Model and social media influencer Courtney Stodden came out as nonbinary in an Instagram post Tuesday.
"They/them/theirs. I don’t Identify as she or her," Stodden, 26, wrote. "My spirit is fluid with a kaleidoscope of color."
Stodden also shared that even as a child they "never felt like I ever fit in anywhere."
"I was bullied horribly in school because I was different," they wrote. "The other girls never understood me. It got so bad that my mom pulled me out of school. And still, i don’t fit in. I never really connected with anyone my age."
Reached via a direct message on Twitter by Variety Tuesday night, Stodden said, “I’m excited to begin to truly start expressing myself without worry of others’ judgments or opinions. I’ve lived too long hiding from who I really am. I’m so excited for everyone to see my true self creatively and spiritually.”
Stodden first came into the spotlight in 2011 at 16 when they married the then-51-year-old actor Doug Hutchison, who had appeared in the film “The Green Mile” and on the TV show “Lost.” The couple split up and then reconciled, and they eventually divorced last year.
Stodden is among a number of celebrities who have come out as nonbinary over the past few years. Other nonbinary celebrities include singer-songwriter Sam Smith, "Queer Eye" star Jonathan Van Ness, "Pose" actor Indya Moore, "The Hate U Give" star Amandla Stenberg, "Billions" actor Asia Kate Dillon and "Grey's Anatomy" star Sara Ramirez.
According to a survey published last year by The Trevor Project, an LGBTQ suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization, 1 in 4 LGBTQ young people use pronouns other than he/him and she/her.