At 32, This Girl Hated Her Body and Felt Ugly , Shes a Top Star, but Still Gets Mocked for Her Teeth
Throughout her life, the public figure has struggled with feeling disconnected from her body, often describing herself as merely a ‘floating head’ due to dissatisfaction with her looks. While her self-esteem has improved over time, she remains taken aback by the persistent comments about her teeth.
The actress has grappled with her body image since childhood. Growing up in Stockport, Greater Manchester, she experienced profound shyness and battled an eating disorder starting at age 16.
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Her personal challenges were compounded by her home life. With a mother working at Childline and a father who struggled with addiction while selling cars, she found her environment to be quite unstable. In an April 2025 interview, she shared:
“I was almost mute, very socially anxious. I couldn’t sit down and eat a meal. My mum had to leave food around the house and I’d have to snack around. Now I know it was neurodivergence.”
As she matured, her feelings of confusion only intensified. She couldn’t comprehend why tasks that appeared simple for others presented such challenges for her, while she found ease in situations that others struggled with.
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“I got diagnosed a few years ago with ADHD with autistic traits,” she stated. “But then it’s been advised that I should go for an autism assessment. They think that maybe it’s autism that’s leading the charge, and the ADHD is almost a by-product of the masking.”
As her home life grew more tumultuous, new obstacles arose at school. Following her parents’ divorce, her stepfather enrolled her in a private institution.
There, she experienced relentless bullying and profound unhappiness. “I can remember the day where I made the strategic choice, in year seven, to change,” she reflected in another conversation. During a drama class game of freeze tag, a teacher offered a subtle nod — ‘Do it.’
That prompted a moment of realization for her: “I’m at a crossroads. I can either carry on how I am and be really miserable or I can get up and do a funny character that might make people laugh.” Taking that leap proved successful, perhaps even too well.
This commitment to humor opened new avenues, guiding her towards a career in acting. After completing her studies at RADA, she secured her debut role as Aimee Gibbs in the popular Netflix series “Sex Education.”
Her character’s plotlines dealt with issues of sexual empowerment, navigating sexual assault, and addressing the emotional fallout in the third season. She recounted in another interview:
“I remember feeling quite vulnerable after ‘Sex Education.’ If it had been all of us getting our boobs out, then I would feel better. It felt like I was the one that had done the freakiest stuff.”
However, the fame that followed came with its own challenges. As viewership for the show surpassed 50 million, she found herself increasingly uncomfortable off-camera, often opting for quirky, unflattering outfits — if she ventured out at all. Dealing again with body image concerns, she began to hide her figure, suppressing any desire to feel confident and attractive.
This discomfort extended into her professional life. While rehearsing for her role in the musical “Cabaret,” she initially found acting and singing easy, but dancing proved to be a significant hurdle.
“I was so embarrassed. At drama school, I was being told consistently that I was moving my body in the wrong way. So when I walked into a rehearsal, where I have to express myself through my body, I felt like I was going to burst into tears. I hate feeling awkward in my own body,” she confessed, adding:
“It’s definitely tied into having had eating disorders. Your body becomes like an enemy. I was so detached from my body when I was in the eating disorders, it was like I was outside it, scrutinizing it.”
This anxiety eventually confined her indoors. Leaving her home became infrequent, as the burden of being recognized impacted her greatly. She once explained:
“If you’ve been bullied as a kid, like I was at school, the feeling of being noticed wherever you go… it was not healthy for me.”
Interactions with fans varied widely — while some requested selfies, others secretly recorded her on public transport, and many sought to share personal stories following the second season of “Sex Education.” Feeling overwhelmed and trapped in a constant state of anxiety, she opted to stay home for what she termed “a long time.”
Although friends would come to visit in the evenings and she managed early mornings at work, even mundane activities like shopping or walking down the street filled her with trepidation.
She often sensed that she was letting down those who approached her, believing she wasn’t providing enough. However, with the passage of time and therapy, she came to realize that she was merely trying to live her life and was not a specialist, just an everyday individual.
During this growth phase, Aimee Lou Wood articulated a sentiment that had shadowed her for much of her existence. She revealed that, due to her struggles with eating disorders and body dysmorphia, she frequently felt as if she were a ‘floating head’ — a mind filled with thoughts yet disconnected from her body, driven by self-loathing, a sentiment she gratefully no longer harbors.
Wood, who also faced anorexia and bulimia, now considers her mental health to be an integral part of her life, not a distant concept. “I’m like, ‘no, accept the brain that you’ve got and now start living for that truth.'”
She describes herself as someone managing multiple mental health issues and believes there is no shame in being mentally ill. The guidance of a psychic — that as long as she remains grounded in reality, the world holds endless possibilities for her — continues to provide stability.
Despite her progress, certain insecurities persist. The 32-year-old recalled her experience on “The White Lotus,” where a producer noted how hard Mike White fought to have her cast. Although the remark was made with good intentions, she couldn’t shake the thought:
“HBO didn’t want me. And I know why HBO didn’t want me, it’s because I’m ugly. Mike had to say ‘Please let me have the ugly girl!’ That was the thing that was in my head.”
Even as her career flourished, the emphasis on her appearance became increasingly hard to avoid. Conversations surrounding Wood’s teeth — once embraced as a break from Hollywood’s chase for flawlessness — soon became tiresome.
While she valued the rebellious message, the constant focus on her looks left her feeling diminished. The English actress, whose Stockport accent has also faced criticism, once shared:
“The whole conversation is just about my teeth, and it makes me a bit sad because I’m not getting to talk about my work.”
She expressed feelings of sadness, pondering why such intense scrutiny continued and questioning whether a man would experience the same level of attention regarding his appearance.
The attention surrounding her appearance reached larger audiences when a skit on “Saturday Night Live” mocked Wood’s teeth, depicting her character from “White Lotus” with oversized fake teeth and a clumsy British accent. Although she received apologies from the show’s team and managed to maintain a smile, the skit reportedly upset her.
Regardless of the public focus, Wood remains candid about her own insecurities. In a previous interview, she acknowledged that her concerns about her teeth were barriers she constructed in her mind rather than factors that actually hindered her career.
While theater auditions always felt more manageable, television made her question herself, especially when faced with the polished smiles prevalent on platforms like Netflix. Gradually, supportive messages from fans who shared her features helped alter her viewpoint. She credits Georgia May Jagger, whose success inspired her to view prominent teeth as beautiful, not flawed.
As her self-assurance blossomed, Wood began to discuss her natural features more openly. During her appearance on “The Jonathan Ross Show” in March 2025, she shared, “I can’t believe the impact my teeth are having.” Hearing orthodontists affirm that she didn’t need to change anything felt “lovely,” a fulfilling moment after years of bullying.
In addition, Wood has voiced her commitment to maintaining her natural appearance. She stands against Botox, explaining that while individuals are entitled to their choices, her ability to express herself relies on the freedom of her facial movements. “So, I can’t start freezing my face. It needs to move,” she joked.
Through her many personal struggles, Wood has learned to accept every aspect of herself, from her body image battles to the features that once made her feel out of place. Her journey illustrates the strength found in prioritizing authenticity over societal ideals of perfection.
Whether discussing mental health or challenging unrealistic beauty norms, she continues to cultivate a space defined by transparency. In doing so, Wood emphasizes that there is genuine beauty in simply being oneself.
