Cosmopolitan UK April2020

AS TOLD TO DANIELLA SCOTT. PHOTOGRAPHS INSTAGRAM @BEING_JUST_US

w

Natalie Ambersley,37, an executive

assistant from London, talks about living

with the skin-pigmentation condition

hen

I was

three, I

developed a small white

patch on the back of

my hand. Back then,

vitiligo (a condition

where pigment is lost

from the skin) wasn’t

well known, so when my

parents took me to the

doctor, they were just

told to keep an eye

on it. By the time I was

five, and had my vitiligo

diagnosed, 75% of my

body wascovered in

whitepatches. I was too

young to know what was

going on, but my

parents were worried

and tried to find

treatment for me. I was

in and out of hospital

a lot – it became like

a second home. By the

time I was 12, I’d been

through so many rounds

of tablets, creams and

homeopathy that I felt

like a guinea pig. I told

my parents I wanted

to stop, and they were

so supportive.

In my teenage years,

though, I grew more

uncomfortable. It

seemed like I was the

only person in

the world with

this condition.

When we had

swimming

lessons at

school, I’d

forge letters

from my mum

so I didn’t have

to go. On

holiday with friends in

Spain, I’d be boiling in

thick tights and ablazer.

If someonestared at

me, I’d immediately

cover up more.

When I turned 30 I

decided to try treatment

again. I’d heard of

something called UVB

narrowband therapy,

where you stand in a

booth emitting UVB light

to try to help your skin

repigment. There was

only a 50-50 chance it

would work, and it gave

me an increased risk

of skin cancer. The

appointments were

quite disruptive too –

twice a week for a year

• but I wanted to try
  it. Three months in, I
  began to get my natural
  skin colour back, and
  after a year, I finished
  the treatment. I still had
  vitiligo, but I was now
  30% affected, rather
  than 75%.
  That was seven years
  ago, and although the
  patches are starting to
  return I won’t go back
  to treatment. A few
  years ago I was invited
  on a TV show to talk
  about my condition. At
  first I was adamant that
  I couldn’t do it, but
  eventually I came round
  to the idea and that was
  a turning point. After
  the programme aired,
  people started to send
  me supportive messages
  and I had the realisation
  that it was OK.
  Now, I feel liberated.
  I look down at my
  legs and think I’d be
  horrified if I woke up
  and my vitiligo wasn’t
  there; it would be like
  I had erased something
  that made me who I am.
  I’m proud to have a skin
  condition I now love.
  For support, contact
  The Vitiligo Society;
  Vitiligosociety.org

WHAT

HELPS

NATALIE

Put yourself first

I was so busy worrying about

what people thought that I missed

out on a lot. But I was the only one

suffering, and once I realised that,

I started living my life.

36 ·^ COSMOPOLITAN

move health

with vitiligo

Use social media

Seeing yourself represented

helps to remind you you’re not alone,

and that you’re part of something

positive. I like @livingdappled and

@vitiligo_and_me on Instagram.

Life in

my

body...

1 2 3 Talk to others

There were times when I had

questions and I would DM people on

Instagram for guidance. Connecting

with others who understood how

I felt made such a huge difference.

A p p e a r i n g

on Victoria

Derbyshire’s

TV Show