It was a huge shock when I heard about Michael's death on June 25, 2009. The world will no doubt mourn the loss of this great icon for many years to come. I remember being around 7 or 8 when I first heard Michael sing with the Jackson Five. He had the clearest, purest voice I had ever heard. God gave him a tremendous talent and he used it to its fullest. This great talent caused Michael much sorrow and sadness. When other children were outside playing, he was inside rehearsing. He never had a normal childhood. Most thought Michael was peculiar, but I saw him as an innocent, vulnerable, shy boy in a man's body. We'll never know what Michael's personal demons were, but we can be pretty sure they were numerous.
Michael was born Michael Joseph Jackson on Aug. 29, 1958. From an early age there was turmoil in his life, as there had been alleged physical and emotional abuse from his father. He started performing by age 5 and thus sacrificed the so called "normal life". The stress of performing and being a perfectionist took its toll on Michael's health over the years.
Michael's appearance gradually changed beginning in the mid 1980's. It was really quite bizarre for those of us who remember watching the process. It appeared his skin was becoming increasingly whiter. In addition, there were other changes in his appearance. His nose and chin looked different and he was becoming thinner. It began to be apparent that all of these changes may not be occurring as part of the natural aging process.
The change in his skin tone was due to a condition known as Vitiligo. Apparently Michael was diagnosed with Vitiligo and Lupus in the mid 80's. Both conditions cause extreme sensitivity to sunlight. Vitiligo is a condition that is chronic and causes depigmentation in the skin. It is categorized as a dermatologic condition and is not fully understood yet by experts. Lupus is an autoimmune connective tissue disease. It attacks body cells and tissues and can potentially harm the body's organs.
Michael was born Michael Joseph Jackson on Aug. 29, 1958. From an early age there was turmoil in his life, as there had been alleged physical and emotional abuse from his father. He started performing by age 5 and thus sacrificed the so called "normal life". The stress of performing and being a perfectionist took its toll on Michael's health over the years.
Michael's appearance gradually changed beginning in the mid 1980's. It was really quite bizarre for those of us who remember watching the process. It appeared his skin was becoming increasingly whiter. In addition, there were other changes in his appearance. His nose and chin looked different and he was becoming thinner. It began to be apparent that all of these changes may not be occurring as part of the natural aging process.
The change in his skin tone was due to a condition known as Vitiligo. Apparently Michael was diagnosed with Vitiligo and Lupus in the mid 80's. Both conditions cause extreme sensitivity to sunlight. Vitiligo is a condition that is chronic and causes depigmentation in the skin. It is categorized as a dermatologic condition and is not fully understood yet by experts. Lupus is an autoimmune connective tissue disease. It attacks body cells and tissues and can potentially harm the body's organs.
Comments
Ellen VanDervort
(Guest)
(Guest)
11/07/2009
I had to go back and re-read this article. I just got home from watching the Movie "This Is It". If you havent alrleady seen it you will want to. It is a real tribute to Michael.
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