Love the skin you’re in? Finally, yes I do…

For years my genetic skin condition robbed me of body confidence but not any more. Plus best fake tans, glows & skin smoothers...

Beyond the pale: Trish - a tan-free zone

Trish writes:

Do you remember your first body hang up? I’m desperately hoping your answer will be ‘What on earth are you talking about? I’ve never had any problems with body confidence.’ But that’s probably wishful thinking on my part as - and forgive me if I’m wrong - chances are that like most Gen X and Millenial women you’ll have experienced at least one body image issue at some point in life. For me, it started early, around the age of 10, and it wasn’t a pudgy tum or chunky thighs (yet) that were the problem. It was my skin.

The memory is still vivid today: 10-year old me, lined up on a bench at the side of a swimming pool during a school PE lesson, waiting for the teacher to give us instructions before we were allowed into the water. The girl next to me suddenly pointed at my legs and said something along the lines of: ‘Eugh, what are those horrible marks on your legs?’. Looking down, I could see a purple mottling spreading across my pale thighs, along with a swathe of ugly goosebumps from sitting too long in the cold. If I could pinpoint a moment when my self consciousness was born, this would be it, marking an end to those fleeting childhood years of being blissfully unaware of my physical form. From then on I began to take notice of how other girls looked, particularly their skin tone.