UniqueMiss

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How did you become a quadruple amputee?

 

When I was 7 I got meningitis and I got really ill so they had to amputate parts of my arms and my legs to save my life. I had a less than 1% chance of survival.

 

How long have you been a quadruple amputee?

 

(Thinks) 8 years. (Laughs) Yeah, I was 7 I’m now 15 so 8 years.

 

What are people’s usual first impression of you?

 

There can be three. Some people are just like fine, whatever they don’t really care. Other people are like shocked and are like “Oh my god, oh my god, what happened to you!” and then other people think that I’m like actually stupid which is kind of annoying because I am intelligent like in school. My disability is just a physical disability so that one is the one that really annoys me. They’ll be talking to me like I’m literally like a child and I’m like STOPPP!

 

Do people misjudge you? Are you still independent?

 

I think so. I think people have loads of preconceptions of people with disabilities and just in general so a lot of people, like I get asked a lot of stupid questions. For example, I’ll be in my taxi on the way home from school and the driver will be like “oh so who feeds you?” I’m like “MEE!” If I’m hungry I’ll feed myself!  It’s annoying that people assume. People just don’t realise that I am still really independent.

 

Are people surprised how you can do certain things like your makeup?

 

Yes, I think so, well that’s the reason I started my YouTube channel because everyone would be like how do you do your makeup or who did your makeup for you. I’d think I would never go out with this much makeup on if my mum did my makeup for me. She’d be like a makeup artist by now (laughs). So, people thought that my mum was actually the one doing my makeup and I was like my mum’s not gonna put my makeup on me for school every day, she’s gonna go do it yourself or go to school looking like you just got out of bed. People are surprised that I’m the one that does everything and that I’m the independent one.

 

Your YouTube channel ‘Isabelle Weall’ has a huge following and is a true inspiration which I personally love to watch.

 

Aww Thankyou!

 

Why did you decide to create a YouTube channel?

 

I used to get asked loads of questions about how I do things and the first videos I actually remember posting were trampolining videos. So I started trampolining and loads of people were like “how do you do that?” and had loads of questions about that and questions about doing my makeup and loads of things about my life. It’s really difficult to explain to someone’s face like this is how I do this part of my makeup, there’s too many steps and it’s not just something you can just explain to someone in most situations. So, I thought if I put videos on a place that everyone can kind of go and look so if people, obviously I can give them the short answer but if they still don’t understand I can be like oh you can go and watch this if you want and it can show people. So, at first it was kind of like that but then I realised QUOTE ”I’d got the opportunity to share with other people and with people with disabilities that like you can still do whatever you want and that I can.”

 

What content / videos do you make?

 

It depends, I’ve made a lot of different ones. So, makeup, fashion, trampolining although I don’t really do many of them anymore. There not as popular ones I do. I do quite a lot of ones like things I can do like with my disability and stuff and things incorporating that, I do things with my brothers literally any video I’ve probably done (laughs) cause I love making them. But I think people like to see me doing things so I do a mix and obviously still do ones that I want to as well as doing ones that people want to see me do.

 

What kind of feedback and responses do you get from your videos?

 

Mostly positive, mostly. I get comments from other people with disabilities whether it’s the same as mine or different like “oh my god your amazing” and it’s kind of encouraging for other people. Obviously, I’ve been an amputee for 8 years whereas some people, I think it’s quite good my whole platform as people contact me and their child or someone they know will have been in hospital and they’ve just been told you’re going to have your arms and legs amputated or some of your limbs amputated people google it. People aren’t fully aware of loads of big named people, it’s quite difficult to think of a big icon because there isn’t one really so people in that situation contact me and ask questions and I think it’s quite good to show people what you actually can do once you have properly recovered.

 

Are you a confident person?

 

I would say I am a confident person. I think my confidence was harder to get because I stuck out so much and I was really different to everyone else but I think that kind of pushed me to become more confident because I had to just suck it up (laughs) I had to just get used to it but yeah, I would say I am now.

 

I noticed this the other day I literally posted this photo. Looking at it now, because someone commented going “ugh this a horrible angle” or something but I posted it and I literally didn’t even look at that and I was like oh actually that shows how confident I’ve become because before I would have looked at a photo and been like do I look skinny and now I’m just like that was a good photo.

