Influencer Briel Adams-Wheatley has answered the question “everyone wants to know” about her husband.
Briel was born in São Paulo, Brazil, with no arms and no legs due to a rare genetic condition called Hanhart syndrome.
The beauty influencer was put up for adoption as a baby because her birth mother couldn’t afford her medical costs. She was adopted by a Mormon family in Utah, where she grew up.
Image credits: Instagram / no_limbs_
Briel, who was born a biological man but transitioned to live as a woman a few years ago, opened up about going through her transition while married to her husband, Adam.
On her socials, many people often ask how Adam handled her transition, given that they met when she still identified as a man.
The couple met after matching on Tinder in February 2020. Briel liked that Adam, now a regular feature in her videos, showed “initiative” and helped her play during their first date at a board game café.
Image credits: Instagram / no_limbs_
In a video shared last year, Briel told Adam, “I started my transition a year after we got married, right?”
Adam replied, “I think so, but you told me way before everybody else.”
Briel explained that, before they tied the knot, she had told Adam that she was “having feelings“ about transitioning but “wasn’t sure if it was something I was comfortable with” at the time.
Image credits: Instagram / no_limbs_
“But Adam was the first person to know before everyone,” the makeup artist shared. “And I waited a few months before I did it publicly as well. I already started a few things behind the scenes.”
As for Adam, he found it difficult to switch between pronouns when Briel was living her true identity as a woman indoors but had not yet shared her transition with everyone else.
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“It was hard going from like pronouns for more than one reason. One, because I knew before everybody else. So I had to use he/him in front of people, and I couldn’t remember who she had told yet or not,” he explained.
“And so it was really confusing to use one thing at home and another [outside their home]. And then as soon as I got the pronouns under control, she changed her name and then started wearing wigs.”
Adam described his wife’s journey as “a lot of learning” for him and said he was thankful that she was “patient” with his adjusting to the situation.
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Adam said he couldn’t be more supportive of his wife and that he has noticed a significant change in her wellbeing and self-esteem since she went public with her transition.
“But I mean, I fell in love with her and not what she was…just who she was,” he said.
Briel, whose Instagram handle is @no_limbs_, has over 1 million followers on the platform and more than 5 million on TikTok.
Briel has built a massive online following, with millions watching her show that her condition doesn’t limit her daily life
Image credits: Instagram / no_limbs_
The 27-year-old content creator shares videos showing that her rare condition doesn’t stop her from handling everyday tasks or doing what she loves.
One of her most-viewed videos is a “get ready with me” for a Valentine’s Day date. In the clip, Briel holds different makeup products, like a blush stick, between her shoulder and the makeup desk as she applies the product to her face, then does the same with a brush to blend it.
In others, she documents a day at Universal Studios, films her husband doing her hair, and shows herself making a chicken casserole.
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Image credits: Instagram / no_limbs_
“My goal is to inspire others to overcome challenges. Remember, ‘stay limb-it-less,” Briel wrote in her YouTube bio.
Briel was born with Hanhart syndrome, a rare genetic condition and congenital disability of the musculoskeletal system which meant her arms and legs didn’t develop in the womb.
She is reportedly one of 14 children in her adoptive family.
Image credits: Instagram / no_limbs_
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“I never saw myself with a disability- and it’s because of how persistent my mom was with making sure that I was independent,” said the beauty influencer, who began sharing makeup tutorials in 2019.
Growing up, her mother encouraged her to do things for herself, including climbing the stairs and joining in with school dances.
She was tough on me,” Briel told British Vogue. “Because she knew that one day, it would pay off.”
Image credits: Instagram / no_limbs_
Image credits: Instagram / no_limbs_
Makeup is her favorite form of self-expression, one that allows her to “do a lot of things that are outside of the norm.”
Speaking with the fashion magazine, the Salt Lake City resident said one of the most rewarding aspects of being an internet star is reaching those on the other side of the screen.
“My goal is to be a voice for those who don’t have a voice,” she explained.
Image credits: Instagram / no_limbs_
“I’m constantly getting people from different communities reaching out to me saying how they use my videos for inspiration, whether that’s for just getting out of bed in the morning, or ways to do their make-up, or to show their kids that anything is possible.”
Image credits: Instagram / no_limbs_
In 2022, Briel visited the White House for a Pride celebration. She also sat front row at New York Fashion Week in 2023.
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