"Do you think I'm beautiful?"

Every once in a while a video comes along that makes you reconsider how you see yourself.

This is one of those videos and Jess is an amazing young woman that we want to introduce you to

This is Jessica Smith. She’s a 26-year-old Paralympian and bulimia survivor who’s working tirelessly to promote positive body image and be a healthy role model for young Australians.

Jessica was born without her left forearm; despite this, her sporting success started at the age of 10 when she was selected to represent NSW at the state school swimming championships. In 2004 her sporting dreams were realised when she was selected to represent Australia at the Paralympic Games in Athens.

But during what seemed to be the best years of her life to her family and friends, Jessica’s self esteem suffered. At the age of 16, Jessica was diagnosed with major depression and bulimia.

She starved herself so much that her organs almost shut down, and she tried to take her own life twice during her struggle.

Now, Jessica works tirelessly to promote positive body image and is a motivational speaker. She shares her story simply with the goal of helping others realise that life is a journey and unless we have experienced a little sadness and heartache we often can’t truly understand happiness – but when you have, you realise that happiness is a choice and an attitude, and it’s up to us to make that choice for ourselves.