By Jo Scrimshire For Daily Mail Australia
Published: 23:36 BST, 24 April 2019 | Updated: 23:42 BST, 24 April 2019
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Tammin Sursok has penned a heartbreaking open letter addressed to her 'fat' 13-year-old self, offering a glimpse into her traumatic school days.
The 35-year-old actress, best known for playing Jenna Marshall on Pretty Little Liars, also shared a rare throwback photo of herself as an overweight teenager.
Tammin's emotional letter, which was posted to Instagram, referenced several real-life incidents from her youth - including being humiliated by a boy she had a crush on, mocked at the swimming pool and bullied by a female classmate.
'You have become the punchline... again': Tammin Sursok has penned a heartbreaking letter addressed to her 'fat' 13-year-old self, offering a glimpse into her traumatic school days
After sharing these distressing memories, Tammin concluded the 600-word letter by reassuring her teenage self that she will eventually reach a healthy weight and discover the power of self-confidence.
'Things won't happen overnight, you won't feel resilient right away, most of the time you will walk through your life feeling stuck,' she wrote.
'But I'm here, standing on the sidelines, looking at you, my 13-year-old self, and I want you to know you're going to be more than okay.'
All's well that ends well: Tammin concluded the letter by reassuring her teenage self that she will eventually reach a healthy weight and discover the power of self-confidence. Pictured with her daughters earlier this year
'Dear 13-year-old Tammin,
'Hi, It's me, your future self, I'm standing on the sideline looking back at your ripe, fleshy, hopeful face and I know what happens when the arm of the clock aggressively hits its top pinnacle. The boy standing in front of you will break you. He will break your heart in ways you never thought possible. He will embarrass you as you feel the stares of awkward pre-pubescent males all stifling a hearty laugh. You will feel the chambers of your heart beat out of your chest as the blood dizzies around every cell of your body. For what you were waiting for, what keeps you up each night in desperate, feverish anticipation, is not the what the boy in front of you feels. Not only does he not have any giddy interest in you, but he will verbalise in front of everyone that you are indeed 'FAT' and after he miniaturizes you, he will parade away. And you will feel like the stage lights just blasted and you are standing upon a stage, naked, in all your quarter-pounder glory.
'I can see you right now. The white cotton in your purple swimsuit stretches and moans as you fight to get it over your shoulders. You'd do anything to never swim again. You watch the unblemished swim team glide past, their bodies, as if carved out of medieval stone, fly like gazelles diving into the frigid water. Now it's your turn. The room is deafening. The faces around you start to blur and de-colour as you feel like you are a passenger on your own haunted hayride, that is your life. You dive. Well, you try. You try to dive. Your body can't propel you high enough so you falter, you slip and you fall. Hitting the water so hard that you feel like your body has been stung by a team of the Hamilton Island jellyfish. As you come up for disorientated air, all you hear,
