VIDEOSFrom 'Nerdy Country Girl' To Glamorous Beauty Queen—Inside The Life Of A 40 Something Crown Chaser!
July 8 2013, Published 6:05 p.m. ET
What makes women "of a certain age" glam up, strip down and parade around on stage in front of crowds of strangers?
According to one forty something beauty queen it's a lack of self-confidence, combined with the desire to feel like a princess—if only for just one day!
, a proud mom-of-three, stars in the new special, , and the beautiful brunette opens up to OKMagazine.com about what motivates her to take part in "Mrs. Pageants" her daily struggles with self confidence and body image and her dreams for the future.
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Going sharply against the usual perception of ditzy beauty queens, Jocelyn is very, very funny, sharp as a tack, super smart and a classically trained musician to boot!
So, what made the self-confessed "music nerd" want to shrug off being seen as all brains in favor of being judged for her beauty?
"I grew up as part of the Barbie culture," Jocelyn tells OKMagazine.com. "I was obsessed with Barbie—she was the ideal of beauty to me when I was a little girl and I think I never grew out of that!
"I was raised on a 23-acre farm in the sticks of Georgia where make-up and hair and dressing-up just wasn't part of life. Added to that, I was a total music nerd…beauty pageants certainly weren't a part of my life when I was a child!
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"It started when I went to college—I asked the girls in the dorm to teach me how to do my make-up and how to fix my hair, so boys would like me—I transformed from country girl tomboy to Barbie!"
And from there a pageant career was launched—entering her first competition while in her teens, Jocelyn is still going strong, and walking tall, at 49!
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Amazingly, for somebody who chooses to walk around in a swimsuit on stage and be judged for her appearance—Jocelyn suffers from terrible self confidence issues—something, she says, competing in pageants actually helps her with!
"The first thing I do in the morning is weigh myself," Jocelyn admits. "I'm constantly worried I'm too fat, I'm not pretty enough, I'm not good enough—it's a lifelong struggle.
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"Competing in pageants makes me feel like I 'did it!' Like, I'm pretty enough, I'm good enough. I see the photos afterwards, I watch the video and it makes it all worth while—I must be pretty, I must be normal, I'm no longer that nerdy country girl—I almost look like Barbie with the extensions, big hair, fake nails and tan!
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"Competing in pageants is the ultimate princess experience," she continues. "You check into a hotel, you get fussed over, your hair and makeup done, you stay up late, you wear pretty dresses, there's the crown and the jewelry—it's all about you!
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"Really, it's a chance to feel it's all about you for once…. not my husband and his football buddies, not my three kids, it's all about me.
"My nickname is J-Glow because they say I glow when I'm on stage. All girls would love to feel like a princess—to have a crown put on your head, holding roses, everyone adoring you and fussing around you….it just doesn't get much better than that!"
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But, she's not just a pretty face, Jocelyn also wants to use her new found fame as a platform to help educate other women on a subject that is often hushed up or simply not spoken about.
"The change of life wasn't talked about at all when I was young," Jocelyn says. "It began for me when I was 44—I started sweating, hyperventilating, couldn't sleep…it hit me like a train!
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"My hormones were whacked out, I was loopy, angry, depressed, I started gaining weight… I separated from my husband as he said it was more than he could deal with, that he needed some time out.
"It's been a devastating and traumatic experience for me and I would like to help educate women more on menopause—there's not enough information out there… women still don't understand all hell may break loose… I want to let them know 'you are not alone.'"
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So, aside from her super sassy personality and stunning good looks, what makes Jocelyn stand apart from her Mrs. Pageant counterparts?
"We drink, we cuss, we try and keep our hormones in check," Jocelyn says. "But I will say what all the other girls are thinking—I just come right out and say it…..I have the balls!"
You can catch Crown Chasers on TLC, Wednesday, July 10 at 10/9c.
Would you compete in pageants in your forties? Sound off in comments below and tweet us @OKMagazine
