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People Share Their Incredible “Ugly Duckling” Transformations And It’s Hard To Believe They’re The Same People
Danish poet and author Hans Christian Andersen published The Ugly Duckling in 1843, and a huge reason why the fairy tale is famous to this day is that of how relatable it is. It's a heartwarming story about personal transformation for the better, revolving around inner beauty just as much as it does around its outer counterpart when the duckling turns into a beautiful swan.
Now, no matter how pretty you might've been since the day you were born, we all go through that awkward stage in early puberty. The puberty stage when your body proportions might sadly relate to ones of a manatee. Pair it with a haircut enhancing none of your good features, add braces and some questionable fashion choices, and voila - you've got yourself something to be ashamed of years later. Luckily, when the body transformation is completed, a beautiful swan, just like from the Ugly Duckling, emerges.
To prove that the Longbottoming Syndrome (named after an actor from the Harry Potter series, Matthew Lewis) is an intrinsic part of life, people are sharing their personal before and after pics. Viewing these amazing photos, it's clear that you never know what time has prepared for you. Even though these late bloomers had to wait a little longer than others to grow into their looks fully, the results seem totally worth it. Scroll down to check out their stunning before-and-after images!
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I Must Say, Being An Ugly Duckling (Both Self-described And By The Perception Of Others) Made Me A Much Better Person Than I Might Have Been Had I Always Been "Pretty"
So Much Can Change In Few Years
Taking The Cake On This One
I dont think the kid is ugly just because he is a bit chubby. He looks like a creative boy. Cute kid! Handsome man!
My Sister, Before And After
Oh, I So Got This One
Here's Freshman Year Of College (17) Vs. Now (25)
Puberty Hits
This guy reminds me of the famous Neville Longbottom transformation :-) I don't know but they kind of look alike. :-) Both handsome now o:-)
So This Is Me In 8th Grade And This Is Me Now As A Senior
Holy Freckles Batman
Freshman 20 And 3 Years Later
Before And After
The Before Vs. The After. I Feel Like I've Improved A Bit
Me Age 15 And Me Age 21
Congratulations on beating your acne. I know how painful and hard to control it is.
People From High School Usually Recognize Me Just Enough To Ask If I Have A Younger Brother
Still Don't Think I'm Quite Over The Syndrome, But I Do Know I'm Heaps Better
My Prepubescent Grandma-esque Appearance Is Still The Butt Of Many Jokes From Friends And Family Today
Me In Grade 9 Vs. This Summer At My Cousin's Wedding
I Went Through A Mega-Awkward Stage
Man, I Was Good Looking
Bowl Cut + No Eyelashes + Lipstick On A 1st Grader
Me At 13, And Again At 22
Who Would Have Thought That First Guy Would Ever Reproduce
Before, Depressed, In The Closet, Overweight And After, Doing My Thing In Chicago
Here's Me Then; Shy, Socially Awkward, Big Eared And Unlucky With The Ladies And Here's Me Now; Shy, Socially Awkward, Big Eared And Unlucky With The Ladies
Chubby Kid With Afro Vs. After
I Got This
1999, 2005 And Now
I Think I Got Less Creepy Over Time
"It took you 12 minutes to get home. Google Maps said it would take 8. WHO IS SHE?"
Took About 8 Years Of Not Being A B*tch But I Think Things Turned Out Okay
How I Looked At The Start Of 2006 And That's Me At The End Of 2011
Needless To Say, Middle School Was A Rough Time
It was rough for pretty much everbody regardless of how "cool" they looked from other kid's perspectives. Adolescence sucks.
Three Ugly Ducklings Then And Three Full Fledged Geese Now
Before And After
It Took Me Some Time To Finally Become A Man!
Myself At The Wonderful, And Never Awkward, Age Of 15. And Here's Me 6 Years Later At 21 Years Old. Perhaps It Wasn't "Ugly Duckling," As Much As It Was "Kind Of Overweight Duckling."
I Don't Think I'm Anything Special Now But The Before Picture Cracks Me Up
25 Years Of Transformation...dear Teens, You're Fine Just As You Are!
I like his caption. The rest of these people are killing me with the hypercritical negativity towards themselves as children.
