Meet Omar

Hi! My name is Omar Sharife, and I’ve had vitiligo for over 20 years. I am mixed race—my parents come from Jamaica and India—and I was raised in Vancouver, Canada.

Vitiligo started as a heart-shaped spot in the middle of my forehead during my late teens and early twenties. Initially, I was prescribed steroid creams and UV lamp treatment that would burn and blister my skin in hopes it would stimulate repigmentation. In the early stages, treatment helped and the spot on my forehead went away but Vitiligo spread gradually over two decades from my fingertips to my feet, up my neck, and eventually onto my face again in my late thirties.

For a while, I had hopes that the vitiligo spots would disappear, but I realized that repigmentation was unlikely.

"I had a real fear that vitiligo would take away the very core of who I was as a person, and for many years, it did."

I regularly told myself to party with friends, travel extensively, and experience all I could in life because there would come a point when vitiligo would stop me from going out in public. I carried those fears for 20+ years.

Vitiligo made me a very anxious person and for many years caused severe depression. It made me create rules and behaviours like wearing long sleeves, pants, hats, and socks even in the summer months just so that I could feel okay to go out. When vitiligo appeared on my legs, the simple task of wearing shorts caused me to spend hours in the mirror trying to convince myself to get the courage to show my legs.

For a number of years, I used makeup to hide my skin. I recall going to get makeup for the first time and walking around the block numerous times before getting the courage to actually walk into the store. A young man, wearing makeup? Every time I bought more makeup, I would always make a point to tell the cashier I was getting it for ‘my girlfriend’ or ‘my sister’ because I was so embarrassed. I wish I knew better.

In my thirties, I remember getting a haircut and noticing a single white patch on my head, which, at that time, became a rule that I could no longer cut my hair short.

I was extremely self-conscious about the vitiligo on my scalp and wouldn’t allow barbers to trim my hair beyond a certain length.

If they did, I had to wear a hat or avoid public situations until my hair grew long enough for me to feel confident again. Going to a new barber often triggered anxiety attacks while sitting in their chair.

Unfortunately for me, I didn’t know anyone else with vitiligo, nor did I have a support group I could talk to. I didn’t open up to friends or family because I didn’t want anyone to know how much the vitiligo was bothering me. Hiding all of my feelings and having no one to talk to allowed me to create so many unhealthy ‘rules’ and coping mechanisms that only served to exacerbate my anxiety and negative feelings about vitiligo. I wish I had spoken up earlier because it would have saved me many years of mental turmoil.

Over the years, anxiety made me steer clear of crowded spaces and uncontrollable sweating was a regular occurrence when I felt uncomfortable. I hated any sort of pictures, and even to this day, going to a restaurant makes me feel trapped.

The turning point in my journey was when I found a support group based in California that were doing a ‘meetup’. Meeting this group of individuals face to face shattered the isolation I had felt for so long. Through shared stories, I realized I was not alone in my feelings, and this realization became the key to beginning to free myself from the rules and behaviours I had made myself live by for so long.

The journey of acceptance for me remains an ongoing process as I continue to challenge the boundaries set by my anxieties.

I am embracing the uniqueness that vitiligo brings to my narrative.

Vitiligo may have altered the canvas of my skin, but it won’t erase the vibrant hues that make me who I am.

These days, I manage my mental health and wellbeing by staying active—skiing, hiking, and cycling. I try to be visible on my social media as much as possible because I know the value to others in just seeing someone with vitiligo, and it’s therapeutic for me to see myself for who I am. I aim to contribute to normalizing seeing someone who is visually different and believe strongly in sharing my story to inspire, uplift, and educate about vitiligo.

My dream travel destination is Japan, a place that has fascinated me since childhood. I love the idea of being in a bustling city like Tokyo, surrounded by the energy of countless people, bright lights, and constant activity. Traveling to Japan would represent achieving a lifelong travel goal and a symbol of me challenging the anxieties that attempted to make me believe going out in such a public place was no longer possible.