Beauty Influencer Is 2 Feet Tall, Has Broken 100 Bones Due to Genetic Disorder: 'Everyone Has Challenges' (Exclusive)

Michaela Davert, 25, was born with osteogenesis imperfecta Type III, a condition that makes a person more likely to fracture their bones

It's hard for Michaela Davert to imagine a better moment that when she saw her photo on a billboard in Times Square in August 2020.

While the 25-year-old fashion and beauty influencer — who has nearly 38,000 followers on YouTube — had seen women in beauty ads with disabilities and mobility devices, her condition was never represented.

"It was the biggest dream come true ever," Davert, who appeared on the billboard as part of threadUP's ad campaign, tells PEOPLE exclusively.

Life has not been easy for Davert, who was born with osteogenesis imperfecta Type III. The rare genetic bone disorder makes people more susceptible to breaking and fracturing bones and leads to bone deformities and a curved spine, according Johns Hopkins Medicine.

Throughout her life, Davert has fractured over 100 bones and undergone 29 surgeries. "The condition's also affected my height," she adds. "I'm 25 years old and I'm only 2 feet 6 inches tall." Her mother Melissa and twin brother Austin also live with osteogenesis imperfecta.

"I was that girl in school who didn't have any friends, who was told I would be a burden on society because of my physical disability," she says. But the Bay City, Michigan, native began posting clothing haul videos in 2013 and quickly gained a following.

"Now here I am, making waves & changing the face of the beauty and fashion industry," says Davert, who goes by @funsizedstyle.

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Growing up with osteogenesis imperfecta

As a child, Davert, who uses a power wheelchair, remembers being in and out of the hospital for fractured bones. "It happened so many times it’s impossible to keep track," she says.

Seemingly harmless movements like sneezing, rolling over in bed, or lifting something too heavy could cause her bones to break. At 5 years old, she had titanium rods surgically implanted into the long bones of her arms and legs to lessen the fractures and their severity.

Davert explains that because of how often she experienced fractures, her pain tolerance became high. "But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt," she says. "Every time a fracture would happen, it would set me back in my independence."

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A life-threatening spinal fusion surgery

While Davert's had many surgeries in her life, she says none were as scary as her 10-hour spinal fusion surgery on Dec. 23, 2020. She says the surgery came after doctors discovered two curves in her back, one at 150 degrees and the other at 180 degrees. A mild scoliosis curve is less than 20 degrees, according to the National Institute of Health.

"I was faced with the reality that if I didn't do anything to stop the progression of my curve, my liver was bigger than the lung capacity that I had left — and I didn't have an enlarged liver," she says.

"They told me that if I didn't have surgery, I could have 10 years left to live. I was 21 at the time," she adds. "It was the hardest surgery I've ever faced."

Following the procedure at Michigan Medicine in Ann Arbor, Davert was put in inpatient care for 28 days. Months later she posted a video on her YouTube channel where she detailed the surgery with her followers. "Successful 10-Hour Spinal Fusion Outcome for Severe Scoliosis Patient," she captioned another video.

In December 2023, Davert took to Instagram to share an update on her spine. "I learned of my CT scan results today," she wrote. "All the hardware in my spine is holding on tightly which is the biggest blessing, that my spine isn’t falling apart like it feels like it is."

"Given my circumstances it could change any day, but I’m grateful for every day those screws are holding on," she continued.

'I don't want people to view my life as sad'

As Davert's gotten older, she's also gotten stronger. She hasn't fractured a bone in about 7 years. Now, she says, she can also do most independent living tasks on her own.

"Because of my power wheelchair, I’m able to reach things that I never would, sit at a regular table at a restaurant and quite literally do everything for myself in and outside of my home," she explains.

"There are a few personal care tasks that I am unable to do on my own and need assistance with. I am unable to travel on my own when I go on flights, so I always travel with friends or family."

While Davert says there will always be difficult aspects of her condition, she loves the life she lives. "I've realized how much of a problem it is that physical limitations are viewed as sad or a burden," she says. "I hope I can say I've successfully changed people's perspectives through sharing my story."

"Everyone has challenges throughout their life and things that they deal with and the only difference between mine and someone else's is that mine is just more visible," she adds. "I don't want people to view my life as sad or more challenging than someone else's because of my physical disability."

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