Sarah Guirguis After being diagnosed with the skin disease vitiligo, beautiful 7-year-old model Mila Abouchalbak made absolute history as the first girl with vitiligo to land on the cover of Vogue Arabia.
Mila was diagnosed when she was only four, and her vitiligo began spreading over the course of a month – onto half of her face and also whitened her eyelashes. This change led her to start feeling self-conscious, especially when she experienced some finger-pointing and bullying from other kids.
After two years of treatment, Mila reached a point where she found herself with no other option but having to accept living with vitiligo. From that moment forward, her parents’ became determined to raise awareness about vitiligo for the sake of their daughter and others who are suffering silently from this skin condition.
It wasn’t until only last year that Mila started embracing her skin and it all began with her first portrait photoshoot with Lebanese photographer Tarek Moukaddem for World Vitiligo Day. Through that opportunity, she received a lot of love and support from celebrities, influencers and bloggers from around the world, which gave her a huge confidence boost.
Since then, Mila has been modeling with a message of encouragement, empowerment and celebration of people’s differences. She was featured in eyewear brand Maghrabi’s ‘Empower Your Vision’ campaign. She made the cover of Vogue Arabia’s September 2020 Hope issue, in representation of Lebanon’s young generation. At such a young age, Mila was among the thousands of Lebanese children who witnessed the horrific explosion in Beirut and saw families lose their homes, however, continues to believe in a bright future for her country.
