If you’re familiar with vitiligo, then you know how hard it is for those who have it to really embrace their changing bodies.
One of the people at the forefront of vitiligo awareness is Roger Monte, a model and activist from Brazil. He went from hating his skin to absolutely adoring it!
Meet Roger Monte.
The 37-year-old male model from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil has vitiligo, a skin condition that causes pigment loss. Vitiligo is an autoimmune condition that usually develops under the age of 40.
Roger’s developed at age 23.
People began looking at him differently, and went as far as flat-out avoiding him in public.
“I had people avoid sitting next to me on public transport, thinking that my vitiligo was something that they could catch by being close to me,” he told the Daily Mail .
The reactions from the people around him made him want to hide.
“I didn’t like what I saw in the mirror and I wore makeup to cover my vitiligo for ten long years. It felt like I was being held hostage.”
It wasn’t until he made new friends that he realized his condition wasn’t a bad thing.
Their support and encouragement helped him see his skin as something unique and beautiful.
“‘One day, I just woke up, took out my cell phone, took a picture and posted it to Instagram.”
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People loved it.
Suddenly, he had a whole new audience to interact with who all loved his skin! People immediately began reaching out to share their own experiences with vitiligo, which helped him feel less alone.
Even old friends commented.
“I had never had a photo of me get so many comments and likes. People I hadn’t seen in years were praising my skin and saying that they had never noticed that I had the disease.”
His Instagram helped others feel accepted and beautiful.
“I even had a boy who had also been hiding his own vitiligo with makeup contact me to say that my posts had inspired him to stop hiding his skin. Another girl even got in touch to say that my story had helped cure her depression.”
He’s a hit on social media now.
Roger has over 34,000 followers on Instagram now, and all of them just adore him. He tries his best to spread love and acceptance to every single one of them.
The future is so bright for him!
“If my photos are able to help other people embrace their true selves, then I am happy. I made the camera my ally as opposed to my enemy and I can’t wait to see what the future holds.”
h/t Bored Panda