 

That’s a good way to be...

 

I didn’t notice that until I’d put the photo up thought oh this is a nice photo and then it wasn’t until someone pointed it out and I was like oh yeah, it’s not a flattering angle and I just said well I like the photo anyway so its staying.

 

What kind of mind-set do you have when it comes to your difference?

 

I think I have a really positive mind-set. I think you kind of have to. I don’t dwell on what’s happened because I know this is how my life is gonna be so I have to just be as positive about everything and if I can’t do something be really determined and resilient and try to do it in many different ways.

 

Does your difference affect your fashion choices?

 

YESSSS! I want that written in capitals (laughs). So, this was part of the reason why at the start of secondary school I was so insecure and I didn’t really ever say but at the time now I’d come out and be like hi I was the most insecure person ever. We’d have a non-uniform day or something at school and everyone would wear skinny jeans. Now when you have prosthetic legs you can’t wear skinny jeans and not having any fingers or anything you can’t do buttons or zips or anything on trousers anyway so for ages I was like “oh my god I can’t wear anything” and it was like that secondary school thing where I’d go out with my friends and have a mental breakdown about what I was going to wear. For non-uniform days at school I’d be like to my mum “I don’t want to go to school” but I think it just took me a while to find clothes I liked and I felt comfortable in but also worked with my legs and complimented them. I could fit myself in some trousers but with the joints connecting my legs to the prosthetics legs it just didn’t look good. It took some time for me to be like this doesn’t compliment you and find things that did and that made me feel confident in them.

 

What is your style?

 

I don’t really know what my style is. I think at the moment I really like wearing culottes because they always have elasticated waists which is amazing for me. Most of them have stretchy fabric which means they fit over my legs nicely and because I’m short it means that because they are normally cropped as well, there longer on me so basically, they are the perfect thing. I always wear them and like a top I think quite often I look over dressed for like I’ll go out in like a dress just because I like it. Quite a lot of the time I wear smart dressy clothes just because I wouldn’t be able to just wear jeans because I can’t.

 

Are there certain parts of fashion you can’t wear? If so, what are they?

 

Jeans, anything with zips or buttons are difficult. A lot of things that aren’t stretchy or anything because that’s how I would mainly get it on and off if it has some stretch to it and that’s easy when it fits over my legs and stuff because their solid. Long sleeves I can wear most of I just roll or fold the sleeves up.

 

Who would you say is your biggest fashion inspiration in life and why?

 

I’m not sure I’d say I have one. I don’t know because the thing is I was looking at people in fashion that were wearing these outfits that I couldn’t wear so I think in a way I had to create my own. Not saying that I invented the clothes I wear but I do create my own style not based off anyone else because the people I was basing myself off of was part of the reason I was getting insecure. QUOTE “I was basing myself off models that are like sticks and were wearing clothes that I couldn’t wear anyway.”

 

Who is your inspiration in life in general and why?

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I don’t think I have an inspiration. I don’t I have someone that I’m like inspired by everything they do. People do different things that inspire me so it will be like the silliest little things. Someone will do something and I’ll be like that’s inspiring, that’s good. I think one main thing that inspired me when I was younger was I had a runner visit me weeks after I came out of hospital called Richard Whitehead and he’s got both his legs amputated I think and he basically came and told me “one day you won’t be in your wheelchair at all, you’ll just be walking.” At the time, I was like “your chatting that’s never gonna happen”, I was like “really, ok then.” But, I think that made me think that it was possible and that was the first inspiration then for me to keep going and to know what could happen.

 

Do you have anything else you love to do other than YouTube? Any hobbies?

 

I do trampolining. I started that at the start of secondary school basically just because my friends went and I wanted to go as well. I thought it would be fun, it looked fun and I started at first just because. I didn’t have any intentions of carrying it on further but then as time went on I started competing in it and then winning competitions and then training more seriously so that’s probably one hobby other than YouTube and shopping? Does that count as a hobby? (laughs).

 

Do you wear any prosthetics? If so what and why?

 

I wear leg prosthetics. These are Blade Mini XT’S. Sound like a pair of shoes! I did the actual advertising for these ones so they made me the pattern thinking of me because I love the colour pink and I wanted doodles that reflected me and I love how they turned out.  I don’t wear arm prosthetics.

