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Tessa Schiethart is a 26-year-old from Amsterdam who was born with a birthmark covering most of her face. She was diagnosed with Sturge-Weber syndrome, a disease that is clinically manifested by a flat hemangioma of the face in the skin area, less often in the lower part of the face, trunk or on the mucous membranes of the mouth or throat. Tessa was also probably born blind in one eye, and now sees 80 percent of the other eye.
The doctors’ error left scars
From the very beginning, Tessa’s parents were encouraged by doctors to give their daughter laser treatment to minimize the visibility of the birthmark. They explained that the skin tolerates this procedure much better in infancy. When Tessa Schiethart was six months old, she had regular laser treatment.
When she turned two, doctors from the hospital where she was treated used a new laser to perform the last series of treatments. Unfortunately, the machine was calibrated at a much higher level than it should have been, and little Tessa was left with severe burns around her nose and above her left eye. This incident was not only a source of suffering for the girl and her parents, but also left visible scars on her face.
“This is my hallmark”
Despite the hardships Tessa had to face from an early age, she admits that she has always regarded her condition as part of her identity. She has a lot of self-acceptance and distance and, as she says herself, the mark is her “hallmark”, thanks to which “she will never have to introduce herself twice”.
The scars are mine as well as my birthmark. I have vision problems as a result of SWS and for me it is much more important that I can see the world instead of spending time “camouflaging” my face to be seen differently by people. This struggle to save my eyesight, not a birthmark, influenced my childhood. I had to do the whole year of primary school because I was in the hospital almost every day for a year. Now, every day I spend time on my inner being, which helps me maintain a healthy relationship with my outer appearance
– she confessed.
“I believe in education”
Today, Tessa Schiethart is a life coach, actively maintains her Instagram profile and helps other people live their lives to the full. As she admits, she has always been interested in how people are perceived in society, which is why she decided to conduct research on this subject at the university.
Last year, I did research on the experiences of people with visible differences with stigma and discrimination, which is a very personal topic for me. It was quite a traveling encounter and conversation with unique people with different faces, and it definitely played a part in my own journey and relationship with my birthmark. I believe in education and allowing the world to see and engage with diversity in all its forms and aspects. In the future, I hope to continue this research and promote equal treatment and full acceptance of different facial and body appearances in society
– said the 26-year-old.
Tessa’s goal is to spread awareness of the apparent difference by sharing her own life story with the birthmark on her face. Her campaign “To Face The World” aims to promote differences in society and organizations, inspire others to be themselves and change our society’s view of diversity.
Children are the best because they don’t have a filter, they just say what they think so I’m often asked “what happened to your face?” and I tell them it’s the birthmark I was born with. That’s when they usually just go back to having fun. It can also help parents, who often in such situations simply tell their children to stop staring. I always encourage them to just ask if they’d like to know more. The more people talking, the fewer barriers. People often say that the Netherlands is a very tolerant country, and that’s true. But tolerance without commitment means nothing, and if we don’t learn to speak and ask questions respectfully, nothing will change
– explains Tessa Schiethart.
Source: dailymail.co.uk
Source: Gazeta
Tristin is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his in-depth and engaging writing on sports. He currently works as a writer at 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the sports industry.
