10:18of course she was early

00:10:20because her dad

00:10:20was also a teacher

00:10:21so Rita walked her in

00:10:23and I remember that

00:10:25you know

00:10:25she went to find her desk

00:10:26and as the class

00:10:28starts to fill up

00:10:29other kids came in

00:10:30and would stare at her

00:10:32at the time

00:10:34I thought everyone

00:10:34looked like me

00:10:35I couldn't recognize

00:10:37or tell that

00:10:38they didn't look like me

00:10:40I was most worried

00:10:43about her making friends

00:10:44if people were going

00:10:44to be mean to her

00:10:45or not want to play

00:10:47with her

00:10:48or just asking her

00:10:50a lot of questions

00:10:51that she's young

00:10:52and probably can't answer

00:10:53like why you look like that

00:10:55or what's wrong with you

00:10:55no one's ever really

00:10:58asked her that

00:10:59and I thought

00:10:59we're not there

00:11:00I remember

00:11:02going up to

00:11:04groups of kids

00:11:05that were playing

00:11:05and they would just

00:11:06walk away

00:11:08and not

00:11:09like as if I wasn't there

00:11:10you know me as a teacher

00:11:12and if I'd be walking

00:11:14down the hall

00:11:15with my class

00:11:16and we'd happen to

00:11:17their walk

00:11:18her class was walking down

00:11:19I'd be watching her

00:11:21just to kind of see

00:11:22when other kids

00:11:23would be transitioning

00:11:24all of them would be

00:11:25like poking

00:11:26and looking

00:11:26and talking

00:11:27and you know

00:11:28my choices are

00:11:29you go tell them

00:11:30stop

00:11:30you know

00:11:31she's just like you

00:11:31or I mean

00:11:32I had to be professional

00:11:33and I couldn't say anything

00:11:35and in my mind

00:11:36I'm just

00:11:36it's breaking my heart

00:11:38they weren't actually

00:11:40saying something

00:11:41so I couldn't

00:11:42understand them

00:11:43I was just going off

00:11:44of their stare

00:11:45or their

00:11:45I could see their mouth

00:11:47moving and I couldn't

00:11:48hear them

00:11:48or I could see them

00:11:50pointing and I didn't know

00:11:51are they pointing at me

00:11:52or are they not

00:11:52and I think that was

00:11:53always the worst

00:11:54because it was when

00:11:56I was making up

00:11:58the thoughts

00:11:59in my own head

00:11:59because they weren't

00:12:01actually saying it

00:12:02to my face

00:12:03I'm scared to open this

00:12:07I'm sad when somebody

00:12:09stares at me

00:12:11because I'm so

00:12:12I don't like that word

00:12:14I hate that word

00:12:17I'm sad when somebody

00:12:19stares at me

00:12:19because I'm so skinny

00:12:20and when some of my friends

00:12:22are not my friends

00:12:23and when people

00:12:24and when people

00:12:27make me mad

00:12:28my dad and I

00:12:33started having a routine

00:12:34as I got older

00:12:35to where

00:12:36on the first day of school

00:12:37he would go to my classroom

00:12:38and we would stand

00:12:40in front of the class

00:12:40and he'd introduce me

00:12:42and tell them about my syndrome

00:12:43and that started helping

00:12:45a whole lot

00:12:46and making a huge difference

00:12:47with the kids

00:12:48that were in my class

00:12:49who saw me every day

00:12:50but as soon as we walked

00:12:52out of the classroom doors

00:12:53it was back to

00:12:55the stairs

00:12:56and the points

00:12:57and the whispers

00:12:57and so I did it

00:12:59for a couple of years

00:13:00because kindergarten

00:13:00was real hard

00:13:01as a start

00:13:02second grade

00:13:03she told me

00:13:03daddy you don't have

00:13:04to do that anymore

00:13:05I can take care of it

00:13:07if I knew something

00:13:09was going on

00:13:09I could tell the teacher

00:13:10and just say

00:13:11a little heads up

00:13:12I don't want to get

00:13:12anyone in trouble

00:13:13but how can we make

00:13:14it a teaching moment

00:13:15middle school

00:13:16I couldn't do that

00:13:17and I was sick

00:13:19and almost throwing up

00:13:20on the first day of school

00:13:21because I couldn't be there

00:13:23and I was at my own school

00:13:24and here she was

00:13:24going on to middle school

00:13:25and I think I called Rita

00:13:28like every 30 minutes

00:13:29have you heard anything

00:13:30have they called from school

00:13:31have you heard anything

00:13:31I had an administrator

00:13:35come in

00:13:35and tell me that

00:13:36I was going to receive

00:13:38a student

00:13:38who had some special needs

00:13:40I was not told

00:13:42of anything other than

00:13:43she was visually impaired

00:13:44and so

00:13:45when she walked

00:13:46into my classroom

00:13:47I immediately

00:13:48noticed the reaction

00:13:50of others

00:13:51making weird faces

00:13:53you could just see

00:13:54the questions

00:13:55going on in their heads

00:13:56and so

00:13:57Lizzie being as special

00:13:58as she is

00:13:59walked right in

00:14:01walked right up to me

00:14:03and said

00:14:04my name is Lizzie

00:14:05I can't take credit

00:14:06for that though

00:14:07I have to credit

00:14:07my parents for that

00:14:08because it wasn't

00:14:09my idea

00:14:10at all

00:14:11I thought it was

00:14:11the worst idea ever

00:14:12to stand in front

00:14:14of the classroom

00:14:14and introduce myself

00:14:16because again

00:14:17that would be something

00:14:17that would be

00:14:18making me stand out

00:14:19as different

00:14:20which is weird now

00:14:21because it's something

00:14:22that I fully embrace

00:14:23after a while

00:14:24there was a line

00:14:25to sit by Lizzie

00:14:26people wanted to be

00:14:28next to Lizzie

00:14:28Lizzie began to open up

00:14:30she became more

00:14:32of who she is today

00:14:33so as tough as middle school

00:14:34was for her

00:14:36I think it really

00:14:37was a turning point

00:14:39cheerleading came about

00:14:47in seventh grade

00:14:48where she wanted

00:14:49to try out

00:14:50and I was

00:14:51no

00:14:52it's not gonna work

00:14:53Lizzie

00:14:53you can't do

00:14:53any of the stunts

00:14:54you can't do this

00:14:55you can't do that

00:14:55she just was

00:14:56questioning me

00:14:57and saying

00:14:59do you think

00:14:59it's the right thing

00:15:00and that frustrated me

00:15:01because I was like

00:15:03I'm gonna do it

00:15:04stop asking me questions

00:15:05I know what I'm doing

00:15:06I know what I'm signing up for

00:15:07I got her everything she needed and she practiced outside in the backyard constantly and I just

00:15:14knew she wasn't gonna make it they were gonna pick her then I finally said she's gonna have

00:15:19to face not getting what she wants all the time I tried out without any of my friends so I didn't

