Yasmin Gasimova, 19, a student at the U.K.'s Liverpool University, penned a moving essay about why she doesn't shave her body hair. She begins with saying that she started shaving when she was 10 years old because boys made fun of her body hair. However, she soon came to the conclusion that it was both painful (In-grown hairs! Ouch!) and time-consuming, and stopped shaving at age 11.

In a piece for her student paper titled "I Don't Shave and I'm Not Going To Start," Gasimova wrote, "I was never self-conscious of my hair, but now I embrace it. I stopped caring when I was 11 as having naturally thick, fast-growing hair meant I'd need to waste an hour just to get dots on my legs."

Gasimova also says that she's been in several long-term relationships and that her body hair hasn't been an issue. "Having body hair doesn't make me feel like I am not sexy. If a guy told me my body hair was gross I would tell him it's not gross and to deal with it," she wrote. "In one of my relationships a guy asked if I could shave my stomach but I told him that I am happy with myself as I am and eventually he accepted it."

The one area she does shave and pluck? Her beard, eyebrows, and occasionally her pubic area.

Her conclusion is powerful and hard to argue with:

Nobody should be ashamed of their natural body. Thinking I need to hide it is only perpetuating society's messed up expectations of women. The only thing which will help is a public exposure to the reality of women's body hair. Most of you will be shocked of course. Many will keep thinking I am gross, but hopefully many will also question why you think this.

Amen.

Gasimova said that she's gotten over 500 messages from guys and girls all around the world since she posted her personal essay, ranging from "good for you!" to "ew gross!" One woman's personal choice concerning her own body hair is a controversial subject, to say the least.

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A student who does not shave her legs or armpits said men still fancy her http://t.co/8Um2Mnkh33 pic.twitter.com/cbVezgfh58 — Daily Mirror (@DailyMirror) May 28, 2015

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Laura Beck Laura Beck is a Los Angeles-based TV writer and frequent contributor to Cosmopolitan.com — her work has appeared in the New York Times, New Yorker, Jezebel, and the Village Voice.

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