Tess Holliday has come out as pansexual.
The 33-year-old plus-sized model feels "a lot of stuff in [her] life now makes sense" after she established the word "pansexual" – an attraction towards people regardless of their sex or gender identity – relates to her more than bisexual, and she now feels a "sense of relief" because she no longer has to "pretend to be someone [she] is not".
While speaking to a guy on holiday who asked her "are you bi?", Tess – who has three-year-old son Bowie with husband Nick Holliday, and a 13-year-old son from a previous relationship – explained: "I said, ‘Thank you so much for asking.’
"I’ve been thinking a lot about my relationship to my own queerness, and I think the word pansexual speaks to me more than bi does.
"He said, ‘Thank you for telling me about that, but actually, I said, ‘Are you buying?’
"I feel like a lot of stuff in my life now makes sense.
"A lot of the things that I felt when I was younger make sense. A lot of the relationships that I had make sense. I definitely have a sense of relief. I can connect with people on a more intimate level than I was before, because I don’t have to pretend to be someone I’m not."
While she is in a monogamous heterosexual marriage with Nick, she replied "yeah" when asked if she would be in a romantic relationship with a woman.
She added Nylon magazine: "I might not know, like, what to do. But I feel like I’d figure it out."
Tess recently admitted she goes to therapy to "make sense" of body-shaming trolls.
She said: "The other day I woke up to the following message on Instagram, ‘Your body image is unhealthy and dangerous. You’re a blimp trying to layer yourself in nice clothes and makeup. Can’t wait for you to drop dead of a heart attack.’ It ended with a smiley-face emoji.
"I receive messages like this every day – and have my entire life. I would be lying if I said they didn’t affect me. I go to therapy to try to make sense of it all. I will tell someone to f**k off if they deserve it, but I’d rather come from a place of compassion."
Tess Holliday comes out as pansexual
