‘Trolls name me overweight once I strip to bikinis – however I’m happy with my curves’

A curvy model has stripped down to a bikini to hit back at trolls who label her “obese”.

Bikini model and designer Karina Irby is known for promoting body positivity online.

Fans often praise her authenticity when it comes to body image. However, the 34-year-old, who is the CEO of Moana Swim, took to Instagram to highlight that she still faces online trolling.

READ MORE: ‘I was afraid of gaining weight – but now I know I’m perfect at any size’

Check all the latest lifestyle news by the team at Daily Star

The Australian influencer shared a message she received from a social media user who accused her of being “obese”, and promoting an unhealthy lifestyle. The comment read: “There is a difference between curvy and healthy and just plain obese. She is not a healthy weight, and it shouldn’t be glorified like it is.

“You that are offended can come at me all you want. Truth hurts. This suit is hideous by the way. It wouldn’t matter who was wearing it.”

Despite the harsh words, Karina hasn’t let them dampen her spirits. She posted them over a video of herself dancing in a patterned bikini, soaking up the sun.

It’s entirely up to you how you feel about yourself, and the curvy model demonstrated this with her defiant response. She expressed her exhaustion with letting people’s cruel comments affect her.

In an Instagram post, Karina declared: “Dear Witchy Mum. It’s actually women like you that inspired me to start my own swimwear label. You made me feel so alienated that living on the earth didn’t even excite me anymore. I hated myself.

“Every day was a struggle and a war against the mirror. All because of you. You almost ruined me. But I’m too strong for you, and now I’ve made it my mission to make ALL people feel good about themselves.

“That being said… It must be exhausting carrying around all that negativity. So, let’s choose to uplift and empower each other, because life’s too short to waste time on being a bully.”

It’s clear a lot of people could relate to Karina’s story, as more than 10,000 people liked the post. Followers chimed in with their opinions on her touching message, resonating with her experience, and expressing disbelief at the harshness of online critics.

They also applauded her continuous authenticity, and told her she’s made such a difference to their lives.

One supporter gushed: “You’re the reason I don’t hate my body anymore. I visit your profile daily just for the vibes.”

While another echoed that, saying: “That’s insane for someone to say that! Some people have their head stuck in the sand! Keep up the awesome work.”

Another person commented: “I always wonder what’s going on in the life of people who leave these comments. There’s obviously something that’s making them lash out and they’re too out of touch with their own emotions to realise that being mean to someone else is not gonna fix their problems.”

While a further Instagram user expressed confusion, writing: “It is so confusing to me. Are people so used to seeing artificially thin images/videos of other humans they forget what real people look like?

“That must be it. Because they’re hating on normal/regular/healthy bodies.”

Want all the biggest Lifestyle news straight to your inbox? Sign up for our free Daily Star Hot Topics newsletter