Sustaining 45% burns to her face and body during a plane crash that claimed her immediate family, Tulsi Vagjiani shares some valuable life lessons on beauty, self-worth and taking any opportunity that comes your way.
Life lessons from Pilates rehabilitation specialist, life coach and motivational speaker
Tulsi Vagjiani survived a plane crash aged just 10, in which she lost both parents and her little brother Kamlesh, sustaining 45% (2nd and 3rd degree) burns to her face and body. She always felt her scars were a huge limitation into her accomplishing so much more. Tulsi endured many years of cruel bullying and low self-worth. Her confidence and self-worth changed as she took her journey inwards, recognising her self-acceptance and her own voice: “I’ve survived so many things and I know that I’m always going to pass those hurdles. Hi, I’m Tulsi Vagjiani and I’m a life survivor. Often I get asked this question: ‘What would you change about your life?’ And to be honest, there’s nothing to change.”
Tulsi was 10 years old in 1990 when her family were killed in a plane crash on holiday in India When she woke up, her grandmother said, “Tulsi you are in hospital, you have been involved in a place crash. Kamlesh, mum and dad are no more. You look different but don’t be scared.” Source: Tulsivagjiani.com/BBC
Bullied for how she looked, Tulsa Vagjiani was left questioning her self-worth
“We’re taught to measure everything based on the external image. But that’s not who we are. The essence of who we are comes from the inside.
And that’s what we wear on the outside. And I couldn’t quite understand that. When people used to say you’re beautiful. I couldn’t see it because I measured my beauty on the external. I measured against the things you see on the media, in the magazines and social media, wherever.
But that’s not what it is. What it is, is the moment you accept yourself in the whole essence of who you are. That beauty radiates and it radiates so far. And people can see it for miles. And that is the beauty we’re all trying to attain. This thing on the outside, it’s superficial and it’s short lived. How long can you maintain that?
But the radiance that comes from within that’s for a lifetime, That’s forever.”
— Tulsi Vagjiani
“Every day people stare at me. It’s getting people to be aware of how that makes someone with disfigurement feel.” — “Having a disfigurement means never having a day off. I don’t get to take my scars off and forget about them. Every day when I leave my house I need to check in with myself to see how I am going to handle staring or comments people make. We need to get more awareness and have equality along a whole spectrum of things.” Source: Facebook/TulsiV
Special thanks to Lance Latchman
BrightVibes would like to extend our special thanks go to Lance Latchman for the source material. If you’d like to see a longer version of Tulsi’s story, you can do so on Lance’s YouTube channel.
This article was first published on April 24, 2020.
6 QUALITIES THAT MAKE YOU A BETTER PERSON
Tulsi had to endure years of bullying from, frankly, ignorant people. But ignorance is no longer a valid excuse in the Information Age. We could all try to be a little kinder and more considerate, so here are 6 fundamental character traits to adopt and cultivate to help make you a better person.