Skip to main content

Presenting the amazing variegated woman!


That would be me. I wouldn't normally post something like this but I felt the time had come. I am entering freak zone and little girls (and they've all been girls so far), come up to me asking me what is wrong with my skin. My answer is that my skin isn't working right and it is losing its colour. I have vitiligo - yes, the thing that Michael Jackson had. So even though I like being in the top 1-2% of the population, this isn't at all what I had in mind.

As far as "the doctors" can tell it's an autoimmune disease where my immune cells may be attacking my pigment cells, and the pigment cells are losing. For a dark-skinned person, the effect is striking. There is no cure and you may or may not respond to the existing treatments. (Lucas, my 7-year old, tells me that having another baby would help. I'm not buying it though I might be inclined to try ginko balboa.)

It seems almost obscene, if not in poor-taste to make a fuss about something that's not life-threatening. Well, the damage this disease wreaks is on the psyche, even for the most well-adjusted of us.

I've had vitiligo for a number of years, but it has exploded in the last year. Small spots have merged and I now have large patches on typical eczema areas (hands, wrists, elbows, knees). I've been lucky - only limited patches on my face..you know how vain we women are. I saw this poem, Picture of Perfection by Brian K. Blackden, and I wanted to share.

My brother is of the firm belief that I got this because I moved away from home. He may be right, since I've now developed a reaction to some types of pineapple - that tropical stalwart. Rather embarrassing really. That alone makes me want to conceal both my origins and my allergies from friends and family, simply so I can avoid the inevitable ridicule and pecong I am likely to receive. (At least from my Trini friends - Americans seem have some sensitivity to offending people). Pecong is Trinbagonian slang for witty, humourous, biting teasing.

In the meantime, I am just waiting for the swimming pool management to ask me to bring in a doctor's note saying that I am not contagious.
Labels:

Comments

Savi said…
Hi Sally,

I'm really sorry to hear you have this condition. I also really admire you for writing so honestly about it. I hope the gingko biloba works for you. Can you also camouflage it with fake tan?

Take care,
Savi
5 August 2009 at 10:58
Austin Trini said…
Hey Savi. Yes, you can camouflage and there are a number of products that are specially formulated for all-over cover. I think I would seriously have to consider that if I was going back into the workforce. I try not to focus on it too much, since apparently stress makes it worse. And in the grand scheme of things, I could have something worse.
5 August 2009 at 13:41
Austin Trini said…
One other thing, ginko balboa is one possible alternative treatment, but in the very limited evidence, is shown to be most effective together with other main-stream treatments. For anyone with vitiligo, wikipedia has a pretty exhaustive discussion of it.
5 August 2009 at 13:44
Greta said…
I came across this recent article about the piperine nutrient from black pepper being used in treating vitiligo, at http://www.newbeauty.com/dailybeauty/entry.aspx?id=1782

Not sure if you already read about it, or if your doctor has any opinion about it.

Best,
Greta
5 August 2009 at 19:33
G said…
You have beautifully shaped hands!!
6 August 2009 at 17:03
Austin Trini said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
7 August 2009 at 08:15
Austin Trini said…
Greta, thanks for telling me about the pepper link. I didn't know before, but it does look like more studies are going on in this area (below), I will follow up with my doctor. Thanks again!


http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080413172937.htm
7 August 2009 at 08:18
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Best Groom's Response Ever!

20 Years ago "On behalf of my most beautiful wife, Sally and myself, I'd like to thank you all for being here today. Special thanks go to all those of you who have worked very hard to make and arrange this event and to those of you who have traveled very long and very far to be here today. You may have noticed, on the outside, Sally and I are very different and have different backgrounds; but on the inside, Sally and I are very alike. We can relate to how each other thinks and feels - which is why we are here today. So, on behalf of my wife Sally and myself, I would like to thank Allah for bringing two like souls together despite the outer appearances, and I would also like to thank both our families for accepting the new family member so kindly despite the outer differences." True then as it is now. The paper he is holding? My hubby's hand-written notes from 20 years ago: But you want wedding pictures right?  Outside the mosque, be...
Post a Comment
Read more

Job Search2: Networking etiquette..

On which I have a few ideas.  As my husband keeps telling me, I won't get a job by spending hours in front of the computer submitting applications to online job postings.  The best use of any job-seeker's time is spent talking to friends and acquaintances and letting them know that you are looking for a job and what your skills and interests are. So here is what I found tricky about networking: How hard to push?  Working parents are busy, so if I asked a friend, who is a working parent, about a position I had seen at their company, do I ask a second time? How soon after? And what if there is another position - do I talk about that too?  If that friend is very enthusiastic about getting more information for me on a post then I hear nothing, what then?  Is it realistic to think they'll get back to me?  I find it difficult to broach the topic again.  I might ask a second time but for me there is no third time. What do I trade in return? In the net...
4 comments
Read more

10 things I have learnt about my teen and language

I have just been thinking about how my son speaks and what he says. He is 13 now and here is what I have discovered: 1. He does know some curse words, although he does not use them (at least in my hearing). I know this because he knows to switch the YouTube video he is watching when he hears one. 2. His language is tempered by having a younger sibling around (and he knows he will be in big trouble if he forgets that). 3. He gets more animated when he is around his friends and especially when he is gaming with them, and he uses a different vocabulary than regular speech (see #5). 4. I should not be annoyed if I am speaking to him and he shouts back "What?!!" The decibel level gets really, really high when he has his headset on AND he is gaming. 5. I am grateful that he uses expressions like, "What the fudge?",  "Crap" and "YOLO". Usually these are followed by the terms "Die!" or "Hackers!" or "Destroy" , bec...
Post a Comment
Read more