For years, Ariel Winter suffered in silence.

She’s had a difficult year, having split up with her long-term partner, being emancipated, and deciding to undergo a breast reduction in the midst of it all.

She stated how intense physical agony and incessant bullying led to her decision in a recent interview with People.

“Being a 5-foot tall girl and having extremely large breasts is really ostracizing and excruciatingly painful,” she claimed. “But I didn’t really express how I felt about that.”

Winter, who turns 18 on Thursday, has spent years dreading red carpet appearances and reading internet comments about her clothes.

“I’d just be wearing something anyone else could wear, but I’d read comments saying, ‘She dresses inappropriately,’ ” she says.

The actress went from an extremely enormous F to a more comfortable D breast size.

Unfortunately, even after Winter’s breasts were reduced, the negative comments about her figure lingered. In November, she responded to body-shamers on Instagram by stating that a swimsuit she wore in a lovely photo with her nieces indicated she was “asking for it.”

“I typically never give power to the mean things people bravely say behind their computer screens on the Internet, but this is for the girls who are constantly bullied whether it be online or at school,” she wrote. “You are not asking for anything because of what you are wearing—you are expressing yourself and don’t you ever think you deserve the negativity as the consequence to what you are wearing—YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL. Celebrate you and don’t let anyone’s comments allow you to think less of yourself.”

The youngster was “hurt” by the bullying, but it was the physical discomfort that drove her to get surgery. Ariel claims she won’t be undergoing any more cosmetic surgery in the future since she’s pleased with her curves.

“I think it will be the only [cosmetic surgery] I’ll have done,” she says, “but I’m extremely happy with the decision I made.” “It’s important to talk about it because there are young girls suffering like I did, but there shouldn’t be a stigma about it.”

Winter can now look forward to a lifetime of red carpet appearances without having to worry about her bust.

With a giggle, she describes the procedure as “an instant weight lifted off my chest – both literally and figuratively.” “There’s a confidence you find when you finally feel right in your body.”