If you scroll through Kandice Benford’s Instagram photos, you will see a striking woman who is embracing every inch of her body.
We were instantly drawn to her beautiful smile and couldn’t help but notice the joy that exudes from within. She recently opened up to The Weight She Carries about her story and her desire to encourage others to love themselves.
Who is Kandice Benford in a nutshell?
I am 33 years old. I’m a wife, a sister and I’m a hair stylist. What drives me is being able to spread vitiligo awareness and helping others with self-love and embracing who they are.
How long have you been spreading awareness about vitiligo?
I haven’t had vitiligo for very long. It’s been about two years. Vitiligo is an autoimmune disorder and it causes me to lose my pigmentation. I began to openly speak out about a year ago. That’s when I began to embrace who I am and encourage others to love themselves.
When were you first diagnosed with vitiligo?
I was 18 when I noticed a small spot on my hand and wondered what it was. I was told that it was vitiligo and I didn’t know what that was. So I went home and researched it and I thought, “Oh, no!” It was a shock at first because I knew I was going to be changing. But it took a long time for it to start. I was about to turn 31 and I was going through a stressful time. The emotional stress triggered my vitiligo.
I would see a spot here or a spot there and then it would go away. One spot that appeared on my nose started to spread a little. Then it spread a little bit more to my arm, and then every week I would notice new spots. Now it’s everywhere.
What was going through your mind when your skin began to change?
It was more so fear. I was afraid of the change and worried about how others would see me. I didn’t know whether I was going to lose my color completely. Was I going to be spotted? I was just very afraid.
How did you get through that time?
God and my family. My family was very supportive. My mom, my sisters and everyone in my family, including my husband. I used to cover my skin a lot when the spots appeared, and one day my husband said to me, “Kandice, you’re beautiful with makeup and you are beautiful without it. So, I think you should just be natural and embrace who you are.” That’s when I realized that vitiligo does not define who I am, so why should I stress over it?
Has vitiligo changed the beauty/makeup products you use?
I pay attention to my dark spots but I don’t cover my spots at all. I wear eye makeup and some lipstick, but other than that, I just embrace who I am.
What prompted you to start sharing you journey on social media?
I felt my story could inspire others to love themselves. It doesn’t matter what you are dealing with. Love yourself completely just the way you are. Since I started to share my story, I’ve received an overflow of positive feedback. A lot of people have reached out to me and said they love my strength and courage, and it has given them the permission to stop being so hard on themselves.
Beauty isn’t just one way; beauty is in everyone. This experience has taught me that I am stronger than I thought I was. I didn’t know I had it in me but now I see it so clearly.
Tell us about your movement?
I have a self-love movement and a T-shirt line. The vision I have for this movement is for women and men to celebrate what it as about themselves that they love. My T-shirts say, “Self-love is the best love.”
What is your message to other women struggling to love themselves because they don’t like what they see in the mirror?
Stop being so hard on yourself. We can be our own worst critics. Treat yourself the way you treat others – that means be nice to yourself. Decide to love yourself no matter what. You are beautiful and worthy of love.
To find out more about Kandice’s self-love movement, find her on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/selflovemovement2019/
