Deepti Vempati isn't blind to the negative comments on her Instagram posts.
Just look at her recent trip to Dubai, where the Love Is Blind alum recalled receiving criticism for her vacation figure.
"Somebody commented on it and said, ‘Hey, whatever fitness trainer you have, you need to fire them because you've gained weight,'" Deepti shared in an exclusive interview with E! News. "They went on how I needed to lose weight and if I got a nose job, it would help. I think those are the types of comments that really bring me back to a dark place sometimes."
Deepti grew up struggling with body confidence. As detailed in her memoir I Choose Myself, the 32-year-old previously battled an eating disorder and body dysphoria.
And while the reality star says she still has to work on her confidence "every single day," Deepti is proud of far she has come.
"What I learned along the journey is that I had to love myself just exactly the way I looked," she said. "There's a lot of points in our life where we're not happy with how we look. But if we change our outlook on it, then we start to align with behaviors and mindsets and we see our body change because of how confident and beautiful we feel."
Deepti starts every day by looking in the mirror and sharing positive affirmations including, "I am confident. I am beautiful. I am strong."
She uses journaling to help navigate various emotions she feels in a single day, and also surrounds herself with supportive friends and family.
"I come from a South Indian background and in that culture, they don't really hold back on what they're feeling," she explained. "I've actually been able to have open conversations with them being like, ‘Hey, the things that you say do resonate and they do stick to you so you have to be mindful of how you say things.'"
Deepti is the first to admit that not every day is a perfect day. Before posting to her 1.1 million Instagram followers, she can find herself questioning if her post is worth the cruel messages that inevitably follow in the comment section.
But once Deepti shares her reality with the world, she finds the supportive comments outweigh any negativity.
"Somebody who is ethnic and who has darker skin and darker features and who is curvier, I want to be able to say you can feel confident enough to put yourself out there like I have," she said. "It is something hard for me, but I know there's a purpose for me for doing it."
On March 5, Deepti will participate in BodCon's 3rd annual virtual body confidence conference. As part of the "Not Your Body, Not Your Business" panel, Deepti hopes to remind people of all shapes, sizes and backgrounds that they are never alone in their battles with true confidence.
"There are a lot of people out there like me who are struggling with their mental health or they're struggling with self-love and we're all on this journey together," Deepti noted. "I really hope to bring out honest and authentic conversations to the panel."
For a complete list of speakers at BodCon 2023, click here.