ONCE NEARLY BULLIED TO DEATH, THE “UGLY DUCKLING” VIES TO BECOME MS. AMERICA!

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San Diego, California, United States of America (Free-Press-Release.com) January 21, 2011 --

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ONCE NEARLY BULLIED TO DEATH, THE “UGLY DUCKLING” VIES TO BECOME MS. AMERICA!

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http://www.msamericapageant.com

Giselle Hansen Uffens grew up in Bountiful UT, where she was teased, laughed at, put down, tripped, pushed and/or isolated by her peers, on a daily basis, from the 4th grade through her junior year in high school. She had few friends and often went through periods of having no friends. “I was very different from the average child in Davis County Utah. My hair was black, curly and frizzy. My skin was dark, olive colored. I wore thick glasses, my clothes were not in-style and by all standards of what makes a child/teen physically cute, I was not,” Giselle states. “My first memory of peer rejection/verbal abuse started while I was jumping rope, about 9 years old, when another girl called me a nigger and the domino effect of all the kids laughing at me. My life was never the same. I never looked at myself the same. It did not happen occasionally. It happened every single day for 9 straight years in one way or another. My soul was slowly tortured. I considered suicide more times than I can count.”

Giselle’s full story of bullying or “peer abuse”, as she likes to refer to, it is heart-breaking to say the least. But underneath the pain of her childhood, there is a story of an incredibly strong and resilient woman that plans to make a difference.

Giselle refers to herself as having “The Ugly Duckling Syndrome.” The Urban Dictionary describes this syndrome as a girl who grew up all her life unattractive and then after college or later “blossomed” into a really beautiful girl. Unlike girls that were pretty as teenagers, her self-esteem is pretty low (almost permanently for life). But she has a good heart, is very kind and compassionate, has great personality, is often very talented and does not judge others by their looks. She basically develops every positive aspect she can outside of her looks. These women often mature into adults that try to make the world a better place.

“I am only 36 years old, but I have walked in so many shoes. I have been discriminated against for the color of my skin. I have been rejected and abused by peers. I have lost my mom to breast cancer. I have endured major health problems. I have lost everything before and endured financial ruin. I have struggled with my marriage. I have dealt with severe postpartum depression. I have lived as a single mother while my husband deployed with military. And I could go on and on. But my story does not have a sad ending. I have overcome more obstacles than most experience in their lifetime. I have developed many talents and I consider myself a true empath. I made it! I am still here, my life is successful, I am happy and I have a message of encouragement for anyone wanting to listen.”

In 2009, to the shock of all that knew her, Giselle decided to compete in the Mrs. California America pageant. “I had invented and developed a program for parents to record storybooks. It was done in memory of my mother. I wanted the media to pay attention and they seem to really like beautiful people.” Giselle openly admits that her self-esteem was not great and she was unsure if she could win a beauty pageant. But her desire to connect families with her program exceeded her fears.

She lost that pageant and did not even place in the top 10. “I had a lot of confidence in my ability and intellect. Not really in my looks. I could not accept that my inner qualities were not worth winning a title like Mrs. California. So I went back the next year and competed again.” Giselle won the title of Mrs. California America 2009 with no prior modeling or pageant experience!

“Pageants are completely out of my comfort zone. I have never focused on my looks and it was not something I really considered to be a value to my overall self. Frankly being judged for how I look is terrifying at most levels. I would have to admit that part of my motive in competing was to prove to all those old high school peers that I am more than the labels they tried to attach to me.”

Giselle is now launching a new non-profit and speaking career to fulfill what she calls one of her life purposes; to end teen bullying. In conjunction, she has decided to compete for the title of Ms. America to increase the awareness for the issue of teen bullying, to gain public interest and to be a mentor and display to all the kids being hurt that life does change and life does get better! “I hope to inspire empathy in our teens and teach them how to save a life. I hope to touch the hearts of parents so they are not dismissive about their kid’s actions. And I hope to give teachers ideas of how to react when they see a child in need.”

You can support Giselle in her quest to end teen bullying by offering your support through an online vote on Facebook. You can visit: www.facebook.com/msamericapageant (1) You must LIKE the fan page first (2) Now select VOTE from the top tabs. (3) Locate Giselle’s picture and click to open her page (4) Now click LIKE on the comments section. Leave a personal message if you wish.

You can reach Giselle directly by email or by phone: Giselle@DigiTells.com 858-603-5087

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More information can be found online at http://www.msamericapageant.com

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