A 6ft paramedic, who describes feeling “like a freak” because of her height, has overcome her body image issues to star in a global beauty pageant.
Alice Jones, 27, from Walsall, West Midlands, suffered years of terrible anxiety about her height, which saw her dwarfed by her classmates at school.
“Mentally, I had a lot of self-doubt and problems with body image issues,” she explains.
“Growing up, I believed I wasn’t worth anything,” she continues. “Because I’m 6ft, I felt like a bit of a freak because I was tall.”
Although she says her problems started in childhood, they continued into adulthood and also affected her personal life.
“I never really had a relationship because I was taller than all the boys – that didn’t affect my confidence,” she explains.
“I had to make a conscious effort not to joke. I got comments like, ‘Gosh, you’re tall’ and that made me uncomfortable.”
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As she got older her self-confidence issues persisted even after she qualified as a paramedic.
“I felt I didn’t deserve to be a paramedic,” she explains.
The turning point came when she took five months off work to receive therapy and overcome her physical problems.
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And, after some encouragement from her colleagues, who urged her to “go for it”, she got the confidence to enter a pageant.
“I took on Miss England as a challenge for myself because it was completely different to my day job as a paramedic,” she explains.
“I went from spending most of my time in steel toed boots with my hair in a bun to wearing a fancy dress with my hair and make-up done.”
Another reason she wanted to enter the pageant was to use the Beauty with a Purpose (the Miss World charity) platform to educate the public on how to perform CPR and how to use an AED (Automated External Defibrillator).
“I have been working in the ambulance service since I was 18 years old where I have provided care, treatment and even cups of tea to those in need,” she says.
“Becoming a paramedic has always been a big goal of mine and I have achieved it and will continue to do so.
“But taking part in the Miss England competition has unlocked this potential in myself that I didn’t know I had.”
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Jones, who works for the West Midlands Ambulance Service and is currently Miss Black Country, says she is relishing the challenge of combining her work as a paramedic with a pageant.
“I want to show other people that you can do both and that life is about challenges,” she explains.
“I love attending photo shoots, participating in different rounds, wearing dresses and really focusing on my fitness.
“I find modeling more challenging than saving lives sometimes,” she continues. “It’s certainly not as easy as it seems but I welcome that challenge.”
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After reaching the semi-finals of the competition and winning two awards, Jones has now been invited to represent the UK in the World Top Model final in Egypt.
“I’m really looking forward to representing the UK and I hope to inspire others to push themselves out of their comfort zone, whatever that may be.”
Jones will be representing the UK in the 29th pageant of the World’s Top Model at the five-star luxury resort White Hills, in Sharm El Sheik, Egypt, on March 3.
Additional reporting SWNS.