Jessica

Hey, I am Jessica and I am 14 years old. Next year I will be a freshman in high school. I was diagnosed with Vitiligo in 5th grade. It all started with a small spot on my finger. I didn’t think much of it until my face started to become blotchy. My Mom took me to a few doctors who pretty much said, “It’s Vitiligo, it is no big deal,” and told me to ignore it.

At age 11, I wasn’t really sure what Vitiligo was. I had heard of Michael Jackson who had it and that was about all. My spots began to spread to my neck, feet, and knees, the backs of my legs, hips, arms and back. I felt strange when I wore skirts. People would stare, but I understood why they did. My friends didn’t even care about my spots at all. People said they didn’t even notice them until I mentioned it, which was probably not true but everyone was really nice about it.

Little kids would ask “what was on my knees” or “what was wrong with my skin.” Others thought I had gotten a bad spray tan. A nun at my school thought I was wearing kneepads one day and then next asked if I was pulling my skin off. Some of the questions bugged me a little but it was the stares that hurt the most. But I have never let Vitiligo stop me from doing anything I wanted to do.

Now as a teenager it is a lot harder having spots than it was having them when I was 11. I was very happy to find a makeup to cover up the spots on my face. I have worn makeup everyday since 5th grade which is not much fun. Some days I think about what my life would be like if I didn’t have spots. I would NOT have been as strong a person as I am today. It has made me a lot more mature than the kids my age and many people like me for that. Also, if I would never have gotten Vitiligo, I would never have found the AVRF and made so many amazing friends!!

My mom, sister, and I attended the AVRF conferences in 2007 and 2008. I had SO much fun and made tons of friends. I love emailing and talking to other kids with Vitiligo. It’s fun because we can joke around about our spots and laugh about it. Stella and Marilyn also made my dream come true when I got to meet my fashion icons, Stacey London and Clinton Kelly, from TLC’s What Not to Wear. I got to go to New York (the place I plan to live someday) and watch them film the show for 3 hours. I also got to personally talk to them and get their autographs.

Without AVRF I would not be as confident as I am today. I hope that someday I can be an inspiration to people and help others with their Vitiligo. I also have two other diseases, one of which is Crohn’s. Maybe someday I will be on the Tyra Banks show talking about my Vitiligo and how much AVRF has helped me through it!!!

Love, Jessica♥