Woman Shares Birthmark Photos After Being Asked to Appear on 'Undateables' Docuseries
— -- A British woman who has been asked to appear on a TV documentary series for her large facial birthmark is bringing positive attention to skin discolorations after her Internet selfies yielded an immense response worldwide.
"I know the first night, the individual photos had over 100,000 views," Lexxie Harford of England told ABC News.
“It was really amazing in terms of the fact that I've always wanted to raise awareness; I just never figured out how. The next time they see someone with a birthmark they won’t forget. They'll know what it is and they won't get freaked out."
Harford, 23, said it wasn't until she was 9 that she realized she was "different" because of the red birthmark that covered the right side of her face.
"Up until that day I never noticed it," she said. "It was probably because of the ignorance of a child."
Although she said all the "ingredients" were put in place for bullies, Harford was rarely picked on by her fellow classmates, and she stopped covering her birthmark after college to embrace her natural appearance.
Harford, a character artist who's heavily involved in social media, said it was both this year and last year when she was contacted by two different British television programs through Twitter and Instagram, both wanting her to appear on their shows titled "The Undateables" and "Too Ugly for Love?"
Both are reality documentary series that focus on singles with "disabilities" or "medical conditions" who are on a quest to find love, according to TLC programs' press releases.
"I'm really comfortable and I don't get offended easily," Harford said. "He [the booking agent] was very blasé. He tried to cover it and tried to make it prettier than it was. I had to say to him, 'Look, I don't really have a place on the show you're scouting for.' If they [people with birthmarks] accepted themselves, they really wouldn't go on a show like that. I would try and get that person to see themselves differently."
Harford posted two photos of herself onto Imgur Monday with her birthmark both exposed, and covered with makeup.
"A lot of people are curious, or a lot of people with birthmarks cover them, so I like to show it off to raise awareness," Harford posted.
In just four days, the post received over 100,000 views and the uplifting comments and compliments came rolling in.
"I always wanted to show a birthmark with an open line of communication, where people could ask lots of questions," Harford said. "I understand why people are upset or offended or want to cover it up.
“I know some people have laser surgery and I don't think that's wrong at all. You have to do what makes you feel comfortable and I feel comfortable like this, that's all."