 

Why don’t you wear arm prosthetics?

 

I don’t wear arm prosthetics because I found they were really heavy. I wore them for like 4 years when I was younger because they were technology offered to me and when we came out of hospital my mum was like you should try them. Try them, give them a go, see if they make your life better and I did. I tried them but I think once I came of an age where I could make my own decisions I was like no thank you, they were heavy, they were annoying and I felt I could do more without them. The only reason I would have been left wearing them with is because they look like normal arms. I was like I don’t care, like

" I have bright pink legs I don’t care."

 

 

What has been your greatest achievement in life so far?

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My greatest sporting achievement was probably either winning my national champion trampolining award. Winning that twice was good but then also trampoline related when I won the Pride of Sport Young Achiever Award. That was cool because it was my first proper like red carpet event and everything. Suit and tie, celebrities and I was sat there like a little fangirl.

 

Who’s the best celebrity you met?

 

Do you know Love Islands Chris and Kem? That night I was going round with them. Kem was loving it with me he was like “go and get your phone omg I’m with my best friend!” and I was there like “argghhh” (mouth open in shock) it was amazing.

 

Another achievement getting back on topic, was when I got my YouTube plaque for 100,000 subscribers because that was something I said I’d accomplish for ages and everyone didn’t really believe me so to actually win that and receive it was amazing, I was like I’ve made it.

 

Are there some if any things you can’t do for yourself?

 

My hair. So, I get really hot. I think it’s part of having no extremities which are your fingers and your toes so I’m always hot. Having my hair down sometimes is not the best. So, tying my hair up is something I can’t do. I can brush my hair, wash my hair all of that, but doing the actual tying it up and straightening and curling it my mum will do but most other things I would say I do for myself. I can’t think of anything else I can’t do. I basically deal with everything else myself.

 

How did it feel to win the Pride of Sports award?

 

Winning that award was amazing because it was like my first actual recognition from trampolining and everything I had been working on and doing. It was being shown and acknowledged on a national level because before that all my awards I got was solely trampolining at competitions so that was the first time I was recognised on a different scale. I also felt chosen like someone had chosen me rather than me performing to get that and that was amazing like I said earlier with it being red carpet and such a prestigious event. I remember going into school the next day and everyone was like” I saw you on TV” and that was when it hit me. I was so proud of myself.

 

What does the future look like for Isabelle Weall, I’ve seen you’ve been looking at driving?

 

The future excites me because I’m the kind of person that has so many goals and I’ll go to my mum like at least three times a day and be like “oh, I’m gonna do this.”  At the moment, my immediate future is trying to do my GCSE’s because they are only a few months away. Then after that I am looking at getting a car to drive that has the suitable adaptions for me so that’s going to be happening, driving lessons which is going to be really fun. I might be trying over the summer a new pair of prosthetic legs that have micro-prosthetics and knees in it so more advanced technology. That allows me to walk more normal as I bounce a little more at the moment. They bend. Ones I’ve had before when you go on the toe then flick and bend but these ones allow more movement. Long-term, I want to move out, I want to move to London because I feel like that is where I need to be. I want to get a flat in London by the time I’m like 22 because that’s still like 7 years away. I hopefully want to still be doing YouTube and have my influencer role. If the opportunity came up to do a job in a similar field then that would be cool as well.

 

 I think with my life I get different opportunities and I’ll honestly sometimes get a message like a week before like I’m needed in America to do a talk next week so I’m excited to be older so I can do that. Whereas at the moment a lot of the time there only going to pay for me and I can’t really fly by myself at this age. It will be good to be of an age where I can take all those opportunities and the more opportunities you take the different paths it leads you on. That’s my set of what I want to do but I’m not just sticking to that because being a YouTuber/ influencer isn’t a straight road at all. So, we’ll see.

 

What is your advice to other amputees?

 

My advice is don’t care what anyone else thinks of you because you’re probably overthinking what they are thinking anyway. Try your best in whatever you do and it will take time to adapt but if you can’t do something straight away figure out other ways. With everything I’ve learnt to do I’ve figured it out but it wouldn’t have been the first way I did it. I would have tried many times to find a way I could do it and then worked off that. Just to know you can. He can. She can. And I can.