00:15:29know anyone going in what am I doing I'm terrified but I did it I look back now and everyone made it

00:15:42but whatever I felt like I accomplished something

00:15:44before we begin tonight I would like to thank everyone for coming and help me fight

00:15:52it was two years after my sweet 15 and around that time was the best time because I had all my

00:16:13friends around me all my family around me I was on the high road when I was 17 everything changed

00:16:22it was afternoon and I was supposed to be doing homework and I decided to go look for music

00:16:33on YouTube instead and that's when I found it

00:16:37I don't even know why I clicked on it but I did and

00:16:46my heart dropped my stomach just seeing my face

00:16:53and then after I saw the picture then I looked at the title then I looked at the views then I looked

00:17:02at the comments I didn't cry while I was reading them I didn't cry when I saw the title I didn't cry

00:17:08when I saw four million views I cried when I looked to my right my mom saw it and that's when I lost it

00:17:16Rita called and was just crying and she said you have to come

00:17:24there's something really ugly on the internet and they're calling her the ugliest woman in the world

00:17:31I'm like how can people be like that I'm like you don't even know the person you're talking about

00:17:40I wanted to just protect her and defend her and you know get rid of it for her and take care of it

00:17:50I'd say I read hundreds of comments I just went page by page by page by page

00:17:57you would think one would stop reading them after the first one or two but I didn't I just read all of them

00:18:05calling me a monster or asking why my parents didn't abort me

00:18:11I wish you would just pick up a gun and in my life

00:18:15I've been born

00:18:16I'm never going to find anything

00:18:17why didn't your parents abort you

00:18:18why are you still blind

00:18:20because other people see your face in public and you're going to go blind

00:18:23I didn't talk to anybody about it

00:18:33I didn't tell my friends I found it I didn't tell anyone

00:18:35and I'm pretty sure I cried myself to sleep a few nights after that

00:18:40just being so shocked that that actually happened

00:18:46she goes mom they're saying such mean things

00:18:48so I made her shut it

00:18:50I said you need to get out and not read that anymore

00:18:54but she would not get off the floor

00:18:57she was so so hurt and so sad

00:19:00we tried taking it down and I think he got an alert

00:19:05that it was flagged or that someone was trying to take it down

00:19:09and then he contacted me

00:19:11the subject had in all capital letters

00:19:16I won't give up

00:19:17are you happy now that my video has been removed

00:19:21I'll reload it again and again and again

00:19:24it's just information

00:19:27that's when I went from being sad to being really really angry

00:19:33when they bully Lizzie

00:19:36they're also bullying our family

00:19:38because we have to watch Lizzie go through the pain

00:19:39and you can say that about every family that has a child that's getting bullied

00:19:42I want to just ask those people what is wrong with your life

00:19:47that you have to sit here and search through videos like this

00:19:51and make this ugly comment

00:19:53you called me the world's ugliest woman to be hateful

00:19:59and I was going to message him back

00:20:02but my dad right away was like you have to forgive him

00:20:05how in the world could I forgive this person

00:20:09how in the world can I forgive the people who told me to kill myself

00:20:13and I didn't ever think I would see the reason for it

00:20:16how in the world can I forgive him

00:20:20I'm gonna Irish

00:20:21if I had a little help

00:20:22and I don't do that

00:20:23I would see the truth

00:20:25no matter what If I was wrong

00:20:26I'm gonna give up

00:20:26you saw a little child

00:20:27and I'm gonna lose

00:20:28and whenever I walk over

00:20:29that little society

00:20:32I wanna do it

00:20:34no matter what

00:20:35I don't expect

00:20:38I'm gonna lose

00:20:39I'm gonna have a little Man

00:20:42and I don't know

00:20:43to who's wrong

00:20:44I started my YouTube channel a few years after finding the bad video and in

00:21:14my mind having control of my own channel being able to put out what I want was the best way that I could show people that they're not holding me back it was the quickest way that I could do it it took many years for me to really realize that this is what I want to keep doing it was just a side hobby at the beginning and the numbers didn't matter to me my content is what mattered to me it has become so easy for people to sit behind their computers and

00:21:44send hate to other people when in reality all of us could kind of use that easy route and sit behind our computers and send out love and positivity

00:21:55I started my channel as a response to being bullied I don't block anybody I do it for the bullies too as my dad always says they might be going through something worse than what I'm going through

00:22:08it took a while to get into a majority of the comments being nice but over time I felt comfortable enough to be able to leave the comments and comfortable enough with myself and strong enough with myself to know that if I read something bad I was going to let it roll off my shoulders

00:22:25My plan is to work as hard as my little body will work with me so that I can help make this amazing incredible place that we call the internet a happier more supportive and more positive community for all of us to hang out

00:22:45and I started realizing that the majority of the comments started being a whole lot positive and very little negative there are some youtubers that have a specific group that they do beauty bloggers daily bloggers I'm all of the above

00:23:01listen this is gonna be real talk if I wear high heels out I look like a newborn deer learning how to walk so today's recipe is going to be a recipe for curing a bad day

00:23:15yay yay first question is do you have a boyfriend

00:23:21I guess I'm not gonna tell you

00:23:25when I told my parents I wanted to write a book my dad was like oh that's so nice but you should probably have a boyfriend

00:23:29oh that's so nice but you should probably have a backup plan and the first thing I told him was I'm not dedicating the first book to you

00:23:35I'm happy that you guys are getting to know me as me not me as the ugliest girl in the world

00:23:43bye

00:23:44whatever I feel like filming or talking about when I press record is what I put up on my channel

