Quadriplegic Makeup Artist Kaitlyn Dobrow Is A True Inspiration

If you've ever spent a free hour or two skimming through random YouTube tutorials or the "explore" option on your Insta app (who doesn't get sucked into a k-hole of contour videos now and again?) it's very possible that you've come across a post by someone named Kaitlyn Dobrow. In the ever-growing sea of digital beauty experts, she stands apart for a pretty inspiring reason: she's a quadriplegic who isn't letting a disability – or a diagnosis – hold her back from absolutely slaying her look and her self-esteem.

According to an interview video posted by Now This, Kaitlyn says her body was ravaged by bacterial meningitis. After 21 surgeries, 6 months in the hospital, and the loss of all four of her limbs as well as 57% of her skin, she woke up and thought: "I want to do makeup." She says that one of the first things she learned to do in rehab was hold a makeup brush. She uses her prosthetic arm to apply different products, typically holding the brush still and moving her face to apply.

Though her story itself is incredible, what's really been capturing the world's attention is the fact that not only can Kaitlyn do her own makeup, but that despite all the odds that are against her, she does it incredibly well. Just recently, she's posted everything from an animal-inspired Halloween tutorial to a full-faced rose evening look.

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More stories from inspirational women:

1. This Badass Tights Ad Features a Model With a Prosthetic Leg
2. Beauty Vlogger With Cystic Hygroma Proves Why Self-Acceptance Is So Important
3. Meet Lauren Wasser, the Model and TSS Survivor Breaking Conventional Beauty Standards

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She says her channel stands for self-acceptance, and when it comes to her own body, she's overcome too much to be disappointed with her looks. "I am set with accepting myself," she said in the video. "When I think of my scars, I think, I did not go through hell to be ashamed of what I look like." And for anyone who is having a hard time doing the same, she said: "Know that you are loved for who you are, and for the way you look."

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