Watching the first episode of Love is Blind UK, I was so excited knowing that Yasmin Toseafa, a fellow Vitiligo Society spokesperson, was going to appear.
In fact, after five minutes, I couldn’t wait much longer and skipped straight to her part, because of how inspirational it was to see a woman who had vitiligo, taking part in one of the biggest dating shows on television.
And she looked amazing – I was beaming watching her.
This didn’t just mean something to me – an avid watcher of Love Is Blind – but to thousands of women and girls within the vitiligo community.
For those who aren’t aware, vitiligo is a long-term condition where pale white patches develop on the skin – it’s caused by the lack of pigment in skin called melanin. Some high-profile people live with it, such as model Winnie Harlow and actor John Hamm.
Some people have small areas of their body affected, but others get bigger white patches across large areas of their body, and there’s no way of predicting how much skin will be affected.
It’s a relatively common condition that affects about 1 in every 100 people and it comes with a stigma that is not always easy to handle.
So I felt lucky when Yasmin and I connected on social media some time ago since we both have the same condition and work with the Vitiligo Society, where she is an ambassador.
There is something powerful about meeting others with vitiligo, it’s that instant feeling of ‘I get it’ because I knew we would have experienced similar things growing up.
I met her for the first time in June this year at The Vitiligo Society’s annual walk in Hyde Park and she was as I expected: bubbly, chatty and a respected advocate in our community.
She was genuine and I find that so refreshing.
So watching her share on national TV how she developed vitiligo at just eight became an instantly relatable moment.
What instantly struck me was how approachable and sincere she was, while also being incredibly open and vulnerable about her experiences in dating, and the impact her vitiligo has had on her.
It was important to see her sharing how she covered it with makeup, only her close friends knew about her condition, and when she said it made her feel unattractive, so many of us within the community felt seen.
I was diagnosed at the age of three – I’ve lived my entire life with the condition and have no idea what life feels like without it.
