Woman Born Without Toenails Lands On Her Feet
Woman born without toenails goes viral online (Photo by Brad Barket/Getty Images)
Hard times will make you tough as nails. A Tennessee woman who was born without toenails knows all about that first hand, er, first foot.
Annabelle Anderson was born without toenails on her left foot. After feeling embarrassed and out of place, she decided to embrace her condition. After all, she’s not alone!
Woman Born Without Toenails Goes Viral
She’s found her calling on TikTok, where she has millions of views. Annabelle told Caters News Agency, “It’s just a part of who I am; it’s what makes me unique; there’s no reason to be ashamed of it or feel bad about it.”
According to The New York Post, Anderson “suffers from amniotic band syndrome (ABS), a rare birth defect that occurs when the amniotic sac’s lining is damaged during pregnancy, creating fibrous tissue strings that ensnare the fetus or umbilical cord.”
The congenital condition is fairly rare and affects 1 in 1,200 to 15,000 live births, according to The New York Post. When she was born, her parents were concerned that it could affect her mobility. Thankfully, that wasn’t the case.
According to The New York Post, Anderson gushed, “My parents were really concerned that I wasn’t going t be able to walk or anything, but I can walk, run, and dance–I’m super grateful. I’m really lucky because, in a lot of cases, it’s a lot worse.”
Tennessee Teen Born Without Toenails Goes Viral
For Anderson, the mental effects were worse than the physical effects. Per The New York Post, the influencer said, “I did used to feel alone; when I was little, I could never find anyone that looked like me.”
She went on to say that when she was young, she would create various lies as explanations for her not having toenails, including “I told one girl that I put peanut butter on my toes, and my dog licked them off,” per The New York Post.
Then, thanks to the internet and TikTok she was able to find out that she wasn’t alone. There are, indeed, others out there with the same condition.
According to The New York Post, Anderson said, “It’s so cool to see that there are so many other people like me out there.”
Check out some photos here!
Celebrities Who Opened Up About Their Skin Conditions
When it comes to our skin’s appearance, many factors are out of our control. Many people are struggling with issues pertaining to their skin. For some, certain skin conditions can be hidden away or managed. But for others, there is no hiding something on your face. Even the rich and famous deal with suffering from a skin condition. Sometimes, seeing a celebrity be open and offer a positive approach to dealing with skin issues may be helpful to those who are experiencing the same issues.
Types of Common Skin Conditions
Common skin conditions include acne, contact dermatitis (rash), atopic dermatitis (also called eczema), rosacea, warts and moles, hyperpigmentation, and psoriasis. Skin disorders such as acne and eczema vary greatly in symptoms and severity. Eczema is characterized by yellow or white scaly patches that flake off. Affected areas may be itchy, greasy, or oily, and hair loss may also occur in the area with the rash. Psoriasis, however, is a chronic autoimmune condition that causes the rapid buildup of your skin cells. This buildup of cells causes scaling on your skin’s surface. Inflammation and redness around the scales are fairly common, and sometimes, these patches crack and bleed.
When it comes to the chronic skin disease rosacea, the skin goes through cycles of fading and relapse. Rosacea’s trademark symptom is small, red, pus-filled bumps on the skin that are present during flare-ups. Typically, rosacea affects only the skin on your nose, cheeks, and forehead. The cause of rosacea is still unknown, and there is no cure. Meanwhile, vitiligo is characterized by loss of pigment in the skin due to autoimmune destruction of the cells that give skin its color. These cells, called melanocytes, no longer produce skin pigment or melanin, causing areas of your skin to lose color or turn white.
Per Healthline, skin conditions can be temporary or permanent and painless or painful. Some can be life-threatening. Some skin disorders have situational causes, such as high stress, while others may be genetic.
Take a look below at which celebrities have opened up about their skin conditions and even become advocates.
Cort Freeman was born and raised in Metro Detroit. He was named Clarkston High School 2009 Class Clown 13 years after graduating. Totally normal thing to happen. That’s thanks to his time spent as an Intern at Comedy Central and Social Media Correspondent for The Colbert Report. Cort has done comedy across the country, both standing up and sitting down. When he’s not trying to make you laugh on-air and online, he’s probably at home enjoying his favorite shows like Seinfeld, South Park, and The Office. He’s also totally uncomfortable writing about himself in the third person. Cort enjoys writing about comedy, food, sports, and entertainment. So, basically anything and everything.