When she first started out, though, Cox wielded her makeup like armor.

She continued, “I always needed makeup to feel safe.

I felt like a failure like people weren’t seeing my womanhood.”

Laverne Cox laughing in red lipstick

Cox only gets fully glammed up once she knows the person in question is worth it.

“My goodness you are GORGEOUS!!”

wrote one, while another gushed, “Gosh, you are really so beautiful.”

Laverne Cox smiling all in black without makeup

“I think it’s also about diet.

It’s about what I put in my body.

As the actor confessed toThe Guardian, “I have been picking myself apart my whole life.”

A fresh-faced Laverne Cox poses with an Olay product

“I wanted really highly invasive surgical procedures to feminize my face,” Cox revealed.

I don’t want it!

I’m happy that this is the face that God gave me, and it’s imperfect.”

Naturally, the actor is a vocal advocate for self-care, too.

“It’s really about feeling for me,” she shared.

“I don’t need to put a bunch of serums on my face anymore.”

Her night-time routine is considerably simpler now that she’s cleaned up her eating habits.