Jenny Marie Gumata has struggled as a result of her ‘port wine stain’ mark (Picture: mediadrumimages/Jenny Marie Gumata)
A woman says she’s been forced to suffer with swollen bleeding red lips for the rest of her life due to late treatment for her condition.
Student and part-time accountant Jenny Marie Gumata, 22, was taken to the doctor as a baby for hyperpigmentation on her mouth.
The medic assured her mother it was just a common ‘port wine stain’ mark that would either become permanent or vanish naturally when she reached seven years old. It wasn’t treated as anything serious.
Her parents didn’t seek a second opinion and instead relied on their ‘Christian faith’ to get her through the bullying she received from other children and the insecurities she developed when the mark did not disappear as she got older.
‘The years I spent in primary school were a challenging and stressful time for me,’ she said. ‘At that age, kids are plain cruel.
‘Yes, I may have been the target of bullying, which was traumatising, but my parents’ guidance, their affection and encouragement, served as a beacon for me to realise my value despite having a port wine stain birthmark.’
But it wasn’t the benign birthmark that the doctor in Jenny’s small village in Talisay City, Philippines, insisted it was – sometimes, it can be a sign of greater complications, which in Jenny’s case, were overlooked.
Jenny’s illness led to constantly swollen, bleeding lips, which she did not receive treatment for until she was 13(Picture: mediadrumimages/Jenny Marie Gumata)
Jenny eventually complained of constantly swollen, bleeding lips, which she did not receive treatment for until she was 13 after experiencing severe mouth pain.
The late treatment means Jenny’s lips will be swollen for the rest of her life.
‘Since we reside in a rural area, there aren’t many resources or sources of information,’ she said.
‘Because I did not start receiving treatments until I was 13, which had a profound impact on my current facial features.’
‘My lips were already swollen and my birthmark was changing from its original light purple tint to a dark purple shade,’ she explained.
‘My parents only made the decision to seek medical care outside of our region in 2014 after I started complaining about frequent bleeding in my lips and gums.
She says of her condition: ‘I now can fully accept and embrace it wholeheartedly,’ (Picture: mediadrumimages/Jenny Marie Gumata)
‘Every six weeks, my mother and I had to fly to Manila for my laser treatments.’
This helped to alleviate some of her symptoms. ‘My birthmark’s redness was lessened, my lips size also reduced slightly, and the bleeding was undoubtedly minimised.’
However, despite her ordeal, she is philosophical about it all.
‘The laser may have left my face with battle scars, but deep down, I acquired so much knowledge about my condition that I now can fully accept and embrace it wholeheartedly,’ she said.
Three in 1,000 babies are born with a port wine stain, but Jenny stresses that it’s not a harmless mark but a disease with serious health implications.
‘In infants and young children, Port Wine Stains are red and flat,’ she said. ‘But the lesions tend to darken progressively to purple and, by adult age, often become raised as a result of the development of vascular papules or nodules.
Jenny spent her childhood mocked by her peers (Picture: mediadrumimages/Jenny Marie Gumata)
‘Over time, blood vessels become more dilated and susceptible to spontaneous bleeding or haemorrhage following minor trauma.’
In 2020, Jenny discovered the Birthmark Social online and, as a keen photographer, began uploading photos of herself on social media to spread her message of body positivity.
‘The fear that cyberbullying attacks may take place in my accounts is the worst part of posting on social media,’ she said.
‘The encouraging comments I got made me feel blessed that I could serve as an inspiration to those who are still struggling with acceptance.
‘I think that showing my face to the public on social media and not hiding it has a significant impact on the birthmark community in general.
‘I cherish that people can see that I am not ashamed to be visible, and their encouraging words is what keeps me going with this journey.’
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