Here's Me At About 14 And Here I Am A Few Months Ago
Ugly As F*ck Duckling Vs. Now
Middle School Vs. Now
First Pic (fat One) Grade 9. Second Is First Year University
I Really Can't Explain The Quote. I Had A Profound Admiration For Antionio Banderas
I Was Always The "Ugly" Friend And Never Had Guys Like Me Until Years After High School. I Had Cystic Acne Since Age 13 And Was Bullied Immensely In High School
5 Years Ago Vs 6 Months Ago...
Before And After
All this makes me sad. Everyone is awkward looking going through puberty. Each and every one of you are pretty/handsome before and after. You just needed to find your style.
A Sad Insecure Girl Into A Happy Less Insecure Woman
The First Pic Is Me In The Swimsuit, Playing Some Game At Summer Camp, WEARING MY HEADGEAR. Goddamn I Was Devoted To Wearing That Shit 20 Hours A Day. Major Loser. Then, After Some Awkward, Fat, Lesbian, Weird-hair Phases, We Arrive At The Second Picture
2nd picture looks pretty, but the self-loathing in the caption is awful. Lesbian shouldn't be a negative word either. Good grief.
I Cringe At My Before Picture. What A Handful Of Years Can Do
So This Is Before In High School And This Is Me Now
3rd Grade Vs. Senior Year
She was cute as a child. I find it sad that a lot of these seem to portray looking "childlike" is ugly.
I'm Still Really Awkward And Make Idiotic Faces In Most Of My Pictures But At Least I Have Boobs Now
Well you pretty much admitted to this awkwardness thing being entirely under your control... ;-) As for "I have boobs now", I realize the American ideal is all "curves and big boobs", but it's an arbitrary standard, has no universality (attractiveness is subjective, and there is plenty of variety in tastes), and small breasts are not a bad thing whatsoever.
My Own Transformation - From Fat Bastard To Marathon Runner In Just 4 Years...
I Had A Rough Childhood
I think she wasn't ugly. I think she is quite cute in her childhood pic. She turned into beautiful young lady. Nice hair :-)
2008/2016
I Had To Wear Headgear At Night/braces/other Dental Things Because My Teeth Were So Bad, And I'm Pretty Sure I Had A Moustache At The Time The First Picture Was Taken
13 Yo Vs 28 Yo
Before When I Was 12, Nowadays At 22
Just A Few Years Apart
One On The Left Vs. Now
Then And Now
Then And Now
Me 3 Years Ago Vs Now.
Why Do Parents Give Bowl Haircuts On Girls?!
Before And After
Me About 3 To 23 , My Mom Calls Me The Ugly Duckling That Turned To Swan (not Sure If I'm A Swan Or A Sheep)
12 Vs. 22 Years Old. Still A Proud School Nerd.
From 🐷 To 🦄
Here's A Timeline Of My Ugly Duckling-ness
So Embarrassed....
14yo Vs 24yo
About 10 Years Apart
13 Years Old And Now, 24 Years Old. I Had Horrible Acne And Chubby Cheeks, Glad To See Them Gone. Also, Thumbs Up For Makeup!!!
Makeup... Meh. The new one is a more dramatic and stylish photo (cool), but you weren't an ugly duckling. Acne notwithstanding, the 13-year old photo is nice. I've seen chubby cheeks. This young photo doesn't showcase any such thing, IMO. So many people have such a harsh feeling about themselves in their old photos, likely because of how they were treated by others. It's really sad.
Start Of 2009 (15) Vs. End Of 2016 (22)!
Left: Taken A Few Months Ago, Age 26! Right: When I Was 17...
2009 Vs 2015
You look like the before and after that Captain America went through! You need to jump the cue, you're the #1! GEORGEOUS!
(left) Me When I Was A Sassy And Pudgey 10 Year Old And (right) Me Now At 24...less Pudgey...sometimes Still Sassy. Haha.
Thankfully I Grew Out Of My Awkward Teen Years!
