by MIKE CHAIKEN
CTFashionMag.com
“Say it in the street, that’s a knock-out/ But you say it in a Tweet, that’s a cop-out” – Taylor Swift
Teen model Avaryana Rose has her share of Instagram success.
But with that success, she also has had to deal with cyberbullies, trolls and creepers.
There have been times when the high school student thinks, is it worth it? Thus far though, Avaryana has kept plugging along, building her social media fan base.
“Some of the meanest things people have said to me are things like ‘fake model’, ‘ugly face,’ etc.,” said Avaryana in an email interview through her mother. “They also like to tell me that I don’t deserve the opportunities that I have gotten so far.”
To combat the haters, Avaryana said she uses the tools given to her by social media platforms.
“I handle it by just deleting the comment, and blocking the person if necessary,” said Avaryana.
Although she could engage with the bullies, Avaryana opts to ignore them. “I have learned to shake it off because in this point in time I’ve learned that nothing they say matters, or is valid,” she said. “I’ve learned to not care what they say about me and just focus on what I do best.”
With 400,000 plus followers on her own Instagram pages, and several fan pages, Avaryana has found that some are emboldened by the anonymity of the internet to steer their comments into a sexual direction – even though Avaryana is 15 years old.
“If I get inappropriate comments, I usually just do the same thing I do with the mean and nasty ones,” said Avaryana. “Delete and block.”
“Comments that set off my automatic block are gross comments about my body, and things ‘they want to do to me,'” said Avaryana. “To me it is so disgusting.”
“I have unfortunately had to report people to Instagram because some of the things they say are utterly ridiculous and definitely not something a teen should hear,” said the Southern-based model.
The cyberbullies, trolls and creepers have made Avaryana question whether her position in the public eye is worth it. “The things they were saying ‑and their actions to try to take me down ‑ really got me down and I was considering just stopping it all.”
However, Avaryana has opted to stick it out “because modeling is something I am so passionate about, and I love it too much to just let it go like that.”
Having walked in New York Fashion Week, Avaryana has had a chance to speak with older models who also have had to deal with detractors on the web. She said the models told her to ignore the comments “no matter how much it hurts. You have to keep your head up and stay confident in what you do.”
In terms of her future, Avaryana does see some positives with having to deal with the negatives of Instagram modeling.
“I’ve learned how to talk to people and be outgoing,” said the teen. “I am usually very shy and reserved.”
“It will also help me when people are saying things about me because it won’t hurt me as much anymore and I can ignore them,” said Avaryana.
For her teen peers in modeling or thinking about modeling, Avayana said that the views of the haters do not matter.
“You have to just keep going stronger than ever because it’s the best revenge,” said Avaryana.
PHOTOS by MIKE CHAIKEN via FaceTime