00:23:51okay we're gonna introduce you to my youtube people

00:23:57sit right there

00:23:59okay I need to make I need to make it look pretty

00:24:03behind you

00:24:09you've never seen me do this have you

00:24:11nope

00:24:12put it all together

00:24:13mm-mm

00:24:14you're in for a real treat

00:24:15daddy-o

00:24:16you gonna center it

00:24:18this is gonna become an argument

00:24:20don't

00:24:22no you have to look at the camera

00:24:24okay ready

00:24:25dad

00:24:26don't look at me

00:24:27look at the lens

00:24:28not and don't look at yourself

00:24:29I need to listen to you ask questions

00:24:31I like to make eye contact

00:24:32we're doing

00:24:33we're doing

00:24:34I have to start

00:24:35you're looking at me look over there

00:24:36it's so difficult

00:24:37I have to start the video

00:24:39so to start it you have to look at the lens

00:24:41okay

00:24:42don't look at me

00:24:43do you want

00:24:45why don't you open it the way I open it

00:24:47just say

00:24:48hey everyone

00:24:49say that

00:24:50that's what I say

00:24:51say hi everyone

00:24:52hi everyone

00:24:53oh my god

00:24:54there

00:24:55okay

00:24:56I love making you

00:24:57okay

00:24:58so for today's video

00:24:59I wanted to introduce

00:25:00all of you

00:25:02to my

00:25:03dad

00:25:04okay

00:25:05stop spinning

00:25:06stop spinning

00:25:08stop spinning

00:25:09why do you have a spinning chair

00:25:10if you don't know when to spin

00:25:11go

00:25:12you're going to make it nauseous

00:25:13because you're spinning so much

00:25:14sorry

00:25:15I like it like that

00:25:16okay

00:25:17so come on

00:25:18let's dance

00:25:19so we like to dance together

00:25:21okay I want to say some things about my good old dad

00:25:24he's all about social media

00:25:26Facebook

00:25:27oh yeah

00:25:28you love Facebook don't you

00:25:29yeah I do love Facebook

00:25:30I like everything

00:25:32he likes everything

00:25:33and he likes to actually say

00:25:35that he's liking everything

00:25:37I like it

00:25:38I liked it

00:25:39I liked it

00:25:40I liked it

00:25:41what else do you want to say

00:25:42I have five Twitter accounts

00:25:44he does

00:25:45he has five

00:25:46because he keeps forgetting

00:25:47because I lost the password so

00:25:48have you never tried clicking

00:25:49forgot password

00:25:51no because then I asked you for the email

00:25:53and I don't know what one I put in there

00:25:54it was nice joining you today

00:25:56so I think we should do

00:25:58an interview with mom

00:26:00and all the things that she gets mad at me about

00:26:03ew

00:26:04that would be good right

00:26:05that would be a long one

00:26:06we'll need some extra time for that one

00:26:07yeah

00:26:08okay

00:26:09we're gonna wrap this up

00:26:10at the end of every video

00:26:11I have to tell them to write something in the comments

00:26:13mhm

00:26:14so what do you want them to write in the comments

00:26:15uh

00:26:16you pick a song you want me to dance to

00:26:19but it has to be a beat

00:26:21that's a good one

00:26:22I prefer like

00:26:23wrap it like it's hot

00:26:24or talk dirty to me

00:26:26or

00:26:27baby got bad

00:26:28so

00:26:29put in the comments below

00:26:30what song you want

00:26:31our family of five to dance to

00:26:32and we'll dance to it

00:26:33mhm

00:26:34and thanks for meeting my dad

00:26:35thank you

00:26:36thank you

00:26:37thank you

00:26:38thank you

00:26:39for one

00:26:40stop spinning

00:26:41okay

00:26:42you wanna count to three and say bye

00:26:43mhm

00:26:44yeah it's gonna take another two

00:26:45okay ready

00:26:46wait at three

00:26:47right

00:26:48yes

00:26:49okay go

00:26:50okay one two three

00:26:51bye

00:26:52bye

00:26:53bye

00:26:54i'm gonna go ahead and start my own youtube channel

00:26:58the youtube channel built my confidence

00:27:01i noticed that people were starting to listen

00:27:04then i got a call that put me on a new kind of stage

00:27:08i'm in a really really good mood right now

00:27:12because i just finished my rehearsal for my big ted talk

00:27:15and i'm excited and at least you got to go with me say hi

00:27:18hi

00:27:19i can't say anything right now about what's gonna happen but let me tell you i'm excited

00:27:23look how pumped i am this is me being pumped i'm so happy

00:27:28hello i'm america carrera and i'm so sorry to not be there in person

00:27:33but i didn't want to miss out on this opportunity to introduce to you a very special person

00:27:39i was touched by her remarkable story and i am inspired by her endless courage

00:27:45please join me in welcoming lizzie velasquez

00:27:48my life was put into my hands just like your lives are put into yours

00:27:56you are the person in the front seat of your car

00:27:59you are the one who decides whether your car goes down a bad path or a good path

00:28:05you are the one that decides what defines you

00:28:09for so long i thought what defined me was my outer appearance

00:28:14going to middle school i hated when i would wake up in the morning and i was looking in the mirror getting ready and thinking

00:28:20can i just scrub this syndrome off

00:28:23it would make my life so much easier if i could just scrub it off

00:28:27but then i started realizing

00:28:30am i going to let the people who call me a monster define me

00:28:34am i going to let the people who said kill it with fire define me

00:28:38no

00:28:40i'm going to let my goals and my success and my accomplishments be the things that define me

00:28:46not my outer appearance

00:28:49the best way that i could get back at all those people who made fun of me

00:28:54who teased me

00:28:55who called me ugly

00:28:57who called me a monster

00:28:58was to make myself better

00:29:00and to show them you know what

00:29:02tell me those negative things

00:29:04i'm going to turn them around

00:29:06and i'm going to use them as a ladder to climb up to my goals

00:29:09use that negativity that you have in your life to make yourself better

00:29:14because i guarantee you

00:29:17you will win

00:29:21i want you to leave here

00:29:23but remember

00:29:25brave starts here

00:29:27thank you

00:29:32i'm not sure what it was about the ted talk and what i said in it but the energy in the room was different

00:29:39there was something special brewing but i didn't think that it was with me

00:29:43i thought it was just everyone that was there

00:29:46it absolutely changed everything

00:29:50in her first television interview since her incredibly moving ted talk please welcome lizzie valeskis

00:29:53almost five million people have watched it what is the response been

00:29:56i felt for about a week everyday

00:29:59In her first television interview since her incredibly moving TED Talk, please welcome Lizzie Valeskis.

00:30:18Almost five million people have watched it. What has the response been?

00:30:22I felt for about a week every day that I was dreaming.

00:30:29For many years I compared myself to absolutely everyone I saw.

00:30:34Know that you are meant to be in this world for a reason.

00:30:38Know that you have the power to not only help yourself and those around you,

00:30:42but potentially people around the world.

00:30:45I knew I had struggles, but I was able to make the best of it,

00:30:50and you absolutely could do the exact same thing.

00:30:59I just barely watched your video yesterday!

00:31:02Nice to meet you!

00:31:04Hi! Nice to meet you!

00:31:06Thank you so much!

00:31:08I just barely watched your video yesterday!

00:31:14Yeah!

00:31:14Nice to meet you!

00:31:16Nice to meet you!

00:31:16Welcome in!

00:31:18Hi! Nice to meet you!

00:31:20Thank you so much!

00:31:22Thank you so much!

00:31:27Remember knockin' a cross途 can have you.

00:31:27Have fun!

00:31:30Finally mine's not clear how to expand

00:31:32a circle before your breath.

00:31:33Look what you missed!

00:31:39Hi!

00:31:46Nice to meet you!

00:31:47I think it was very inspiring, I really appreciate it, it was very good.

00:32:02Thank you, it's so amazing.

00:32:06And actually it's really coffee, and you just use different intensities of the coffee to

00:32:12do the different shades.

00:32:14Thank you so much, I'm so happy to meet you.

00:32:26Don't let the negativity hold you back.

00:32:30Be yourself no matter what, embrace who you are.

00:32:44When you grow up, you know that there's so many different cultures and languages, but it's

00:33:02until you see it, and you hear it, and you smell it, and you're around it, you appreciate it more.

