Ashley Judd Defended Herself from Public Criticism of Her Face amid Her Battle with Chronic 'Siege Migraines'

Ashley Judd suffered emotional trauma because of her mom's tragic passing, but that didn't stop netizens from pointing fingers at her and criticizing her because of her looks, even though she gave reasons why it turned out like that — a medical condition.

Ashley Judd lost her mother, Naomi Judd, to a very tragic end, and those the talented woman left behind, including Ashley and her sister Wynonna, have been in mourning ever since.

Due to the nature of her demise, many fans discussed it and its effect on her immediate family.

Ashley was the one who found her after the deed, but despite the trauma she must be fighting through, some netizens, who have always paid too much attention to her looks, have been criticizing it, saying horrible things about her and the alleged procedures she did to her face.

Thankfully, another majority has risen to her defense, reminding the trolls that she and her sister are both having a difficult time before telling "those who are focused on anything more superficial" to "get a life."

However, this story is not new. These trolls have been around for a long time, and Ashley has had to deal with things like this in the past as well — more on that below.

THE SPECIFIC MIGRAINE

Ashley Judd first talked about having a siege migraine on August 8, 2019, when she posted a picture of herself in hospital garb with only one side of her face visible.

In her caption, she revealed that she had been suffering from the migraine for 11 days but was in a good mood because she was aware of her "many blessings."

Chronic migraine is a phenomenon used to describe a situation where one patient has at least 15 headaches days per month, with at least eight of those headaches having migraine features for over three consecutive months. It usually begins slowly with infrequent headaches that gradually multiply and become a pattern.

ASHLEY SHOWED HER NEW FACE AND FACED CRITICISM

As earlier mentioned, Ashley has had to fight off trolls who couldn't stop talking about her face in the past.

One memorable case happened in 2020 when a video that captured the famous actress making calls to people who supported Elizabeth Warren's selfless campaign to thank them was posted on Twitter.

In the video, Ashley looked gorgeous and happy while she spoke to people who could hardly believe that they had such a famous personality on the phone.

However, it also had some netizens who noticed how puffy her face looked and took to the comments section with negative statements. One user wrote:

"I've heard of plastic surgery, but this puffy-rubber surgery is a new one to me."

Another stated: "Omg!! I didn't even recognize her. Ashley, you were so naturally beautiful. You don't need all that facework that was done."

There were many more comments like those, but thankfully, there were also those who rose to her defense, with one calling those focused on her superficial facial features "disgusting."

SHE DEFENDS HERSELF AND EXPLAINS HER CHANGES

Unfortunately, Ashley did see the negative comments, and she was bothered enough to release a statement on Facebook where she revealed that fans were indeed right. She had received regular botox injections to combat the siege migraines that constantly haunted her.

According to Mayo Clinic, Botox shots have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration as an effective treatment for chronic migraine headaches like the one Ashley suffers from.

In her statement, she revealed that the migraines had plagued her for over one year and made her seek regular treatment that did not work. She wrote:

"Have I had botox? It is a standard treatment for the ailment that I experience, My union insurance pays for thirty-one injections every twelve weeks."

According to her, friends had urged her not to reveal the facts since it could be "excerpted" and used against her but because she wanted to be real with what was happening with her, she chose to share it.

Ashley also stated proudly that she refuses to take those negative words to heart, declaring that they were based on wholly gendered norms before encouraging other women to stand strong and speak out against the unhealthy criticism of their appearance.

Getting botox shots every 12 weeks is a national standard that the American Headache Society has recommended, but it is a treatment that is not often recommended because there is a slight chance of the bodybuilding antibodies to combat the botulinum toxin.

IT WAS NOT THE FIRST TIME PEOPLE CRITICIZED HER PHYSICAL FEATURES

Despite her revealing what exactly had made her turn to botox for relief, trolls have continued to bash her online, and that case in 2020 was also one of the most recent. Ashley has been fighting off negativity for far longer than that, with one of the earliest cases in 2012.

At that time, rumors about her having plastic surgery, especially fillers, started circulating after appearing on a Canadian talk show to promote her new TV series "Missing" while looking a little bloated.

Judd's rep came to her rescue with a statement that revealed that she had been battling a "serious sinus" infection and flu, which required her to take a heavy dose of medication just to be able to fly from Toronto to New York to take care of her engagements.

Speaking about the infection and flu treatment, Ashley tweeted how taking steroids affected her body. She wrote that her clothes didn't fit right, which was hard on her self-esteem but that she would combat it with "lots of positive self-talk & love."