Left:bullied Relentlessly, Single, No Eyelashes, Bad Hair, Aweful Arm Acne, Slightly On The Chubby Side, Flat Chested, Homeschooled. Right: Happy With Life, Independent, And Wearing Some Makeup (amazinhat That'll Do For Ya)
I'm Still As Nerdy As I Looked In 4th Grade! Just Grew Into My Look 😉
This Is Still An Exercise In Confidence For Me. Proud Of How Far I've Come Already.
Me too! Posting my pics on this thread was both terrifying and cathartic. We spend so much time obsessing over the past instead of embracing the present.
Such A Charmer
Not The Best Quality, But I Grew Up In An Age Before These Newfangled Digital Cameras And Don't Have A Scanner Anymore
Thirty Years Later...
Oh God'...
86 And 06
Neither picture is bad! I think the new picture is very handsome! Living the glasses!
Me At 10 Vs 41. High School Was Rough. Hang In There
From Early Teens To 21. I'm Glad It Was Just A Phase!
7th Grade On The Bottom Left, Sophmore Year Of High School On The Top Left.. And Now!
13 And 33
I'm Still Sassy.
I Don't Know How The Hell I Had Friends Back Then.
Haha! I bet you were super fun to hang out with! Adorable then, beautiful now!
Before And After The Class Clown Grew Up!
Literally 2 Years
About 4 Years Ago Vs Today, Went From Ugly Duckling To Just A Duckling
17 Vs 28! But Still The Same In Heart...
Me At 14 And 29
I Finally Grew Into My Nose And Chin 😉
Me At Age 9-10 Vs Me Now
Age 16 And Age 29
I Actually Think During Puberty Was My Worst Time
I Was Bullied Up Until Very Recently. Definitely A Sufferer Of Ugly Ducklings Syndrome!
Me At 16 And 22.
2005 Vs 2016
There Is Hope! 18 Vs 23
Woops first post so didn't format it very well sorry guys!
Me At 14 And Again At 20. I Think Its An Acheivment
Me In 2010 And Me Now. (this Is What I Call A Transformation, Right? :d)
Before 15 And After :) About 23 Puberty Thank You
Looking Like I Belonged In Hogwarts To Wishing I Had Have Gone To Hogwarts!
My Brother Before 14 And After 18
14 Vs. 29. I Still Feel Like The Same Person. Yet I Feel Completely Different At The Same Time.
Me, 2 Years Ago, Awkward And Unacceptable For Public Viewing Vs Me 2 Weeks Ago
Then Vs Now
It's Been A Long Road.
When I Was In Middle School With My Blue Eyeshadow Vs. Now With Pink Bleached Hair
1998/2016
At 8, Little Round Glasses, Very Shy Little Girl And Now Still Shy But Upgraded The Glasses
Robert Borkowski (me)
Past Vs Present
From Picked On To Hit On
Puberty Well Played. #norwegians
3 Years Later, Boys Who Made Fun Of Me At High School, Want To Flirt Whith Me.
Me At 7 Years Old Vs Me Now.
You were very beautiful as a kid as well. No sign of ugly duckling here!
Middle School To 24
8 Years Changed Me Quite A Bit. Thankfully
Me Age 15 And Age 26
First Day Of College (17) Vs Now (24)
23 Years Difference...
My Husband Before And After He Met His Orthodontist Runner Wife.
6th Grade Short-hair, Giant Glasses, Beanpole Woes... Forward To Age 36. Thank God For Time.
Me As The "brother" Of The Family At Age 10. Glad I Finally Grew Into My Hair And Teeth 20 Years Later.
At My 18 I Was A Proud To Be A Fighter, Today I Feel Like I Can Be A Fighter And A Woman ...
Me At 15 With Acne, Braces, And No Confidence Vs Me Now In The Air Force And With A Gf.
Pictures On The Right Are From My Sister Xd Luckily I Grew Up To Be Slightly Better Looking. Stil Chubby Like Before By Definatly Not As Awkward.
Lets Just Say A Perm Was Not A Good Look.
Preach girl! I too was the victim of an ill-advised perm. Actually pretty much AOL perms are ill-advised lol. You're a beauty!