00:33:20I think I'm just off-struck by all of it.

00:33:23True, real beauty shines from within, and no one shines brighter than our next guest.

00:33:28She did a TED Talk that knocked me out.

00:33:30It made me stand up and cheer, and so I say please welcome Lizzie Velasquez.

00:33:35Hey girl!

00:33:36I have a choice.

00:33:39I can either sit here and sink down to their level, or I can fight back with my accomplishments

00:33:46and making myself better, and I've kind of decided to do that.

00:33:50And it clicked in my mind that even though the people who I was talking to don't have my

00:33:55syndrome, we can somehow relate.

00:33:57And in that moment, I had never felt more confident in my own skin, and I knew this is my purpose.

00:34:03This is what I meant to do for the rest of my life, because I like to think that I'm not

00:34:07only telling my story, I'm telling everyone's story.

00:34:27I'm telling you what I meant to do for the rest of my life.

00:34:33For so long, my face has been synonymous as a victim of bullying.

00:34:36But now, I'm ready to be synonymous with bullying in a new way.

00:34:40As an activist with a loud voice to make it better.

00:34:42With that, I'm going to Washington D.C. in hopes I can lobby for the Safe Schools Improvement Act.

00:34:48My voice isn't the only one that needs to be heard, because it's going to take all of ours.

00:34:53So let's be heard together.

00:34:55Lizzie?

00:34:59Yes.

00:35:00Hi, it's Tina Meyer. How are you?

00:35:02Hi, Tina. I absolutely have to tell you how excited I am to talk to you.

00:35:07I know, I sent you that email, and I can't even put into words how much I admire what you're doing.

00:35:13So I'm really, really, really appreciative for you working with us.

00:35:19Oh, well, thank you again. I think what you're doing is amazing.

00:35:22We had watched your TED Talks, and we're just so impressed. And I think what you're doing is amazing.

00:35:29Hearing from your experience is something that's really, really helping me.

00:35:33And I think one of my biggest questions is as I think about doing all these things, and of course, it's something that I really want to do, but at the same time, it can be intimidating.

00:35:45And I've always been, I've always ran away from conflict or controversy. Do you have any advice?

00:35:54You know, I think in the beginning, after Megan passed away, it was more of, I just wanted justice. I wanted something to be done.

00:36:04And there was a law in this place, and everybody wanted to just say, this happened, I'm really sorry, it's horrible, but let's move on to the point.

00:36:12Megan was born on November 6th of 1992. She had two huge dimples, brown curly hair, just adorable. And Megan was this girl that could be really goofy and laugh a lot. But then she also was different than the other kids.

00:36:41In kindergarten, she would come home and say, mom, my legs are bigger than the other girls' legs. Or mom, they say I'm a giant, because she was taller. Or mom, you know, they don't want me to sit next to them, they said I'll crush them.

00:36:55As a mom, I would always say, honey, you're beautiful. From the inside and out, we're all different. But the older that she got, I could definitely see more of the struggles of trying to fit in and trying to be a part of what she thought everybody else was.

00:37:08Megan had switched from 7th grade to 8th grade to a new school because she was going through just horrendous bullying. And going into this new 8th grade, she was feeling better about herself and she started the volleyball team and making friends.

00:37:22So she was going to be turning 14. And she came home one day from school and said, mom, can I have a MySpace, please? And I was like, Meg, honey, no, sexual predators, no way. I was one of those crazy moms. And she's like, mom, please, everybody's got it, please. So I let her have a MySpace, but I had rules.

00:37:44She was befriended by this boy by the name of Josh Evans. So I said, okay, Meg, I will let you at him. But anything negative, anything sexual, he's deleted immediately.

00:37:56So Megan and Josh started talking. Josh told Megan she had a beautiful smile and Megan thought he was cute. And they talked back and forth and liked each other.

00:38:06It was a Sunday, October 15th, 2006. She said, mom, can I get into MySpace? So I signed her on. And when she saw this message, it was from Josh Evans. No one likes you. No one wants to be friends with you.

00:38:20Megan was like, what are you talking about? Who's saying this? Where are you getting this from? Now Josh got two other girls involved. And these messages that went back and forth were not just Megan, we don't like you. Megan, you're not very nice.

00:38:33Those escalated very quickly to Megan Myers, a fat ass, Megan Myers, a whore, all of these things. She took off running upstairs to her room. It was probably 20 minutes went by. And I just stopped in mid sentence and had this horrible feeling. It was like, all I heard was, it was complete silence. And I took off running upstairs to Megan's room. I opened the door and I found her hanging in her closet.

00:39:00It was like this whole entire feeling of like, this is it. I mean, there's no more chance. There's nothing. And she was gone. And I miss her every single minute of her day.

00:39:30I feel like I'm growing into this big role in front of so many. But at the end of the day, to me, it's just about helping one person at a time.

00:39:45Hi.

00:39:46Oh my gosh, I have read so much about you. Really?

00:39:50I've seen so much about you. It's an honor to teach you right now.

00:39:52How cool. It's so nice. Can I give you a hug?

00:39:53Yes.

00:39:54It's so nice to meet you.

00:39:55Oh my God.

00:39:56Your inspiration.

00:39:57Thank you so much.

00:39:58Look how cool these colors are. That's exciting.

00:40:02Can you say hi to her?

00:40:04No.

00:40:05That's okay.

00:40:06Her hair is so pretty.

00:40:08Hi. How cool. What a cool room.

00:40:10I saw you downstairs.

00:40:11Hi.

00:40:12Nice to meet you.

00:40:13Nice to meet you.

00:40:14Hi.

00:40:15Nice to meet you.

00:40:16He has a genetic blood issue called Factor V. It basically just gives him more of a risk for blood clotting.

00:40:24You know, as he gets older and has to advocate for himself, he needs to know.

00:40:28You know, we're in the same boat. My parents would do everything for me and do all the appointments for me.

00:40:34But now, I'm having to do it and ask my own questions at doctor's appointments and do all that stuff.

00:40:40So, it's good that you're starting to do it.

00:40:42It must feel good to start getting some answers.

00:40:45It's Princess.

00:40:46Hi.

00:40:47Nice to meet you.

00:40:49How are you?

00:40:50Hi.

00:40:51Nice to meet you.

00:40:52Hi.

00:40:53How are you?

00:40:54Can I sit here?

00:40:55Yes, please.

00:40:56It's so nice and comfortable.

00:40:58You have the coolest name.

00:41:00You, like, irradiate happiness.

00:41:02Like, I feel it.

00:41:04It's nice.

00:41:05You continue on.

00:41:06I wish you well and all your endeavors.

00:41:08Thank you so much.

00:41:09Yeah.

00:41:10Thank you so much.

00:41:11I know some days it can seem frustrating.

00:41:12Yes, yes.

00:41:13Like, ugh.

00:41:14Yes.

00:41:15But, it's a new day.

00:41:16That's right.

00:41:17God, keep going.

00:41:18That's right.

