Ariel Winter is once again opening up about having breast reduction surgery, something she calls "the greatest choice" she's made.
Last year at the SAG Awards, the "Modern Family" actress was photographed in a strapless gown with her scars on full display.
![ariel winter]()
Ariel says she chose the black lace dress with a low back was on purpose, confessing she made no effort to cover up her scars.
Now, she is showing off those surgical scars again in a series of topless, unretouched black-and-white images for Self magazine.
In the interview, the 18-year-old talks about the decision to get breast reduction surgery at just 17 after struggling with severe back and neck pain and constantly being sexualized at a young age.
Now, she recommends the surgery to other women who are also suffer from low self-esteem.
"I recommend it for everybody — all women that have thought about it and have suffered from having really large breasts and have back problems and just don’t feel right in their own skin."
Growing up in the spotlight, Winter says she didn't always feel comfortable in her skin. As the star of a hit comedy series, Ariel's body and wardrobe choices were constantly scrutinized.
"Growing up in the spotlight was quite possibly the worst for my self-esteem," she says. "I had a hard time finding confidence within myself. When I started ["Modern Family"], I had a completely different body than what happened overnight at 12 years old. I was stick thin, I had no chest, I had no butt—I had nothing. I was totally flat, and I was so sad about it."
She continues, "Then automatically, overnight, my body changed drastically. I was a D cup and had a bigger butt, and my waist was expanding. Everything was getting bigger. I automatically got this hate and judgment online."
Despite the challenges she faced with being in the public eye, she received support from costar Sofia Vergara.
![ariel winter sofia vergara]()
"I had a great role model in Sofia [Vergara] growing up, with her being a curvy woman that was super proud of who she was and what she looked like," Winter says. "She could see that I was struggling a little bit with how to deal with my body, and was always trying to give me advice, like, 'Here are some brands that would look good on our body type,' or 'Wear whatever you want, and feel good about yourself.'"
Feeling confident in herself and her body now, Winter isn't afraid to respond to body shamers trying to bring her down online. She has used social media to make her voice heard and has become a role model for young women dealing with body image
"It was hard for me in the beginning to deal with people’s comments and deal with everybody having an opinion on absolutely everything I did. It was hard for me to not fall prey to wanting to change the way I felt and the way I did things and the way I looked because of what other people said."
She adds, "But as I got older, I started to realize that as long as I’m positive in my life and as long as I feel good about my decisions and stick to how I feel and the things I want to do, that’s what’s most important. And that’s what’s going to get me through in life."
Nicely said, Ariel.
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Last year at the SAG Awards, the "Modern Family" actress was photographed in a strapless gown with her scars on full display.
Ariel says she chose the black lace dress with a low back was on purpose, confessing she made no effort to cover up her scars.
Guys there is a reason I didn't make an effort to cover up my scars! They are part of me and I'm not ashamed of them at all. :)
— Ariel Winter (@arielwinter1) January 31, 2016
Now, she is showing off those surgical scars again in a series of topless, unretouched black-and-white images for Self magazine.
In the interview, the 18-year-old talks about the decision to get breast reduction surgery at just 17 after struggling with severe back and neck pain and constantly being sexualized at a young age.
Now, she recommends the surgery to other women who are also suffer from low self-esteem.
"I recommend it for everybody — all women that have thought about it and have suffered from having really large breasts and have back problems and just don’t feel right in their own skin."
Growing up in the spotlight, Winter says she didn't always feel comfortable in her skin. As the star of a hit comedy series, Ariel's body and wardrobe choices were constantly scrutinized.
"Growing up in the spotlight was quite possibly the worst for my self-esteem," she says. "I had a hard time finding confidence within myself. When I started ["Modern Family"], I had a completely different body than what happened overnight at 12 years old. I was stick thin, I had no chest, I had no butt—I had nothing. I was totally flat, and I was so sad about it."
She continues, "Then automatically, overnight, my body changed drastically. I was a D cup and had a bigger butt, and my waist was expanding. Everything was getting bigger. I automatically got this hate and judgment online."
Despite the challenges she faced with being in the public eye, she received support from costar Sofia Vergara.
"I had a great role model in Sofia [Vergara] growing up, with her being a curvy woman that was super proud of who she was and what she looked like," Winter says. "She could see that I was struggling a little bit with how to deal with my body, and was always trying to give me advice, like, 'Here are some brands that would look good on our body type,' or 'Wear whatever you want, and feel good about yourself.'"
Feeling confident in herself and her body now, Winter isn't afraid to respond to body shamers trying to bring her down online. She has used social media to make her voice heard and has become a role model for young women dealing with body image
"It was hard for me in the beginning to deal with people’s comments and deal with everybody having an opinion on absolutely everything I did. It was hard for me to not fall prey to wanting to change the way I felt and the way I did things and the way I looked because of what other people said."
She adds, "But as I got older, I started to realize that as long as I’m positive in my life and as long as I feel good about my decisions and stick to how I feel and the things I want to do, that’s what’s most important. And that’s what’s going to get me through in life."
Nicely said, Ariel.
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