(“I get my caregiver tendencies from
her”) and her dad (“whenever I am
going through something, he’s the one
I call”). Her family gives her strength
and support, allow her to be who she is,
ground her, and keep her as ‘Megan’.
One person in particular, older sister
Gemma, will be familiar to her followers,
as she’s started to appear regularly
in Megan’s content. Megan jokingly
complains that she’s had messages from
people telling her they are only following
for posts with Gemma (“She loves that!”
Megan laughs).appearance in the video for Little Mix’s
song ‘Strip’. Megan was told very little
about the filming in advance, other
than it would be “celebrating women,
sassy and upbeat and that’s my jam, I
was not going to say no to that!”
On the day of the shoot, Megan
danced for the video in a black
leotard (“with no bra... there was lots
of wild boob action”). She loved the
opportunity. Knowing that Gemma is
the “OG of Little Mix fans”, she initially
kept the filming a secret, and then
arranged, with the help of a good friend
at Instagram, a surprise for Gemma- revealing the music video and then
a meeting with the members of Little
Mix. Gemma was delighted, and for
Megan it was “one of the best moments
of my life, it was so pure. Pure joy.” She
smiles broadly.
While Megan often acts as Gemma’s
caregiver and opens up the world of
social media to her sister, Gemma
brings a huge amount to Megan.
“Gemma has taught me a hell of a lot
about a lot of things,” she says with a
smile. “She’s taught me self-confidence,
she is the most confident person you
could ever meet. She refers to herself as
‘The Queen’; she makes demands and
she’s a bit of a diva, actually.”
The strong bond between the two of
them is evident. I ask, what does their
relationship mean to her?
“For me, it’s really important to have
relationships in my life that keep me
connected to childhood and my inner
child, because that’s the core of who I
believe I am. She brings me that.
“It’s irreplaceable,” she reflects. “It’s
a really special relationship... I don’t
know what I’d do if she wasn’t in my
life. I love her.”
‘Body Positive Power: How to stop dieting,
make peace with your body and live’ is
available now (Vermilion, £12.99).Follow Megan on Instagram
@bodyposipanda, and listen to Megan
chat on our podcast ‘I am. I have’.22 • happiful • May 2019
It’s almost like I
have this double
life; I have the
influencer side,
and then I have my
sister to go back
to, and be who I
really feel I am
Gemma has cerebral palsy, a
neurological condition that can affect
movement, reflexes, muscle tone and
coordination. She lives independently in
her house which is, according to Megan,
“a beautiful purple space” and has a
rotation of caregivers, including Megan.
They usually spend weekends together.
This role as a caregiver, Megan
explains, also helps to keep her
grounded. “It’s almost like I have this
double life, Hannah Montana style.
I have the influencer side, which can
sometimes be exciting, glamorous,
and fast-paced, and then I have my
sister to go back to, in her lovely purple
space, and just connect with her, and
be who I really feel I am. It’s a lovely
combination, those two lives.”
Megan has also been able to share
some of her own career high points
with Gemma, in particular herStyling | Krishan ParmarMake Up & Hair | Alice Theobald at
Joy Goodman using Nature’s Wish,
Cosmetics à la Carte, Barry M
& Colour Wow