An NHS paramedic who was shamed by cruel trolls for wearing a full face of make-up in a work selfie at the height of the pandemic, has been hailed an ‘inspiration’ and told to ‘ignore the nasty’ comments.
Laura Heath, 24, from Staffordshire, shared a viral snap of herself on Twitter in March that racked more than 86,000 likes and 3,200 comments – but some of them weren’t complimentary, and questioned why she was ‘heavily made-up’.
She admitted on Good Morning Britain how one disgusting troll slammed her for her glamorous appearance, with some suggesting she was ‘the reason the COVID-19 death toll is rising’ and saying they ‘wouldn’t be treated by her’.
Viewers quickly came out in support of Laura, with one insisting she should be ‘celebrated not abused’ while another hailed the newly-qualified paramedic an ‘inspiration to young girls’.
Laura Heath, 24, from Staffordshire, shared a viral snap of herself on Twitter in March ,racking up more than 86,000 likes and 3,200 comments – but some of them weren’t complimentary, and questioned why she was ‘heavily made-up’
She admitted on Good Morning Britain how one disgusting troll slammed her for her glamorous appearance, with one calling her the ‘reason the rising COVID-19 death toll’
Speaking of the backlash she received from the selfie, Laura said: ‘People were being really supportive and I got lots of messages and lots of compliments and it was great.
‘But slowly I had a backlash of hate and abuse, commenting on my makeup and appearance and saying I was the reason for the death toll rising and they wouldn’t be treated by someone like me.’
Despite her backlash, many viewers soon took to Twitter to hail her ‘lovely and amazing’ and told her to ‘ignore nasty trolls’.
One wrote: ‘Attractive, smart, successful woman target by creeps stuck in their mums basement and stuffy ol’ fools who don’t understand that a woman has every right to Do WHAT SHE WANTS.. Laura, you’re an inspiration to many young girls.’
Viewers quickly came out in support of Laura, with one insisting she should be ‘celebrated not abused’ while another hailed the newly-qualified paramedic an ‘inspiration to young girls’
Another agreed:’Lovely Laura Health the paramedic don’t change how you are your a lovely pretty girl and do an amazing important job !! Ignore the nasty trolls they are not the majority.’
‘People like Laura should be celebrated not abused’, wrote a third, ‘Jealous idiots because she’s beautiful and doing an amazing job that really matters. I’m glad there are people like her in this world.’
In the viral snap, she was pictured sitting in the front of an ambulance as she posed for the full make-up shot.
Laura was then quizzed by host Kate Garraway on whether she felt the reason for her negative backlash was down to differences in attitudes between older and younger generations
The NHS worker insisted her job is her top priority, and that she doesn’t understand why a picture garnered such a strong negative reaction online
While most people thanked her for her dedication, others weren’t as nice and questioned why she was ‘heavily made-up’ and taking the time to take a picture during her shift.
Explaining why she posted the selfie, Laura told that she was feeling ‘low in confidence’ at the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, and wanted to post a photo in her uniform to show how ‘proud’ she is of her job.
‘I posted the picture because it was my own personal profile and I sometimes post pictures of myself in or out of uniform, said Laura.
‘I felt a bit low in confidence, it was the middle of the pandemic, and I had a proud moment. I wanted to post a picture in uniform saying I’m proud of my job and what I do.’
Despite her backlash, many viewers soon took to Twitter to hail her ‘lovely and amazing’ and told her to ‘ignore nasty trolls’
The NHS worker insisted her job is her top priority, and that she doesn’t understand why a picture garnered such a strong negative reaction online.
‘My job is my number one priority’, she said, ‘And I am young, I’m 24, I feel like I’m allowed to post a picture if I want to. I don’t know why that makes me such a bad person.’
Laura was then quizzed by host Kate Garraway on whether she felt the reason for her negative backlash was down to differences in attitudes between older and younger generations.
‘Potentially’, said Laura, ‘I’ll never know the real reasons why, but I can gather that probably plays a big part, it probably is a generation thing.
‘But I don’t want people to judge me for that and think I’m a bad person, because I’m not.’