People have been riveted by Hulu’s “Good American Family,” which tells the complex and devastating story of Natalia Grace. As the drama series shows, Grace was a Ukrainian orphan with a rare form of dwarfism adopted by an American family at age 8, only to be later accused of being an adult posing as a child. Grace was eventually abandoned by her adoptive family, but genetic testing proved that she was, in fact, a child when she was adopted.

The story is unsettling, and it’s unfortunately based on a true story. But it’s also getting a lot of attention for showing how complex and confusing the experience was for everyone involved. One of the show’s stars, Imogen Faith Reid, is getting a ton of praise for bringing Grace’s story to life. Like Grace, the 27-year-old also has dwarfism.

Reid says that she “often forgets” that she has the medical condition, which is characterized by having an adult height of 4 feet 10 inches or less. But the condition also comes up regularly in her life from people who don’t know enough. Ahead, Reid shares the takeaways she wants people to know about her condition, what it was like to play Natalia Grace, and what people get wrong about dwarfism.

Reid has a different form of dwarfism than Natalia Grace.

While also rare, Reid’s form of dwarfism is different than Grace’s condition. Reid was diagnosed with Russell-Silver Syndrome. Babies with the condition usually have a low birth weight and don’t grow and gain weight at the expected rate, according to the US National Library of Medicine.

“This type of dwarfism makes me in proportion,” Reid says. “My family explain[s] it to people as me being similar to Thumbelina, as she is just a tiny character.”

Reid says that her condition causes her to have curved pinkies, too. “Often kids with Russell-Silver Syndrome are born with blonde hair, which I was,” she adds.

People don’t always realize she’s an adult.

Reid is 27, but she says people who don’t know her assume that she’s much younger. “People don’t often know that I am a little person and just think I am a child,” she says. “I think this is because of the lack of information there is out there about dwarfism and that there are different types that people just don’t know about.” (There are more than 300 conditions that cause dwarfism, and a range of symptoms that are linked with the genetic condition.)

But Reid stresses that it’s important for the general public to realize that people with dwarfism live ordinary lives, too. “We are just people, just like you,” she says. “We do daily tasks like you and try to live a normal life just like you.”

Reid says there are some challenges that come with having dwarfism, though. “We may have to adapt when we can’t reach something,” Reid says, noting that she has to climb on her kitchen counter every morning or use a stool to get to things that are positioned high up. “But there is nothing that we can’t do when adapting,” she adds.

Dwarfism isn’t on her mind all the time.

While dwarfism impacts Reid’s stature, she says it’s not on her mind a lot. “I often forget I have it,” she says. “I have my friends and family to thank for that because they just treat me like me.”

But Reid says she has to adapt a lot; it’s just something that’s normal to her. “I’m not sure if this is because I’m little or I’m just weak, but I can’t open water bottles sometimes,” she says. “My friends straight away know I need help before having to say anything, which I appreciate.”

Not everyone is supportive.

While Reid has a strong network of friends and family, she says that some people can be unkind. “I get stared at a lot and made fun of when walking on the street,” she says. “It’s often by teenagers, girls and boys.”

Reid says people will assume she’s “a kid who’s trying to dress older” and make comments about that. “But sometimes they can work out that I am a little person and still make fun of my appearance,” she says. “Depending on what mood I’m in that day, it can really affect me or I won’t care.”

She wasn’t familiar with Natalia Grace’s story before the audition process.

While Grace’s story made headlines in the US, Reid says it wasn’t really covered in the UK, where she’s from. So, she had to do her own research. “So many articles said different things about the case, whether she turned out to be an adult or that she really was a kid,” Reid says. “I think it was so fascinating to cover a story like this.”

Reid also says it was “so surreal” to land the part of Grace, which is her first major role. “I remember sitting in a restaurant with my best friend and seeing the contract with the name ‘Natalia,'” she says. “It just all felt so exciting and overwhelming. At the same time…I thought, ‘Can I really do this?'”

She hopes “Good American Family” will open the minds of others.

Reid says she grew as a person while playing Grace and she hopes others will too in watching the show. “I wanted to fight for that justice and for her story to be seen,” she says.

She also hopes the story will help people learn to not judge others based on the way they look, sound, and act. “It’s OK for someone to be different from us,” she says.

Her one request: If you see her on the street and have questions, simply talk to her. Don’t point. Don’t stare. Respectfully, ask. “I’m a very open person and would love to help you understand,” she says. “Maybe you’ll walk away knowing a different perspective in life.”

Korin Miller is a writer specializing in general wellness, health, and lifestyle trends. Her work has appeared in Women’s Health, Self, Health, Forbes, and more.