Vitiligo: From the Eyes of a Patient With a Severe Skin Condition

I once read somewhere that many people with an unsightly skin condition wished they could swap their condition for a terminal disease because at least they wouldn't get stared at and pointed at on the street. I myself suffer from an obvious skin condition, but fortunately don't feel as strongly about it as that. My reasons for coping though are a result of genetics - skin doesn't really come much whiter than mine!!!

I suffer from a condition called Vitiligo. Vitiligo is a skin condition where the individual experiences a loss of pigment from areas of skin, resulting in irregular white patches. My reason for coping so well is due to the fact that my whiter than white skin has so little pigment to begin with that the new white patches are not very obvious. If I stay out of the sun it remains less obvious. If I get a little sun in the summer months (despite always wearing a high sun protection factor), people often assume that I've had a spray tan that has gone wrong!!!

Vitiligo shows in some studies to be a hereditary condition and may appear at any age. There is an increased incidence in some families. My vitiligo appeared in my early 20's and I pray with gusto every night that my beautiful golden haired, snow colored daughter doesn't inherit the condition. My maternal grandmother had the condition, but nobody new about it. She always covered her skin completely and it wasn't until my condition was diagnosed, after her death, that my family realised the connection. Many studies deny the genetic link stating that apart from slightly increased numbers of sufferers in India and Mexico, the condition is non discriminatory in whom it attacks. Vitiligo is more noticeable in darker skinned people because of the contrast of white patches against dark skin.