00:41:19The sun will come up again.

00:41:21I have sickle cell pneumonia and I was born with it.

00:41:26Then, I had two strokes.

00:41:29That was, like, horrible.

00:41:31Then, one when I was five, I had a repeat stroke at five.

00:41:34Then, I had brain surgery.

00:41:36I'm totally healthy.

00:41:38That is amazing.

00:41:40Yes.

00:41:41I'm so amazed by you.

00:41:43That's so inspiring.

00:41:45Like, you're so strong.

00:41:48We've been trying to solve the mystery around my health for a long, long time now.

00:42:03To me, it's just not as important anymore.

00:42:07But, it is important to the people I care about.

00:42:13Dr. Chopra and Houston said that he found, basically, my diagnosis.

00:42:19And, he's going to sit down with me and mom and dad and Dr. Cortez.

00:42:24And, after we find out, everything's going to change.

00:42:28You wouldn't be the undiagnosed syndrome?

00:42:30No.

00:42:31You'd have one?

00:42:32I won't be, like, one of three.

00:42:33Okay.

00:42:34I'll be one of whatever he tells us.

00:42:35Whatever they find.

00:42:36It's not going to change who I am.

00:42:37It's not going to change what I do.

00:42:39It's just...

00:42:40It's going to be different to you.

00:42:41But, to us, nothing's changing except you're just putting a name to it.

00:42:45You know?

00:42:46Yeah.

00:42:47I know, but...

00:42:48When you don't think you'll ever have a name for something for, like...

00:42:5225 years.

00:42:54And then you get a phone call that's like, now you have one.

00:42:58Which would be a good feeling, though.

00:43:00After all those tests.

00:43:02After all the blood work.

00:43:04After all the doctor visits.

00:43:06Do you think it might be something where, like, they tell us and then...

00:43:10He says, this could...

00:43:13This could happen.

00:43:14Do you want to know what could happen?

00:43:16Do I want to know or do I not want to know?

00:43:19I don't want you to live your life knowing that certain things will happen to you.

00:43:23Like, if you get there and you feel like you want to know what's going to happen, then do it.

00:43:27Yeah.

00:43:28I'm just...

00:43:29I'm not saying don't do it.

00:43:31I'm saying whatever you feel comfortable with at that time.

00:43:34Like, don't make your mind up now.

00:43:37It's for real this time.

00:43:40Dr. Chopra called.

00:43:41He is the doctor that was doing some genetics testing on Lizzie.

00:43:42Didn't really specifically go into everything.

00:43:43So we're going to be driving over there to see what he has to talk to us about.

00:43:44All right.

00:43:45Little young lady.

00:43:46Let me get the booster seat.

00:43:47Stop.

00:43:48So right now, it's just a matter of waiting to see what's going to happen.

00:43:49Have a safe trip.

00:43:50Okay.

00:43:51So, hello, you're going to text me today and she said good luck today.

00:43:53Remember that whatever happens doesn't change who you are in any way.

00:44:04You're still Lizzie no matter what.

00:44:05We're all in this together.

00:44:06Love you.

00:44:07That's great.

00:44:08I love you.

00:44:09Come on.

00:44:10I love you.

00:44:11I love you.

00:44:12I love you.

00:44:13I love you.

00:44:14I love you.

00:44:15I love you.

00:44:16I love you.

00:44:17I love you.

00:44:18I love you.

00:44:19I love you.

00:44:20A lot of things are going through my mind, at least, wondering what it could possibly be and what it means for the rest of her life.

00:44:31So what do you think?

00:44:33About what?

00:44:34About what they might say.

00:44:38I don't know.

00:44:40I've just been dreading this for so long, I just want to get it over with.

00:44:44And I want to know, if he does have a diagnosis, does that mean I'm done doing tests?

00:44:53Are you getting teary-eyed?

00:44:54Yeah.

00:44:55Why?

00:45:00Because you want to know something?

00:45:02Because you didn't think this day would come.

00:45:04Both.

00:45:06Are they happy tears or sad tears?

00:45:09It's worried.

00:45:10The scariest is finding out what is a lifespan.

00:45:14Just the meaning behind not being undiagnosed is scary.

00:45:24And until I hear it for myself, I can't say if it'll change my life or not.

00:45:30I would like to say it won't.

00:45:32It's not going to change who I am.

00:45:34It's not going to change my personality.

00:45:36It's not going to change my values.

00:45:39But at the same time, I can't put into words what it's like personally.

00:45:46Just to know.

00:45:47Hi, good to see you.

00:45:53It's been a while.

00:45:53I know.

00:45:54How are you?

00:45:54Good.

00:45:55Good.

00:45:55Have a seat.

00:45:57Hello, hello.

00:45:58How are you?

00:45:58Yeah.

00:45:59Good to see you.

00:45:59As you can imagine, with genetic diagnoses, things are complicated.

00:46:07So I'll use the whiteboard.

00:46:09So all of us have about 20,000 genes.

00:46:13All genes are made up of DNA.

00:46:14One of those genes, the name is FBN1, and that's the gene in question for Lizzie.

00:46:23So what we did was we sequenced all 20,000 genes, trying to look for what we call mutations,

00:46:30changes that shouldn't be there.

00:46:32And we compared Lizzie's genome, 20,000 genes that Lizzie has, with the 20,000 genes that you

00:46:38guys have.

00:46:39The change that we found was just in Lizzie.

00:46:41We did not find the change in the parents.

00:46:43So we don't have the gene?

00:46:45No, you guys all have the gene.

00:46:47All of us in this room have the gene.

00:46:49Lizzie has a bad copy of the FBN1 gene, and Lizzie is the only one in the family that has

00:46:54it.

00:46:55The condition that has been associated with this gene is Marfan syndrome.

00:47:00Marfan syndrome affects three systems.

00:47:02It affects the eyes, it affects the heart, and it affects the bones.

00:47:08But Lizzie has one additional feature, which is the inability to gain weight.

00:47:11And that is called lipodystrophy.

00:47:15And what it means is a reduction in fat.

00:47:18So Lizzie has these two things.

00:47:20And this thing has been called neonatal progeroid syndrome.

00:47:24I'm going to give you guys some reports, because these four or five other people have been described

00:47:32in the literature with mutations in the same region of FBN1, and that is actually the critical

00:47:36part here.

00:47:37They look like Lizzie.

00:47:38They're mutations in the same region of FBN1, to where I feel very confident that this

00:47:43is what is causing Lizzie's condition.

00:47:45So what Lizzie has is a combination.

00:47:47But I want you to take home this message that she has Marfan syndrome.

00:47:51Because it means we have some implications.

00:47:55So what we'll be doing is getting Lizzie to see a cardiologist.

00:48:00She would need to get imaging of her heart.

00:48:04And what we'll be looking at there is the aorta.

00:48:08That's the blood vessel, the big blood vessel that arises from the top of the heart and supplies

00:48:12blood to the rest of the body.

