20-year-old meme "star" hits back after negative comments about her appearance go viral

The "star" of a meme that has gone viral across social media platforms beginning in February 2015 has struck back at some of the "very disturbing and nasty" comments others have made regarding her appearance.

20-year-old Ashley VanPevenage posed for a photo taken by her make-up artist friend showing the dramatic difference that the make-up application had done to her acne-affected face.

In a YouTube video posted on October 6, VanPevenage reads some of the hurtful comments hurled her way since the photo was posted.

A lot of the reaction to the image resulted from a tweet which reads: "I don't understand how people can do this and I can't figure out how to conceal a single pimple on my face."

However, additional comments have been made since the image went viral as a meme that VanPevenage addressed.

She said that though she enjoyed looking at memes previously, the "millions" of comments she's read since her photo circulated has made her want to remind people that there is a "real person" behind the meme.

She also said that her confidence took a hit, and hopes that her video can help other young women who are also affected by acne to "feel better and more confident about their face and who they are."