Please login or create an account. If you do not have access to this content, you will be shown a 30 second preview and licensing options.
- Presentation
Embracing My Uniqueness: Living with Vitiligo
Description
Joshua Hampton shares his 25-year journey living with vitiligo and other skin conditions that began in childhood and worsened in his teens, when stress also brought alopecia and shingles. He describes being diagnosed at Johns Hopkins with generalized and segmental vitiligo and undergoing years of treatment, including PUVA therapy and experimental suction blister epidermal grafting on his face. He also experimented with makeup and dyes to cope with the appearance changes, but eventually chose to stop hiding his skin. Now he says he has embraced his uniqueness, sought therapy for past trauma, deepened his faith, and focuses on living fully through exercise, hiking, acting, dancing, and gratitude, emphasizing that vitiligo does not define him.
Conclusions
- Vitiligo can begin with small localized patches in adolescence and, alongside stress and hormonal changes, may spread to multiple areas of the body.
- There is no cure for vitiligo, and treatment often relies on experimental or partial solutions such as PUVA, sun protection, makeup, and grafting procedures.
- Some treatments may improve pigmentation, but results can differ between generalized and segmental vitiligo and can involve pain, inconvenience, and only limited success.
- Living with vitiligo can create significant emotional and social challenges that may require therapy and support to address trauma and self-image.
- Over time, self-acceptance and a broader sense of identity can help a person move beyond vitiligo and live confidently and fully.
- Warwick Morrison, Johns Hopkins