In books and old Disney movies, princesses appear cute, kind, and beautiful. However, even in real life, princesses are not flawless. Their crowns and high status do not protect them from self-destructive thoughts about their appearance (such as someone saying they are too curvy or too thin, too tall or too short). Similar complexes plagued even Princess Diana, one of the world’s most famous women loved by all.
Following Diana’s death, more than a million people gathered along the funeral procession route in London. Diana is believed to have been the most popular member of the British royal family in Great Britain.
Here, you’ll learn 7 things Diana disliked about her appearance, unnoticed by anyone else. We now know that princesses, too, have insecurities just like us.
Despite being a style icon, the princess was also a human with insecurities. For instance, when artist Israel Zohar painted her portrait in 1990, Diana constantly wanted him to fix something about her appearance, especially when it came to her nose.
The press actively debated Diana’s supposed large nose. Diana tried to conceal it with a big hairdo in all her photographs. She would tilt her head slightly downwards, turn it to the side a bit, and raise her eyes. This became her signature angle.
Beautiful Diana also believed she had a swimmer’s physique. She didn’t like her broad shoulders. Fortunately, voluminous shoulders were in fashion in the 80s. Diana cleverly utilized this trend, opting for padded outfits and clothing styles popular at the time. This made her shoulders appear less broad, giving the impression that the princess was simply following fashion trends.
Additionally, a slightly tilted head helped Diana cope with another one of her complexes: she was ashamed of her height. Her insecurity about her height was further exacerbated by the fact that her husband was of the same height.
However, in official portraits, the princess appeared shorter than her husband. This was because palace photographers deliberately made Diana appear shorter; she would stand accordingly next to her husband and wear flat shoes. This helped Charles look taller and more imposing than his wife.
A week after their wedding, Diana began to suffer from bulimia, which lasted for about 10 years. Diana shared that there were several reasons for her eating disorder. Firstly, she had problems with her husband. They were supposed to be together and display a good relationship in public, but in reality, there was no peace and harmony between them.
Secondly, one of the princess’s duties was to interact with severely ill people, which turned out to be a serious blow to her soul. It turned out that her bulimia was detrimental to her mental health, which is why she did not seek help and felt ashamed of her illness, thus hating herself.
Diana saw herself as fat. All of this stemmed from a comment her husband made inadvertently by putting his hand on her waist and saying, “Oh, a bit chubby here, aren’t we?” She took her groom’s words painfully.
So, this 19-year-old girl began rapidly losing weight before her wedding day. When tailors started making a wedding dress for Diana, her waist was 30 inches. Before the wedding ceremony, the princess’s waist was reduced to 23 inches. One fashion designer remembers Diana being very thin, with visible cheekbones.
According to Diana’s personal trainer Carolan Brown, after giving birth to two children, the princess’s stomach required a lot of attention and physical activity. The princess was actively engaged in sports, which not only helped improve her body but also her emotional state. Additionally, Carolan recalls that Diana started voice improvement lessons because her voice didn’t sound confident enough and resembled that of a little girl.
This photo was taken when Diana wore a black dress, the day Prince Charles admitted in a television interview that he had an affair with another woman. Later, Diana began speaking openly on television about how difficult the last years had been for her. Before that, Diana had not confessed to having psychological problems in public.
Family life with Charles didn’t work out, but they were supposed to show a happy marriage. Diana received little support from the royal family for many years and had a difficult relationship with her own mother. Thus, the young princess became a hostage to depression.
However, she found her strength and slowly began to overcome the insecurities and nervous tension that had poisoned her life for years. She battled bulimia and started exercising regularly at the gym. Now, she no longer had to act like a loving spouse in public.
Lack of confidence in appearance can happen to anyone, even members of the royal family. What matters is finding the strength to fight them.
