Originally published: 9 April 2013
Mariam opened up to presenters Holly Willoughby and Philip Schofield on ITV's This morning about her decision after almost two decades of tweezing it every single day.
It was Mariam’s mother who advised plucking the hairs, which made her chin red and inflamed: “When people asked what had happened and I told them they couldn't believe it,” she said.
But plucking her beard became an obsession, Mariam told the presenters: “I thought about it all the time. I had to double check before leaving the house that it was OK, and take a mirror in my pocket. That was life.”
“When I decided to let it grow it didn't feel brave, it was more like a curiosity. I wanted to see what would happen to me. There was a big fear that everyone would turn away and nobody would talk to me anymore,” she said.
'When I decided to let it grow it didn't feel brave, it was more like curiosity. I wanted to see what would happen to me'
Her decision was met with criticism from her own family – she said her mother hoped she would go back to tweezing and still wants her to “become normal.”
Internet trolls also targeted Mariam’s bearded lady blog, which she started in 2008 to share her experience. One troll told Mariam: “people like [her] should be sent to Russia or shot.”
“People can be cruel depending on where you go.” she said, adding: “Other people say it's courageous and inspiring. So there are both sides.”
Mariam, who has been single for a decade, now travels with a circus as the bearded lady act and said she is looking for a relationship now that she is feeling more confident.
“I know myself more now,” she said.