Senior Year @ Almost 200lbs, To Now @24 And 140lbs. I Feel Loads Better. Totally Blossomed Late...
25 Years Later & I Still Have My 6th Grade Id. It Lives On My Fridge As A Reminder To Laugh
The 90's Weren't My Best Time...
5 Years Difference(went To Gym, Got Braces, Grow My Hair, [ Btw Still Have Glasses])
Sometimes Ending A Bad Relationship Is The Answer
I Think I Have Improved...
I Was The Nerdy Band Kid That Spent Her Summers At Church Camp
Back In My - It's Not A Phase Mom, It's Who I Am! -days, Tho I Dont Regret The Bullying And Stuff Cause It Made Me Grow Stronger And Love My Self
Eighth Grade And Nearly 25, Thank You Puberty ❤
Year 11 And Now 42. It Took Me 30 Years To Feel Like A Woman.
90's Butterfly Clips 🤗
I loved those butterfly clips, lol. Your glasses look a lot like the ones I had too.
12 Vs. 27
Then (age: 17 Years) Vs. Now (age: 23 Years)
Who Allowed Me To Wear That Sweater?
Me Young With Bad Hair Cuts And No Style And Me Now.
10 Years Old And Now. I Had To Be The Funny One For So Many Years. Too Short, Skinny, Ugly, And Thanks To My (now Dead, Dear God) Grandma With The Worst Haircut For A Little Girl. Kids Are Mean To Each Other Anyway.
I relate. My mom had no patience for trying to make my hair presentable. Except I got a perm.
Ugly Duckling No More!
Age 14, 16, 23, 27 And Now At 29. I Went From An Awkward Duck To Comfortable In My Own Skin.
The best part is that I finally learned how to draw in my eyebrows.....at 24yrs old. I went from geeky nerdy child to geeky nerdy lady with a teaching degree and way more confidence. If I hadn't been teased and asked out as a joke growing up, I may not be the confident kind person I am today. Thank you grade school and high school bullies! You helped shape me into the person I am proud to be.
Skinny, Long Limbed Brace Face. I Didn't Gain Confidence Until After High School.
And Then One Of The 33 Million Gods Said, 'let Puberty Hit Her Like A Truck.'
I Was Definitely An Ugly Duckling, It Took Me 19 Years To Get Over That Phase
Black Magic, People.
From 15 To 25, A Decade Of Awkwardness
You look happy in both. Your happiness is what is important, not what everyone says about you or what you might have been conditioned to believe. But if it is important to you, you look adorable in both pictures.
High School Vs. Now
Discovered My Natural Beauty...and Contacts!
5 Yrs Old And Now At 22 Yrs Old
Me At 10 Or 12....and Me Now! Boom Y'all!
Still Fat But At Least My Hairs On Point!
A Curious Case Of Benjamin Button? Xdd
2013 / 2016
My Son Then And Now. He Will Be 18 This Month
Used To Think I Looked S**it Hot, Will Probably Think The Same In A Couple Years
Me At 13 And 200 Pounds, And Me At 22, 105 Pounds
Some Day I Noted That I Could Be Pretty...
Only 2 Years!
1986 Vs 2016
We Weren't All Gems In High School.
15 And 25. Amazing What 10 Years Can Do
95-2012
This Is Me In 2006 Vs 2016.
Me When I Was 8 Yrs Old Vs. Me At 16 Years Old
15 Vs 25. It's All About The Brows
On The Left, I'm 28. On The Right, 44 (was Taken Last Month)
Up Until Around 16ish I Was The One On The Left The Left
My Beautiful Wife Pam And 13 And A Few Years Ago At 40. Had To Ask Permission To Post The Pic From Decades Ago But Had To Share :)
6th Grade Vs 24
This Picture Haunted Me! My Mom Got Me A Premium Bc I Had Thick, Unruly Hair And Thought It'd Be Easy To Take Care Of. My Self Image Is Better Today But That Curly Haired, Buck Toothed Girl Is Still A Part Of Me.
