“I remember vividly the first time Anna opened her eyes. She stared with such intent that I couldn’t bring myself to look away. The swelling from her eye lids had finally gone, and she opened her eyes and stared directly at me. I get mesmerized by the beauty in her skin. I know she was made for something special.”
‘This is when my daughter is most beautiful, covered in layers of extra skin. Celebrate her, instead of giving me pity.’: Mom of daughter with Harlequin Ichthyosis wishes people would ‘stare at her beauty’ instead of ‘hiding their stares’
‘The weird looks. Names. Disgust. Laughter. Violence. I just couldn’t fit in.’: Woman with Congenital Melanocytic Nevus claims ‘beauty is diversity,’ learns to love her ‘endless birthmarks’
“Before I could prove myself, they already knew what they thought of me. Judgement straight away. To be honest, nothing feels more discouraging than not even getting a chance. Over the years, teachers just accepted the bullying. I can’t even remember how many times my parents spoke to the principal, but I’ll always remember him saying, ‘We don’t care.’ I was alone, scared, broken. It was my son that got me through the worst. When everyone else left me alone, he always offered a home to my soul.”
‘The bride who refused to cover her birthmark.’ People wonder why I’m not ashamed.’: Woman with nevus birthmark celebrates her ‘distinctive look,’ reminds us to ‘love ourselves’
“At church, I made eye contact with a lady. She gestured for me to remove my birthmark from my face. I ignored her, but every time I gazed her direction, she’d make the same gesture. At the end of the service, the pastor asked if anyone had final remarks. She stood up. ‘I want the young lady to remove what’s was on her face.’ I was 9 years old.”
‘Hang on one second.’ She paused, closed her eyes, and bowed her head. Confused, I asked if everything was okay. If she needed to leave.’: Woman vows to ‘do the right thing’ after witnessing friend’s act of kindness
“We were small talking, when suddenly she got a text on her phone, and looked at me. I had no idea what was going on. What did I just witness? Should I ignore it and act like nothing just happened? Should I hug her? Because let’s be honest, that’s odd behavior.”
‘What’s wrong with your face? Fire? Car accident?!’ Complete STRANGERS asked. I reached my boiling point.’ Woman born with Nevus learns to ‘embrace’ her unique differences
“Kids were BRUTAL. I was called horrible things like ‘ugly face’ and told, ‘You don’t look normal.’ I kept the bullying at school a secret from my mother. I couldn’t handle it anymore. There was no internet; I thought I was the only one like this.”
‘I’d kill myself if I looked like you.’ Everywhere I went, I was the center of attention. I accepted that dying wouldn’t be such a bad thing.’ Man with venous malformation birthmark finds ‘happiness and confidence’
“My birthmark grew bigger and bigger. I got used to others pointing me out, whispering, laughing. Throughout my teenage tears, I avoided public places, family events. Any situation that involved people. I always put on a brave face, but in the background my confidence was constantly taking a hit. I couldn’t bring myself to face the world.”
‘I dropped 10 sizes on a starvation diet. ‘Wow, you look GREAT!’ I basked in compliments, but deep down I wanted someone to grab me and say, ‘Hey, I think you need help.’ Woman explains why congratulating weight loss is ‘problematic’
“I dropped to one meal a day. Coffee for breakfast, Red Bull at 3 p.m., light dinner. They’d look and say, ‘Congrats! You look awesome!’ It made me feel REALLY good. But part of me wanted to shout in their faces. They might as well have said, ‘That not-eating thing you’re doing? Totally working. Keep it up!’ It fueled me.”
‘My good friend asked if I could do her a favor and wear a wig to her wedding. She wants us all to ‘look good’. My friends have always known me as the girl with no hair.’ Bald woman offended when pressured to ‘match’ at friend’s wedding
“I’ve already paid for a dress, shoes, plane tickets, and deposit. A realistic wig is VERY expensive. We’re wearing matching dresses. Why isn’t that enough? Is being bald so hideous I’ll ruin her pictures? I know it’s ‘her day’, but isn’t there a line?'”
‘If not your breasts, they’ll attempt to convince you your worth depends upon your thigh gap, complexion, weight.’ Mom shuts down 8-year-old daughter thinking her body is ‘flawed’
“My darling girl, there is something I must get off my chest before you grow into yours. As you get older, society, men, even some women, will try to convince you that your breasts — their size, shape, level of ‘perky’ — are what define you as a woman. Hear me clearly when I firmly inform you, they are wrong.”
‘I can do this, right?’ I scanned the faces around me, absolutely mortified. ‘Of course. Just take your shirt off!’ Peopled waved, said hello. Where were the looks of disgust?!’ Mom embraces plus-size beach body to set example for daughter
“I spent years trying to sabotage my marriage in hopes he’d leave me for someone skinny. Day after day, I’d tell myself how nasty, disgusting, fat I was. I had no idea my gorgeous daughter was listening. She started saying how fat she was. How ugly. I was HORRIFIED. I knew I needed to make a change.”
