Heroes: Katie Piper

There are many people I use as inspiration in my life but none hold quite as much sway as Katie Piper. I think I have watched every documentary she has ever been involved with from the very first, during which my mum and I sat in tears for what had been done to her, all the way to the programs in which she sheds light on other visibly impaired people and how it affects them.

She has handled her situation with great strength, poise and elegance. Katie has gone from strength to strength and it has been a real pleasure watching her confidence grow and her story unfold. Which brings me to the present day when Katie herself cannot quite believe how wonderfully things have turned out in her life.

 Before and soon after her attack.

For those of you who don't live in the UK or who may not have heard about Katie's story I'll give you a little bit of context so you can see why I am just so blown away by this woman.

Katie was your average 24-year-old. She was a model, she had great friends and life was good. Until she broke up with her boyfriend... It was in March 6 years ago that he had someone viciously throw sulfuric acid in Katie's face after she ended their relationship and sent him into a fit of rage. Katie was rushed to hospital where her skin was removed and re-grafted in the first of many similar operations. She also lost the sight in one of her eyes.

As you can imagine, her life was shot to pieces and in 2009, Katie decided to become a part of the Cutting Edge series in a documentary entitled Katie: My Beautiful Face. It was during this program that my mum, my dad and I shed a tear for the horrendous ordeal that Katie had been through, as we watched her piece together her life again.

Fast forward a few years and Katie Piper is one of the most influential activists in Britain. She presents on television, she's a writer and she fights for the equal rights of all those with disabilities.



In the midst of role models such as the Kardashians and A-List celebrities, I am all for keeping it real with real life idols such as Muireann Carey-Campbell. And Katie Piper has to be one of my all time favourite inspirations. No matter where I am in my life, I look at her and I see how far she's come and I know that I have to keep pushing, keep fighting for the life I want.

So it is with immense happiness that I can say Katie Piper is living her dream. She's succeeded beyond her wildest dreams, met and fallen in love with a great man and the very month she was attacked, six years later, Katie gave birth to her first child, daughter Belle.

Copyright: [Hello!]

So let's take a step back and give one helluva woman a round of applause and remember than when things are looking pretty shit... There's always a reason to get back up and keep fighting. Someone out there needs you to keep fighting!

You can find out more about Katie Piper here!

Have you ever come back from something you doubted you ever could? Who are your inspirations in life?