Freshman On The Left, Senior On The Right
@ 14 On The Left And Then @ 20 On The Right. Ugly Duckling For Sure!
12 Vs. 18
14 To 30......puberty Hit Me Haaaaarrrd. So Glad I Grew Up.
Me In 4th Grade V.s Me Now. I Think I've Improved A Bit
I'm Still As Nerdy As I Looked In 4th Grade! Just Grew Into My Look 😉
Fifth Grade Was Not Kind. Neither Was Anyone Else Who Didn't Tell Me How Rediculous I Looked.
Sun-in Is The Devil. I Thought Granny Fashion Would Catch. It Did Not. Ages 38/13
15 (fake Cruise Tattoo) Vs 19 (real Tattoos)
Me The Summer After 8th Grade (2007) Vs Now
Back When I Was 12 Vs. Now At 23
90's Butterfly Hair Clips! 🤗
18 - 27
Fourth Grade To Forty
L: My Frail, Weird 16 Year-old Self/ R: My Still-weird 28 Year-old Self :p
I Was Always Bullied For Having A Big Nose, Getting Called Little Miss Piggy. Then Growing Up In A Foreign Country, Que Awkward Emo Phase, And Where I Was An Outsider. I Think I Have Be Grown Into My Nose And Now Own That S**t!
Needless To Say That I Was A Style Icone Back In 2010, But I Think I Got Better By Time
26 Years In Between...
Thank Goodness For Braces, Contact Lenses And Flat Irons. Ages 15, 25 And 39.
I Was A Slightly Awkward Nerdy Little Kid. Still Awkward And Still Nerdy I've Just Learned To Embrace It.
From 9 Years Old 14 Soon To Be 15 👧🏼 Just Imagine What Can Happen Once I Make It Through Puberty... Watch Out World 👩🏻🎤 Amazing What Can Happen When You Set Your Mind To It.
I Still Don't Think I Look Good But I Feel Like I've Changed A Lot
10 Th Grade Vs. 25 Years Old
I've Changed Both In My Weight And Style. The One Image Is Me Around 8 Yrs Old The Bottom One Is From College The Middle Is From 2012 And The Large One Is From Today.
Age 17 Age 25
I Know I'm Still Ugly But I Guess Its A Little Increase (1 1/2 Years)
You are NOT UGLY!! Learn confidence in being yourself, it'll bring out the beauty in you. You'll thank me later.
Me In 1987 And Me In 2016 Holding An Artwork. Yes I Am Naturally Blond Now :)
It Seems I Got A Little Older...
11th Birthday And Now 26
My Senior Year Of High School To My Birthdday Last Month!!!
Some People Have A Couple Awkward Yrs. Mine Last 18!! Haha
Is That Even The Same Person? One Heck Of A Transformation Tuesday
Ohh Childhood...
High School Was Very Odd For Me.
Before-after
I Grew Into My Nose And Chin 😉
I Grew Into My Nose And Chin :)
18 Years Old Vs Now, 27 Years Old.
Me At 15 And Me At 31 Definitely Like A Good Bottle Of Whiskey And Got Better With Age
1984 Vs 2016. I Like Both. 😜
I Make Road Cone Orange Look Good!!
Before (14) And After (24)
Luckily Something Happened ^-^
Get Ready For 19 Age
Get Ready For 19 Age
Seriously, I Did Have Rough Teen Years. Photos Of Me As 14 Yo And 24 Yo
What Changed Is Probably My Hairstyle
Then: Awkward, Insecure 10 Year Old. To Now: Still Awkward, Not As Insecure 19 Year Old.
Georgous
Top Left: Freshman Year. Other Three: 2016.
My Ugly Duckling Face
Before 180 Kg, After 110 Kg
Ohh Childhood...
From 1974 To 2017 The Evolution Of Mad Mar
9-year-old Me And 27-year-old Me... Still Struggling With Adult Acne But Feeling Much Better About Myself
25 Years Later & I Still Have My 6th Grade Id - It Lives On My Fridge As A Reminder To Not Take Life So Seriously.
My Ugly Duckling Photo From 6th Grade And Me Now (dont Judge To Soon)
My Ugly Duckling Photo From 6th Grade And Me Now (dont Judge To Soon)
When You Quit Drinking And Smoking
15 Jahrs Ago And Now... In Past I Hate My Redhead, Now I Love It !
Its Just A Illusion. My Birthday. Before And After.
