Strangers insult me in the street & ‘friends’ say I’m ‘not pretty’ with vitiligo, it hurt but modeling made me confident
MEET the model who developed huge white vitiligo patches all over her body as a teenager, but can now confidently pose and show off her condition in a bikini.
Chemical engineer and model María Celeste Amaya Domínguez, 23, from Limon, Costa Rica began noticing white spots all over her body at 17 years old.
At the time she attended a scientific high school, so the academic burden was heavy.
Mixed with the normal emotions of being a teenager and having a difficult situation with her boyfriend, medics confirmed that the stress manifested in white spots that broke out all over her body.
Her condition is called vitiligo, a chronic autoimmune disorder that causes patches of skin to lose pigment.
This happens when melanocytes, skin cells that make pigment, are attacked and destroyed, causing the skin to turn a milky-white color.
Maria has faced a mixture of responses to her condition, from people flirting with her to others offering her prescriptions in the street to make her “better.”
She initially struggled with her confidence as it was unexpected and there is no genetic link that she is aware of in her family to vitiligo.
“I was diagnosed with vitiligo when I was 17. This was due to a lot of stress. I’ve been diabetic since I was seven years old, so this has been a constant stress,” said Maria.
“I was in a scientific high school, so the academic burden was heavy. Besides that, as a teenager my emotions were intense and I had a boyfriend at the time that was no good for the situation.
“So all the stress manifested in white spots all over my body.
“Vitiligo, as with many other conditions, can be genetic. In my case, in my mom’s family there is none and my dad is an absent dad so I wouldn’t know,” she added.
Maria has received some negative comments in the past, but she insists the good outweighs the bad and she maintained that her sense of self-worth is never damaged by the comments.
“A few things people have said are: ‘Why do you use so much makeup to come to college?’” she said.
“A classmate asked me this, and I was just sunburned so my eyelids looked pink. I know she didn’t mean wrong but it made me uncomfortable.
“’I’m scared because I can see your bones’ was the most heart-breaking comment I was given because it was from a little kid.
“’She is not pretty anymore, her hair is like a man’s, and her vitiligo spread out,’ that’s what my boyfriend’s best friend told him.
“This is the most recent offense which just made me laugh because at the time I didn’t even know him and he was just gossiping about me, as I had believed that he liked me before.
“’Use calaguala, eat carrots, eat onions, drink this oil in the morning’ from strangers on the street giving me random prescriptions that I am not looking for, but I understand they mean well.
“Some people have asked as soon as they meet me it is literally: ‘How do you do? How can you feel pretty?’
“This is not offensive at all, rather a desperate call for help from mostly girls who also have vitiligo.
“When people are saying things that hurt me, I remind myself it is just about understanding that people don’t mean wrong and that is not personal,” she added.
There are many positive responses that Maria has received, which have helped her when her confidence was knocked after her diagnosis.
“People will say: ‘I love your skin. I want it.’ I get this from many girls, some of them colleagues, models, and I get this in a nice way but it’s just strange for someone to want my skin.
“I was singing and someone said: ‘You made me cry,’ regarding the feelings I can transmit with my voice.
“I also love when people go like: ‘Wow, you are like the whole package’, this is usually in reference to my several occupations.
“I am a chemical engineer, singer, teach natural sciences, yoga coaching and modeling.
“When I was diagnosed it was strange because one doesn’t expect white spots to suddenly appear on your skin.
“The only uncomfortable thing that one has to deal with vitiligo is always being aware of the sun.
“I always have to be looking for shadows, using long sleeves, hats, pants and SPF. If I didn’t have this condition I would expose myself a bit more to the sun.
“I even tried to reverse it for the next couple of years but by now it actually sustains my confidence in a way.
“Modeling helped to gain confidence because in this area being different it’s actually a desired thing, but what really mattered was my self-perception.
“I already liked my image before vitiligo and now I feel like it even more. I love my skin and the fact that it makes me stand out.”
“I tried modeling when I was 14 and just took a couple of photos for a couple of stores in my hometown and performed a runway for Arena’s.
“My mom got me out of it because she said I should focus on the math Olympiads and science fair.
“After this I started posting pictures of myself on Instagram and small stores would contact me for photos until I decided to look for an agency.
“A friend of my mom’s talked to me about Aegency and I got signed last year in April but didn’t start working until October.
“Ever since, I worked for Bavaria, Ron Centenario, ACM Laboratorie Dermatologique, and Move Aligners, those would be the biggest brands.
“I got out of the agency because I didn’t feel I was growing in the way I wanted, plus I really want to focus on my engineering and musical career rather than modeling,” she added.
Despite having a very unique condition Maria believes it is what is inside that makes her one of a kind.
“My mind, my personality, and my optimism are my best features. It always blows me away, keeps me entertained, and amuses me.
“It’s in my nature to cheer people up. The satisfaction of trying to turn things around for someone else is what really pays me back the confidence because they are the ones who finally build it.
“Anyone dealing with low self-esteem — I hear you, I feel you, I understand you.
“There is no magic trick to leading a fulfilled life, there are just known habits that really help to get there.
“Rest, drink water, nurture your body with good food (learn to read labels and about nutrition), make time to exercise, read/always keep learning about mental health, physical health, sciences, et cetera.
“In summary, you and only you are in charge of the wellness of your body.
“No one can get healthy and feel good for you. Take care of your physical and psychological health,” she said.