00:48:14There can be problems with rupture.

00:48:16What would happen if it ruptures?

00:48:19That would be a bad thing.

00:48:21You would need immediate surgery.

00:48:22And it can oftentimes be fatal before patients get to the hospital, because it's a very serious

00:48:30condition.

00:48:30Are there signs of it?

00:48:33Usually, by the time you're having signs of aortic dilatation, it's late.

00:48:37Too late.

00:48:38It's late in the process.

00:48:39There's still a possibility that it could happen.

00:48:42Well, the good thing is...

00:48:43Worst case scenario, that that would happen.

00:48:45They usually do medication to help make sure it stays...

00:48:48To help stabilize it?

00:48:49Yeah.

00:48:49So what we can do is try to reduce some of your blood pressure.

00:48:52Prevent the progression of the enlargement.

00:48:54Okay?

00:48:55Is Lizzie the oldest person that you know of?

00:48:58I think where you're going with this is life expectancy.

00:49:02This is a relatively unique condition, so I can't say anything with absolute certainty.

00:49:07But as long as we keep a close eye on dilatation of the aorta, life expectancy would be expected

00:49:13to be normal.

00:49:15Does that answer your question?

00:49:16Okay.

00:49:17For so long, I just let her deal with it.

00:49:19Right.

00:49:19And now that I know, I want to be more involved in the results of things.

00:49:27I think it was me pushing her to all these doctors and testing and all that other stuff,

00:49:35because I always thought it was my fault.

00:49:38It wasn't.

00:49:42How could you guys control any of it?

00:49:44How could anybody control any of it?

00:49:46It's a random process.

00:49:47None of us are in control of the genes that we pass along.

00:49:50And in your case, you didn't even pass on the...

00:49:53I didn't know that.

00:49:54...this copy.

00:49:56Does that make you feel relieved?

00:49:58No.

00:49:58I never knew you thought that.

00:50:03All of us are prisoners of the genes that we've inherited and the genes that we have.

00:50:08And your mutation makes you unique.

00:50:10Let's just call it my difference.

00:50:12We can call it that.

00:50:13Okay.

00:50:14It kind of makes me feel good.

00:50:16Like, I was really, really meant to have it, because y'all didn't give it to me.

00:50:25Thank you so much for everything.

00:50:27I really appreciate it, even when I wasn't nice.

00:50:30You were always nice.

00:50:32Thank you so much.

00:50:32My dad has always told me, when it's your time to go, it's your time to go.

00:50:35And so then, I'm just going to hope that my heart is as strong as I think it is.

00:50:44I want my heart to be strong, faithful, and I want it to be brave,

00:50:49because we're about to fight a whole new chapter,

00:50:54and I literally can't do this without my heart.

00:51:05I'm so excited at the fact that I'll be in a room with 10,000 people,

00:51:14but the fact that, like, maybe, I don't even know how many you, like,

00:51:18are going to be watching online is very exciting.

00:51:21All of the other events I've been doing have been, like, drinking water,

00:51:25and then this big one is going to be, like, drinking coffee,

00:51:28and it's going to make me, like, so pumped and excited.

00:51:35I just want to, like, feel the room tomorrow, like, with people in here.

00:51:56I'm going to look, like, this big.

00:52:05How do you feel this, like?

00:52:08I like it.

00:52:09I feel good.

00:52:10I'm ready.

00:52:11Right here.

00:52:13I'm glad the team's right here, because that's going to find where to stop.

00:52:18And it's going to start, and I'm going to say,

00:52:21Hola a todos.

00:52:22Bienvenidos.

00:52:25My mom was involved in church.

00:52:27She made sure we went.

00:52:29My dad went every so often.

00:52:31Lupe's parents went to church, but they didn't make Lupe go.

00:52:35He went on his own.

00:52:36It was his thing to do.

00:52:40When we had Lizzie, Lupe's promise was that he would continue to serve him as long as she stayed healthy.

00:52:48That's why he keeps doing religious aid.

00:52:54He won't leave it, because that was his promise.

00:53:00I've asked him before, do you want to take a break?

00:53:02Do you want to get away?

00:53:03But he says, I can't.

00:53:04That's the promise I made when Lizzie was born.

00:53:06And so he's kept it.

00:53:10And I've never asked him again.

00:53:12Do you want to go back home?

00:53:26Oh, no.

00:53:27Hi.

00:53:32He's all in the bathroom with us.

00:53:34All the shade.

00:53:36Very riveting stuff watching me do my hair.

00:53:38Okay, Chris.

00:53:39Okay, bye.

00:53:40Have a good day.

00:53:40Love you.

00:53:41Bye.

00:53:42Love you.

00:53:42Bye.

00:53:43Bye.

00:53:47Okay.

00:53:49Okay, great.

00:53:50How are people okay with, like, sending out such hate first thing in the morning?

00:54:06You know, not something a girl wants to hear while she's trying to get ready.

00:54:11They're trying to tell me that I still have a job to do.

00:54:16And there's people that are still needing to hear me.

00:54:20It's just making me want to, like, do really well today.

00:54:28As I was getting ready, I started realizing, like, how big of a deal this is.

00:54:33I've just been really thinking about how much of an honor it is for me to even just be in

00:54:45the same room as these people.

00:54:48How am I going to live up to that standard?

00:54:51How in the world do I even prep for something like this?

00:54:54How are you?

00:55:10Okay, that's when I get good.

00:55:15Hi.

00:55:16Nice to meet you.

00:55:17Hi.

00:55:18Hi.

00:55:19How are you?

00:55:19It's such an honor to meet you.

00:55:21And thank you for your wonderful work.

00:55:23Oh, thank you very much.

00:55:24Oh, it's so important.

00:55:26Oh, it's so nice to meet you.

00:55:27I'm going to D.C. tomorrow to lobby for the first anti-bullying bill.

00:55:32So you're going to D.C. tomorrow?

00:55:33Yes.

00:55:34And who are we going to be seeing?

00:55:36We're going to do briefings and one-on-one meetings with different congresspeople.

00:55:39That's great.

00:55:40I don't think anything works better than personal testimony.

00:55:45I think so, too.

00:55:46You're somebody who can tell the story and inspire others to develop it.

00:55:51Yeah, it makes all the hard days I've had worth it.

00:55:53It does.

00:55:54Because it's like, I know what you've been through.

00:55:55Now, together, let's make a difference.

00:55:58That's right.

00:55:59Good luck tomorrow.

00:55:59It was so nice meeting you.

00:56:00Thank you so much.

00:56:02Take care.

00:56:03Bye-bye.

00:56:11That was exciting.

00:56:46That's all the Spanish I know.

00:57:10We all have our own journey.

00:57:18My journey started in Texas.

00:57:22My journey started 25 years ago.

00:57:25The start to your journey might be positive.

00:57:29The start to your journey might be negative.

00:57:32But we were all meant to be put on this earth for a reason.

00:57:37People have called me the ugliest woman in the world, but am I going to believe them?

