Brave model who suffers from psoriasis that covers most of her body during flare-ups bares her scaly skin… and everyone’s loving her for it
A PSORIASIS sufferer has bravely bared her scaly skin, which has been affected by the condition that once covered 97 per cent of her body.
Stunning Giorgia Lanuzza from Basingstoke, Hampshire, has been battling with the skin problem since she was a teenager.
After losing her dad in a tragic accident at the age of just 13, Giorgia’s grief brought on the condition.
She explained: “Just after I lost my dad I noticed these patches on my lip, on my knees, on my elbows.
"It was difficult for me because not only I was going through stress and the grief of losing my dad but being a 13-year-old with big red dots coming up was quite difficult."
Psoriasis, which causes skin to become extremely dry, flaky and painful, affects almost two per cent of Brits.
To prove that sufferers don’t have to hide themselves away, 25-year-old Giorgia is determined to inspire them to have confidence in their bodies.
She said: “As far as I’m concerned I’ve got a lovely body and I don’t mind showing it off.
“If it’s sunny I am going to get my skin out. Every day I speak to people and I catch them looking at my skin but if I cared about it and covered it up then other people would assume it’s a bad thing.”
What is psoriasis?
The NHS explains: "Psoriasis is a skin condition that causes red, flaky, crusty patches of skin covered with silvery scales.
"These patches normally appear on your elbows, knees, scalp and lower back, but can appear anywhere on your body. Most people are only affected with small patches. In some cases, the patches can be itchy or sore.
"The severity of psoriasis varies greatly from person to person. For some people it's just a minor irritation, but for others it can have a major impact on their quality of life.
"Psoriasis is a long-lasting (chronic) disease that usually involves periods when you have no symptoms or mild symptoms, followed by periods when symptoms are more severe."
When Giorgia was younger, she often felt self-conscious about the condition and tried to hide her skin when she was out in public.
She revealed: “I used to cover my skin a lot, I never really wore strappy tops and short skirts.
“It was easy to cover my skin. I never felt like I was standing out because I was wearing so many clothes.”
Her attitude to psoriasis didn’t change until she looked through photos of herself and realised that she was beautiful.
Talented Giorgia works as a photographer, and would use herself as a model when she was doing fashion projects.
She explained: "I realised that my photos looked good regardless of the fact that I was covered in psoriasis in all of them.
"I thought it doesn’t matter, I feel good in the photos so my skin condition shouldn’t really come into it.”
After suffering from an extreme spell of psoriasis following her travels in Thailand, Giorgia turned to social media for support.
During her trip to the popular tourist destination, medical professionals were forced to intervene when the condition crept over 97 per cent of Giorgia’s body.
The bout was so dangerous that the hospital were on the verge of recommending chemotherapy to treat the skin condition.
Back in the UK, dermatologists constantly monitored Giorgia as she took Methotrexate, an incredibly strong drug known for its skin-healing properties.
Related Stories
Following the terrifying ordeal, Giorgia shared snaps of her body completely covered in psoriasis online, attracting hundreds of message of support.
She remembered: “There was a huge, huge social media reaction – a sort of tidal wave because so many people have the same condition as me.”
In the aftermath of the social media storm Giorgia was even asked to star in an advertising campaign for a psoriasis cream called Exorex.
As there has been such a positive reaction to Giorgia’s work, the inspirational photographer has set up , to help other psoriasis sufferers.
Giorgia said: “As a group members can post their pictures or I’ll post mine.
“When you’re hearing the stories and these people tell you, you’ve made me feel so much more confident it’s a beautiful thing.”