Why beauty influencer Jaclyn Hill isn't afraid to discuss her divorce: 'I want girls to know that they're not alone'

Jaclyn Hill uploaded her first makeup tutorial to Youtube six years ago, where she showcased her ability to create a Kardashian-inspired look. However, while gaining her over 5 million beauty-obsessed subscribers over the next few years, the MAC Cosmetics-trained artist turned influencer began to share much more with her viewers besides cosmetic tips and tricks.

At just 28 years old, the Illinois native has been through a lot — from her and former husband Jon being unable to financially support themselves, to the couple ultimately divorcing after nearly nine years of marriage — all of which she’s documented on her ever-growing channel. Doing so has been difficult, she revealed while on the BUILD stage. But ultimately, Hill says, that it’s important for others to know.

“I’ve been very, very honest about everything I’ve been through in my personal life,” she explains. “Even though it’s difficult at times, I choose to do it because for me, my channel is more than just makeup.”

Though the foundation of her platform was makeup, Hill says that viewers quickly began to ask questions about her personal life — initially about who was in the background of her videos, and even more specifically, about her family. Answering the questions was fun at first, until Hill’s life recently became more complicated with her separation.

In an emotional clip entitled “Life Update: Divorce,” Hill explained to fans and followers her absence from the video-sharing platform. “This is definitely a video I never actually thought I would be filming,” she said. “Life is crazy, that’s all I can say.” And while detailing her and Jon’s decision to the camera, it becomes evident to viewers how her personal life aids in how relatable she is.

“Once you get to a place where you can accept yourself for who you are and actually be at a place where you can share that with others, I think it’s so incredible,” she says in her BUILD interview. “I want girls to know if they’re going through a bad breakup, if they’ve been cheated on, if people are being mean to them, they’re being bullied — physically, emotionally — or if their family’s being mean to them, that they’re not alone in that.”

As Hill has now acquired a level of celebrity through her beauty know-how, majorly successful beauty collaborations with brands like Morphe, and the intimate showcasing of her life, she fully understands how being self-made only comes second to the important journey of learning to love yourself.

Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle:

• Can makeup ease anxiety? This beauty blogger (and her fans) think so.
• Why Chloë Moretz is focusing on a relationship with herself: ‘You can give so much of yourself to other people’
• Dad interrupts son’s makeup tutorial with ‘That looks so freakin’ awesome’

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