00:57:42No.

00:57:44Because I believe in my journey and my purpose.

00:57:47I am a girl from Texas who had a wild dream.

00:58:01A wild dream to inspire people.

00:58:04It's funny to say this now.

00:58:05I would say if I could speak to a room of 1,000 people and I change the life of one person, that's all that matters.

00:58:15You can decide right now, I'm going to be brave and I'm going to be brave and I'm going to find my purpose and I'm going to succeed.

00:58:29That's all you have to say.

00:58:31I decided I could do it and I learned that I am beautiful, I am smart, and I can do the things that I put my mind to because I believed it first.

00:58:45You are the biggest influence in your life, not anyone else.

00:58:52I want to leave you with a quote that I read recently.

00:59:05When you know who you are and what you stand for, you stand in wisdom.

00:59:17Gracias, Mexico.

00:59:22Gracias, Mexico.

00:59:52I wanted to meet you because being around somebody else who, out of something that's been hard, is trying to make it better.

01:00:02And knowing that it's really good to be able to be in the same place with somebody like that,

01:00:07that can understand the pressures of putting yourself out there every day.

01:00:11Yes, there's pressure of having to turn it on and turn it off and still trying to stay sane between everything and feeling like you have to be strong for everyone else.

01:00:23But knowing the truth is, you really have to be strong for yourself first.

01:00:27Right.

01:00:27And it can be hard sometimes.

01:00:29Oh, definitely.

01:00:30But it's still worth it.

01:00:31When you get done speaking afterwards, you many times have people that come up that are really struggling.

01:00:37You walk away and sometimes I'll, you know, sit in a plane and I'll, like, all of a sudden just have tears start rolling down my face.

01:00:44Right.

01:00:44It's a lot sometimes.

01:00:45And it'll just hit me all at once.

01:00:48Like, I have to, I feel like I put the pressure on myself to live up to everything and be the person that people are so inspired by and looking up to.

01:00:59And then it's like, I'm having a weak moment, but am I allowed to have that weak moment?

01:01:04When you have self-doubt, I think it's important for us to reset and then move forward.

01:01:11To be able to, like, connect with someone that knows exactly what it's like.

01:01:19Right.

01:01:20It is.

01:01:22Like I told you on the phone, there are times that we sit there and think, can I do this?

01:01:28Can I, is, what if I'm not that?

01:01:31What if, what if I can't live up to it?

01:01:33Right.

01:01:34What if you can't live up to that?

01:01:35Ugh.

01:01:36I just can't believe we're here.

01:01:38I know, but it's going to be you.

01:01:41I just need to not put so much pressure on myself.

01:01:44If you can just be you, just you, they will see through all of the other stuff to just see you.

01:01:54If you just show, I'm here because I want to make this difference.

01:01:59I want, I've gone through it.

01:02:01I've lived it.

01:02:02I want to be able to now help the kids that don't feel like they have a voice.

01:02:06And that's what we need your support.

01:02:08That we're trying to get bullying defined.

01:02:10Giving the schools the tools to be able to now know what they can do to help the students.

01:02:14Right.

01:02:14If you just go with your heart, I think you're going to be amazing.

01:02:19You're going to make a difference regardless.

01:02:20I read a comment yesterday.

01:02:26All I said was, you're unstoppable.

01:02:28And I thought, you know, we kind of are.

01:02:32This is really, like, surreal.

01:02:37And all I can do is eat bacon.

01:02:39That makes me very comfortable.

01:02:40I put a status on Facebook this morning for all my internet friends.

01:02:50I said, today I will take every story, every tear, every time someone was bullied with me into each meeting I have on Capitol Hill.

01:02:59I will proudly take my experiences in years to the people who can make a change and do my absolute best to show them that it's time to do more than just talk about bullying, but to do something about it.

01:03:21Here we go.

01:03:22I'm pleased to be here talking about the critical issue of bullying because when I was first elected to Congress, I held a series of meetings with local school superintendents and law enforcement leaders to learn more about the challenges that they face in keeping kids in school and on the right track to becoming productive citizens.

01:03:44And unfortunately, I heard a recurring theme during this series of meetings, and that was that bullying isn't a harmless prank or some kind of rite of passage.

01:03:54It's dangerous both physically and mentally for students.

01:03:57Bullying leads to things like poor school performance, absences from school, or even dropping out of school altogether.

01:04:04The prospect of assault and harassment can lead a child to join a gang for protection.

01:04:08That's why I've been working to change federal laws so that schools can use federal funds to address and prevent bullying and harassment.

01:04:16The Safe Schools Improvement Act is meant to provide national standard across every school district in every state that says that bullying will not be tolerated on school campuses.

01:04:25We may be in the midst of a culture of meanness.

01:04:38There's research that shows that if you ask kids to define what bullying means, they think it means getting beat up on the playground.

01:04:45They don't think of it as what's going on on Facebook.

01:04:48You know, at its heart, bullying is really intended to harm.

01:04:52There is that dynamic that prior generations experience that bullying is character building or, you know, it's important for the victim to stand up, you know, to the bully.

01:05:03And it's hard when you grew up with that mindset to understand that there's a new phenomenon going on.

01:05:10There are indications that online is often an extension of what's going on at school.

01:05:18And so when the kids come home, there's no break.

01:05:21They're still immersed in the drama, the cycle of drama amongst their classmates.

01:05:28Most of the members that are here who are of a certain generation don't understand how kids can be harassed 24-7 and how just devastating that can be for those kids.

01:05:42And I think if they were to understand that times have changed and that it's a far more pervasive problem now, probably their mindset might change.

01:05:53But it's hard to explain that to somebody who hasn't experienced that personally.

01:05:58And that's why sharing those personal stories with these members is really important.

01:06:02Well, I can't tell you how touched I am by your story and how amazed I am at the work that you do.

01:06:10And just keep going and keep up the great work.

01:06:13The legislative process is a slow one.

01:06:15But to see a bill like this not get the support that it deserves, despite eight years of advocacy and work on it, is a little bit frustrating.

01:06:24Congresswoman Sanchez is fighting the same fight that I am.

01:06:28We're in this together and knowing that it was meant for both of us to be sitting there side by side, which is something that was very, very powerful.

01:06:41Mom, I don't feel good.

01:06:44My body just doesn't feel right.

01:06:48Hello.

01:06:49Hi.

01:06:50How are you?

01:06:51Nice to meet you.

01:06:53Nice to meet you.

01:06:53Hi, I'm Rita Velasquez.

01:06:55Hello.

01:06:55Nice to meet you all.

01:06:56I want to come into the conference office.

01:06:58Myself doing the research, I found myself getting really angry that there's not enough support for it.

01:07:07Very proud of you for being so brave and positive.

01:07:12And I have to say, I saw your TED Talk maybe a year ago.

01:07:16Wow.

01:07:17Wow.

01:07:18And it kind of left an impact on me, so I just wanted to tell you that.