I Think The Nose Has Gotten Bigger, Yeah? Me When I Was 10 To The Left And At 24 On The Right
10 Years Old On Left And 28 Years Old On Right
A Timeline From 2011 To 2014 To 2015 Until 2016
The Changes Are Too Drastic That The Bullies Don't Recodnize Me Anymore.
4th Grade Vs. Last Year. I Would Get Questions If I Was Actually A Boy.
Your teeth turned out to be awesome, as well as the rest of you......lol.
Puberty Hit Me Like A Truck
Puberty Hit Me Hard
Age 14 (then) And Age 30 Today (the Bullying Was Non Stop For All Of High School)
When I Was 7. Then When I Am 27
7th Grade Vs Junior Year Of College
From Ugly Duckling, To Georgous
I'm A Lot Older Than Some Of The People In This Article, But Still Feel I Clean Up All Right.
Dark Hair For When I Was 14. No I Am 21 With Curls
21 With Curls
2009 To 2017...let's Just Say, High School Was A Hard Time...
My Story Is A Little Different Than The Rest. In The First Picture, A "girl" Going Through The Motions. (taken In 08, I Was 19 At The Time) And The Second...a Married Man, Father Of 4, Who Finally Knows What Was Wrong All Those Years Ago.
Me At Age 26, Six Years After Being Close To 200 Lbs.
At 20yrs And Now 49yrs.
Age. 16 Vs 21
2011 To 2015. Kind Of Amazing What Hair, Makeup, And 50 Pounds Will Do For A Person😂
From 8th Grade To A Junior In College.. Eyebrows Are Very Important
I Changed. But For The Better? I'll Let You Decide
There Was A Lot Of Orthodontic Work Done
From Socially Awkard Skater Chick, To Socially Awkward Normal Cute Human Being
Ugly Duckling.
Ugly Duckling After
Thank-you Braces, Contacts, Make Up And Hair Dye. Lol
At Age 12 And Age 22 ❤️
1996 Vs. 2015 : Thank Ye Gods For Lasik
10 Year Difference!
Me At 15 Yrs Old And Me Now At 44
From An Overweighted Girl To An Handsome Transguy :)
2011 Me Vs 2016 Me 🤔
I Didn't Like The Way I Looked, And With In A Year At The Gym And Eating Healthily And Properly I Noticed A Change, And That's Why I Stick At It To This Day!
2001
Me About 2 Years Ago, Awkward And Unacceptable For Public Viewing Vs Me Now
Gotta Say I've Come A Long Way. 8th Grade Vs 20 Y/o
10 Years Old To 18 Years Old
After
Childhood
People change so much as they grow up. Face shapes develop. Often, when we are young our teeth, ears and noses can seem far too big for our faces but most people grow in to them. Hairstyles inflicted by parents and fashion rarely help. I remember an aunt and uncle laughing at my childhood photos (thanks mum for having them on display) and saying to me about how I'd changed from an ugly duckling. Okay, it's nice to look better than I did but I haven't achieved anything, it's just genetics. People find a wide range of different things attractive anyway so it's all subjective.
None of these people were ugly, just in need of a haircut and some different clothes.
Exactly. I think most of them must have been within the best-looking 10% of their class.
Load More Replies...People change so much as they grow up. Face shapes develop. Often, when we are young our teeth, ears and noses can seem far too big for our faces but most people grow in to them. Hairstyles inflicted by parents and fashion rarely help. I remember an aunt and uncle laughing at my childhood photos (thanks mum for having them on display) and saying to me about how I'd changed from an ugly duckling. Okay, it's nice to look better than I did but I haven't achieved anything, it's just genetics. People find a wide range of different things attractive anyway so it's all subjective.
None of these people were ugly, just in need of a haircut and some different clothes.
Exactly. I think most of them must have been within the best-looking 10% of their class.
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