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acne]; ‘Feel very negative about the way I look, often try to cover up as much as possible’
[woman with weight issues and bad teeth]. Others said their appearance prevented them from
going out and socialising, with a few women saying their feature [weight issues, psoriasis,
pregnancy stretch marks] prevented them from wearing a swimming costume or swimming.
There were also women who said they sometimes could not face going out and socialising with
others, whilst other respondents described being completely isolated: ‘I keep myself to myself …
now prefer solitary activities’ [man with psoriasis]; ‘Basically lived under hat for 30 years. No
social network’ [man, scalp transplant gone wrong]; ‘[appearance] has an overall negative effect
on my interactions with people in general’ [woman with issues around weight, knocked knees,
being short].
4.) Practical Issues
Several respondents noted practical difficulties related to their appearance problem. This could
be a difficulty to find clothes that fitted, or they found that they now could not wear ‘nice clothes’
or stylish shoes. The pain and disability of the underlying condition was also an issue,
sometimes more than appearance. Many people resented the time, effort or expense needed to
treat or conceal the condition.
Clothes/ Shoes/ Makeup: Many respondents felt their appearance problems caused practical
difficulties in finding clothing (or they could not wear the clothes they usually wore); others could
not wear stylish shoes or could not/ had to wear makeup. The main problem in this category
was clothes, especially for women with mastectomies, who found that they had to dress
differently: ‘I can’t wear nice clothes because I bulge’; ‘I have to choose clothes that cover up’;
‘Asymmetry and having to wear expensive bras’. Other women found it hard to buy clothes
because of their large size, while those with large or asymmetrical breasts found it hard or
expensive to buy bras. Women with large or deformed feet said they were not able to buy
attractive shoes, and a man with psoriasis resented the ‘constraints on dress’ this caused. One
woman said she could not put on makeup to cover her acne, and another said she had to wear
makeup all the time to cover a birthmark.
Pain and disability: For others the pain, disability and discomfort caused by the underlying
condition was as important, if not more so, than the appearance issues. This was especially true
for those suffering pain and disability from arthritis. People with psoriasis said that their skin was
‘itching’, ‘sore’ or ‘irritable’, one man was concerned about the skin on his hands ‘because I
work with my hands’. Several women with weight issues felt ‘uncomfy’ ‘debilitated’, ‘slow and
inactive’ or ‘a problem as regards movement/ exercise’. One man with a stoma bag was
concerned with the practicalities and smell of changing bags, and another man with fibromyalgia
(FMS) was concerned with the amount of pain his condition caused.
Time spent on appearance: Some respondents begrudged the time, effort and money spent on
their appearance. Some of those with psoriasis said that treating their condition was timeconsuming
(applying treatments and taking showers to reduce irritation, intensive hospital
treatment), and several women found their excess body hair costly and time consuming to
remove.
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