01:07:21Oh, thank you so much.

01:07:23We've sponsored a couple of anti-bullying programs in our district.

01:07:28Right.

01:07:29I'm hoping you can help us continue that impact for kids in every school.

01:07:34My story's only one.

01:07:38There's so many others.

01:07:40Hi, Lizzie.

01:07:41Nice to meet you.

01:07:42Hi.

01:07:42It's a nonpartisan issue because it affects constituents in every member's district.

01:07:47A little better.

01:07:55Wow.

01:07:56It's a big room.

01:07:57I wanted to come here because I feel like this is a place where change happens.

01:08:03And unfortunately, the change hasn't been made.

01:08:06We're fully aware that bullying is never going to stop.

01:08:09There's never going to be a cure.

01:08:11But we are just doing whatever we can to help get the support.

01:08:14It affects the whole family, not just the person being bullied.

01:08:18Exactly.

01:08:18It affects everybody.

01:08:20Exactly.

01:08:21Yeah.

01:08:26My stomach is too upset.

01:08:28Sitting in there, it just hit me like a wave of heat.

01:08:34And I had to run to the bathroom to throw up again.

01:08:37And I went back outside.

01:08:39And I just sat in the wheelchair.

01:08:40And he came out.

01:08:42And he looked at me.

01:08:43And I thought, okay, I have to turn it on.

01:08:45All right.

01:08:45Well, we're glad you're here.

01:08:46Thank you so much.

01:08:46And we're going to try to help you if we can.

01:08:50Stay in touch.

01:08:51And you can call me anytime.

01:08:52I really, really appreciate it.

01:08:54Good to see you.

01:08:54You too.

01:08:55Okay.

01:08:58I think you should call him.

01:09:07Huh?

01:09:07I think you should call him.

01:09:09Call home?

01:09:10No.

01:09:10What?

01:09:11Doctor.

01:09:11That is.

01:09:12Okay.

01:09:17I'm powering through.

01:09:18We're going to do it.

01:09:20I'm not getting sick.

01:09:22I'm not getting sick.

01:09:24Nope, I'm not.

01:09:26Coming here is a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

01:09:29As awful as I felt.

01:09:31There's no way in the world that I would let my body make me come home.

01:09:37There's no way.

01:09:39There's no way.

01:09:40400 Massachusetts Avenue.

01:09:44And plus my outfits have been really cute.

01:09:46Even though I was throwing up, there was people in the bathrooms every time I would go in there.

01:09:49So they would get to see the dress too.

01:09:52So it counted.

01:09:54Throw up, eat a mint, and then get back on the wheelchair and do it all over again.

01:10:01Just got to get through one more thing.

01:10:03One more thing.

01:10:03For those of you that don't know my story, I was born with a very rare syndrome that doesn't

01:10:26allow me to gain weight.

01:10:28And unfortunately, when I started school, I had to encounter bullying at a very early age.

01:10:37I will go back every single day and deal with every harsh word, every awful comment,

01:10:44whatever it takes, over and over again, because of the fact that the outcome is me being able

01:10:50to sit here and be the voice for every child that has been bullied.

01:10:53And the importance of this bill being passed can easily go without saying.

01:11:02We see so many stories in the media of children killing themselves.

01:11:09What's being done?

01:11:12Nothing.

01:11:14It's taken eight years, and it's still not passed.

01:11:19What is it going to take?

01:11:21What is it going to take?

01:11:24It blows my mind to think that there's adults here who have the power to simply co-sign their

01:11:31name.

01:11:33That's it.

01:11:34I don't think they realize how many lives they can save every single day.

01:11:45It has to stop.

01:11:47It has to stop.

01:11:49I'm 25 years old, and I still remember being picked on in elementary school.

01:11:57Those scars will never go away.

01:12:00I don't want you to leave here feeling sorry for me, because I've become much stronger than

01:12:06that.

01:12:07I want you to leave, and rather feeling like you need to stand up for me, I want you to

01:12:10stand beside me.

01:12:11And stand beside every child that's ever been bullied.

01:12:15If I ever, somehow, someway, meet the person who sent me that message, or who first posted

01:12:29it, I would thank him.

01:12:32Thank him for making me as strong as I am today.

01:12:35It's just crazy to look back and see the progression that I made.

01:12:41I think the biggest difference is having people just talk to me as a human being.

01:12:50If I hadn't been able to embrace the body that I'm in, there's no way that I could have been the champion

01:13:03for so many other people.

01:13:05I know good and well that bullying will never, ever, ever stop, but what can continue is someone

01:13:15being the leader to show the best way that we can deal with it.

01:13:19All I know is being knocked down and getting back up.

01:13:41I've been in and out of doctor's offices, in and out of hospitals, in and out of surgeries,

01:13:46but really, all I know is that you get better, and then you keep going, and if something else

01:13:53comes up, you pick yourself back up and you deal with it.

01:13:57I think I've realized that this is something that means a lot to me, and I'm not going to

01:14:00go away until they listen.

01:14:16I think I've realized that this is another story that I'm dreaming about.

01:14:19It's just a short time to see the anticipation of the Lord's side, but a long time to go away.

01:14:22I'm good.

01:14:23And I'm going to get to see the session tomorrow, and I'll be here today.

01:14:25Sorry, but now I'm going to take a moment.

01:14:29I'm still here.

01:14:30I'm in and out of this time.

01:14:33I got it.

01:14:34I'm in and out of this time.

01:14:36Why are you doing this?

01:14:38I'm out of this place.

01:14:41I'm here.

01:14:43I'm the one I've been 3-in-1-1-1.

01:14:46You wanna walk to the room like that other girl does

01:15:08The one that's always making everybody fall in love

01:15:12You see, girl, you're a lot like me

01:15:17She rearranges all the light in the room

01:15:22So you're always in the shadows

01:15:25Well, that's what it feels like to you

01:15:28Baby, I've been there too

01:15:33And I know how much it can sometimes hurt

01:15:40You feel like the whole world has made you the ugly girl

01:15:47But take it from me that you have to see it first

01:15:56So before you trade in your summer skin

01:16:01For those high-heeled shoes

01:16:04To make them wanna be with you

01:16:07Let me remind you one more time

01:16:13That just maybe you're beautiful

01:16:16But you just can't see

01:16:19So why don't you trust me

01:16:22They'll see it too, you beautiful girl

01:16:29And I know how much you've been dying to say

01:16:36And I know how much you've been dying to say

01:16:49Look how much everybody loves me

01:16:56But guess who gets left when everyone else fades away

01:17:04So before you trade in your summer skin

01:17:09For those high-heeled shoes

01:17:12To make them wanna be with you

01:17:18Let me remind you one more time

01:17:22That just maybe you're beautiful

01:17:25But you just can't see

01:17:29So why don't you trust me

01:17:33They'll see it too, you beautiful girl

01:17:39You beautiful girl, you

01:17:51You beautiful girl, you

01:17:55Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh

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