TEEN WITH 100s OF BIRTHMARKS BEATS BULLIES TO EMBRACE BEAUTY
A teenage girl nicknamed 'spotty dog' by school bullies has embraced the hundreds of birthmarks that cover her entire face and body. 19-year-old Ciera Swaringen, of Rockwell, North Carolina, USA was born with mole-like birthmarks that spread from her head to her toes. Ciera's rare skin condition affects just one in 500,000 people and covers 70 percent of her body - with the largest mark stretching from her lower thighs to her navel. Since a child, the pretty teen has endured cruel taunts from strangers, but has now grown to love her unique appearance. She says: “Teenage boys are usually the first ones to comment when they see me. “They say things like, ‘You look like you’re dirty, take a wash.’
Other great stories
FROZEN BUBBLES CREATE STUNNING ICE CRYSTALS
A soap bubble lands on the frosty ground and creates a shimmering snow globe as crystals form around it .
LIP FILLERS NEARLY KILLED ME
A woman left disfigured and traumatised by an addiction to lip filler injections has issued a warning to others searching for the perfect pout after the plastic chemicals nearly killed her .
WOMAN REJECTED BY ADOPTION AGENCY DUE TO PREGNANCY PHOBIA
A woman has spoken of her heartbreak after she was rejected by an adoption agency because of her pregnancy phobia .
ADORABLE PENGUINS HATCH AT UK ZOO
HOPPING onto the scales, these adorable baby Humboldt penguins are ready for their first weigh-in .
PRAIRIE DOG AND STARLING STAND-OFF
This starling and prairie dog will not back down an inch as they have a fearsome stand-off over who gets to eat a nut .
EASTER ISLAND REPLICA STATUES DESTROYED IN SEA FALL
A project to create an underwater tribute to the stone Moai statues of Easter Island ended in disaster when 15 replica structures were destroyed after toppling from a boat and into the sea .
HEARTBREAK DIET LOST ME 11.5ST AND BAGGED ME A FELLA
When Janet Curry, 38, was told she was ‘too big to date’ by a man she met on the dating website Plenty of Fish, she didn’t let it stop her from looking for love .
AMAZING AURORA BOREALIS
A GLOWING range of greens and blues sweep across the sky in a spectacular display of light .
POLAR BEAR STRETCHES
Raising his arms above his head and lying flat on his back, a polar bear stretches as he sprawls out across the ice .
TRAPPED IN THE BODY OF A 10 YR OLD: TEENAGE GIRL BORN WITHOUT HORMONES
She is about to start driving and soon will be able to legally buy alcohol and get married, but Poppy Webb-Jones still looks and thinks like a ten-year-old girl .
SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER BEAR
An American black bear mimics John Travolta’s famous Saturday Night Fever dance move by hurling its arm in the air .