Inspirational People Who Learned To Feel Comfortable In Their Own Skin 1. Ciera Swaringen One fearless teen decided to use social media to show bullies they weren't breaking her spirit. Nineteen-year-old was born with a rare skin condition—giant congenital melanocytic nevus—leaving her body covered in growing moles and birthmarks 2. Paige Billiot In April 2016, this woman unveiled a candid photo shoot to celebrate the prominent facial birthmark she wears with pride. Paige Billiot, an actress and filmmaker from Los Angeles, was born with a dark red mark covering most of the left side of her face. The 23-year-old collaborated with different photographers to bring positive attention to skin discolorations 3. Giorgia Lanuzza For almost a decade, Giorgia Lanuzza has endured people stopping and staring at her. She has faced cruel taunts from schoolmates as well as strangers and claims she was left feeling like a "freak"—too scared to look at herself in the mirror. The 24-year-old has suffered from psoriasis since she was 13. 4. Imgur user Mneneon Redditor Mneneon is a New York college student called Jacob who has transformed his birthmark, which covers his right hand and arm, into a map of an imaginary world. Instead of covering up the red patches (which resemble little islands and vast continents), he likes to draw around them to create borders. 5. Lexxia Harford Lexxie Harford, a 23-year-old woman from Staffordshire, has received heaps of well-deserved praise after sharing photos of her birthmark on Imgur. She published a series of inspiring pictures of the red mark on the right-hand side of her face, explaining that she's proud of it and "like to show it off." 6. Harley Dabbs A burn survivor who once battled suicidal thoughts has learned to accept her scars and plans to become a motivational speaker. North Carolina native Harley Dabbs was two years old when a house fire left 85% of her body covered in burns. Despite her horrific injuries, she defied medics who believed she only had a 2% chance of survival. 7. Patience Hodgson Australian photographer Natalie McComas created the series "In This Skin" in conjunction with VSCO's Artist Initiative. Her goal is to travel the world meeting people who have lived with a birthmark and tell their stories. 8. Cassandra Naud The entertainment industry can be ruthless and unforgiving. It is particularly important for a person to be physically flawless, but Cassandra Naud, a native of Alberta, Canada, decided to break stereotypes regarding how a person has to look Source
