A father who used make-up and fake tan to cover up his vitiligo for 16 years shared how he finally learned to accept his condition.
Elj Abid, 35, from Witham, Essex, first noticed the patch of discolored skin on his face when he was seven years old.
As he got older, the spots spread to his neck, arms, hands and legs, and he was diagnosed with vitiligo, an autoimmune disease in which white patches appear on the skin.
Elj, who started wearing make-up every day from the age of 11 to cover her vitiligo, also used fake tan to hide her skin during holidays.
The man, now a father of two, was afraid he would not be “admired” or deemed “attractive” if he didn’t wear make-up.
But after meeting his now-wife, Elj, 27, decided to ditch the “sweaty” makeup on her wedding day and never looked back.
“I had been doing makeup since middle school,” explains Elj, who works in advertising. “It gave me a sense of security.
“I felt unattractive when I didn’t wear make-up.
“As a child, you want to be loved and admired.
“It took me a long time to love myself, but now I embrace it.”
Elj initially noticed a small, circular white spot on one side of his forehead, after a few months the same thing appeared on the other side, and he later learned that this was because vitiligo is symmetrical.
The patches were not very noticeable until Elj reached his seventh birthday and they began to appear on other parts of his body.
While she hasn’t been bullied about her skin, she has occasionally faced comments where some people refer to her as having “panda eyes.”
She tried various medications and treatments to “cure” her condition, such as drinking tree roots, light therapy, and creams.
“I remember drinking a glass of mud,” he adds.
As an adult, Elj tried a cream that dried skin cells to bring back the original pigment, which helped lighten blemishes.
However, she says that she does not have enough self-confidence to stop wearing make-up.
It was Elj’s wife, Amy, 35, a data analyst, who played a big role in Elj’s self-acceptance after they met at the age of 15.
“It made me see a different side of myself,” Elj says of the turning point.
“I started spending weekends without make-up.
“There was a big change as I got older. I became lazier. I couldn’t be bothered to wear makeup, but I would still put it on before work.”
When the couple got married in Jamaica in June 2016, Elj realized he didn’t want to look at photos from that day and see how uncomfortable he was wearing makeup.
“It makes you sweat all the time,” he explains.
A comment made by his wife’s friend also helped change his perception.
“‘Does Elj realize that people are staring at him not because of his skin but because he’s a guy who wears make-up?’ ” he explains this transformation.
“I woke up the next day and went to put on makeup, but instead I threw it all away.”
Being a father of two, boys aged one and three, was the final encouragement Elj needed to accept his vitiligo.
“I can’t even think about having children because it takes so much time,” she says about her situation.
“I want to make it clear to them that [my sons] “Vitiligo is not a bad thing.”
This condition is hereditary, so Elj’s boys also have a chance of experiencing it.
“I want to make sure they are equipped to handle this,” he says.
“This won’t kill you.”
What is Vitiligo?
The NHS says vitiligo is a long-term condition in which pale white patches form on the skin.
It is caused by a deficiency of melanin, the pigment in the skin.
Non-segmental vitiligo (the most common type) is thought to be an autoimmune condition.
In autoimmune conditions, the immune system does not work properly. Instead of attacking foreign cells like viruses, your immune system attacks your body’s healthy cells and tissues.
If you have non-segmental vitiligo, your immune system destroys melanocyte skin cells that produce melanin.
This condition can affect any area of the skin; It is usually seen on the face, neck, hands and skin wrinkles.
Vitiligo often starts as a pale patch of skin and gradually turns completely white.
Although it does not cause discomfort such as dryness on your skin, sometimes the spots can be itchy.
This condition varies from person to person and while some may have only a few small white spots, others may have larger white spots that coalesce over large areas of the skin.
Although white patches caused by vitiligo are usually permanent, there are some treatment options that can reduce their appearance.
– If the spots are relatively small, skin camouflage cream can be used to cover them.
– Steroid creams can also be used to restore some of the pigment in the skin, but long-term use can cause stretch marks and thinning of the skin.
– If steroid creams do not work, phototherapy (light therapy) can be used.
Although treatment can help restore the color of your skin, the effect usually does not last long and treatment cannot stop the condition from spreading.
Additional reporting SWNS.
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