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Lisa T: Morphea

When I was about thirteen years old I developed white marks around my neck where the skin was thinner than the rest of the skin on my body. It was odd because the skin was so shiny. It caused no pain at all.

Then I developed white and brown patches down my back. My mum took me to the doctor. A small biopsy was taken from my back and skin cancer was ruled out. I saw a dermatologist and morphea was diagnosed.

I was never told anything about it and decided to look up morphea on the Internet. I was shocked at how many stories I read on the Internet and how many people who have this are suffering pain.

The last place it appeared was on the shin of my leg. This area has started to become painful in the last two months. Although the pain comes and goes it is causing me concern.

Will it get worse? Can it cause other unwanted effects? I had so many questions but I just left it and even forgot about it for awhile.

Since I have started to feel some pain I now wonder how serious it could be. I am presently twenty years old. I also have some brown patches on my stomach and sides.

One day I said to my mum, "It looks like whatever patches I have on one side of my body, it is completely the same on the other side, like someone was holding a mirror." These are browner and shinier patches.

I just saw my doctor today complaining of the pain in my leg. She said she is interested and wants to look it up on the Internet. I thought, "Good, at last."

It sure took long enough for them to show interest.

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ISN Artist: Ione Bridgman

ISN Artist Ione Bridgman created original artwork to illustrate this page. She is 90 years old, and lives in New Zealand. Her lovely paintings illustrate many of our pages and the covers of our Voices of Scleroderma Book Series.

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