In a new interview with Glamour, Ariel Winter, star of Modern Family, revealed that she’d gotten breast reduction surgery. The actress only recently recovered from the procedure—in early June, to be specific—and spoke to the magazine about why she chose to go from a 32F to a 34D in order to make life easier.
Winter tells Glamour that she had been unhappy with her breast size and had been attacked on the internet for the way that she looked. She describes her breasts as “too much to handle,” and says that a recent trip to shop for bathing suits made her realize that she had almost no choices when it came to swimwear. And finding clothes that aren’t meant for the beach isn’t any easier. According to the interview, Winter couldn’t wear the same clothes her friends were wearing and had to cover her body as much as possible so as not to appear in a way that she didn’t intend to. And, according to Winter, her growth spurt was very sudden.
From Glamour:
“It really did happen overnight,” Winter says of her breast development. “I remember being in my sister’s wedding and being so flat and thinking, ‘I just wish I would grow boobs!’ and then overnight I did. But then they kept growing and growing and growing and it didn’t seem like they were going to stop.” It’s hard enough being a teenager in life, but being on one of the most popular and critically-acclaimed sitcoms drew heightened interest. “I was 15 years old with [size] F [breasts],” recounts Winter. “It’s like, ‘How do you navigate that?’”
Winter also tells Glamour that she tends not to feel confident on the red carpet—although she grins and bears it—and was concerned not only by the possibility that internet commenters would mock her body, but by the possibility that news outlets that would focus on the 17-year-old’s “crazy cleavage,” stating that it was “all that she was known for.”
While Winter didn’t tell all of her Modern Family co-stars about her decision to seek surgery (which would have been a little weird, anyway, right? We don’t expect people to be open about other medical procedures), she told Glamour that Julie Bowen knew and was very supportive of her decision. In the end, though, she chose to go public because she didn’t want tabloids speculating or letting others think that she was ashamed of doing something that made both her life and her health better.
“I didn’t want to not tell anybody and then have another million stories (say), ‘What happened to Ariel? She looks so different.’ And I also think there’s some good that can come from (telling) my story. It’s something that I did to better my life and better my health, and I think that can benefit a lot of young girls. I have felt happier with myself than I ever have. I am living a dream that a lot of girls my age would love to be living, and I’m aware of that. I’m really grateful that I’m able to do that and have a voice that I’m able to speak to teenagers. I don’t want to do anything to mess that up.”
After the interview was posted online, Winter took to her Instagram to post a picture from her photo shoot with the magazine and thank the people who had supported her during this time.
Thank you so much@glamourmag and @JRadloff. I feel so blessed that you gave me a chance to share my story. I am extremely humbled. Jessica you are amazing!!!! To my fans, you guys have all been so supportive and I couldn’t thank y’all more. You are all amazing human beings and I’m honored to have you.
HUGE thanks go to the people who support me, love me, and take care of me in every way possible. To my incredible sister@shanelle_gray, her husband@davidbarrygray, my beautiful baby nieces, the love of my life@laurent_claude_gaudette and our furry babies Casper and Rocco, my father Glenn Workman, and my best friends@jessiebergg, @huntershocket,@ohmyskyy, and @music4joejoe who have been by my side through everything, THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH! I love you all more than anything. I don’t know what I’d do without you guys❤️ Thanks is also in order to my awesome team who works so hard for me all the time. I wouldn’t be where I am without them!!! Thank you!!! Lastly, never be afraid to speak your mind. Always make decisions because YOU want to, and always do what makes YOU happy. Xx
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