WATCH: Bernie Sanders comforts sobbing Iowa woman struggling to live on minimum wage

A woman broke down in tears at a Bernie Sanders rally on Monday while explaining how difficult it was to live on minimum wage earnings.

At an event in Iowa Falls, the Democratic presidential candidate asked audience members to speak out about what it was like to live on less than $12,000 a year.

One woman choked up as she told Sanders that she had been living on "less than that for a long time because of disabilities."

"It's so hard to do anything, to pay your bills," she said, sobbing. "You're ashamed all the time."

"When you can't buy presents for your children, it's really, really hard," the woman continued. "I worked three, four, five jobs sometimes, always minimum wage."

Although the woman noted that she had a degree, she said that her parents were forced to support her.

"It's just so hard," she remarked.

Sanders, who was obviously touched, praised the woman for sharing her story.

"It is not easy for people to stand up and say that," he observed. "But the truth is that until millions of people that are experiencing exactly what you guys are experiencing do say that, we don't make change. So, I thank you for saying and for telling us what's going on in your lives. Because the truth is you can't make it on $12,000, you can't live in dignity on $10,000 or less."

Sanders added: "You've got Republicans going around and saying, 'We've got to cut Social Security, we've got to cut it. What people are getting is too much.'"

Watch the video below from the Guardian, broadcast Jan. 25, 2016.