Local Woman Photographs Scars To Show Individuality and Beauty

CHARLOTTE – A local woman is making an impact in the world of self love. She is snapping photos of peoples scars and making them see the beauty in themselves.

It all started for Michelle Murchison when she was a little girl, diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis at 18 months old.

She herself has had over 16 surgeries and even more scars.

When she was a little girl, she had arthroscopic surgery on her knees, leaving small scars behind. She would always wear pants to hide her scars, then one baby sitter changed her opinion about the .

“She helped me put my pajamas on and saw my scars and said ‘I didn’t know you had stars on your knee!'” say Murchison. “From that point on, I was so proud of them I thought that was so cool and it changed the whole way that I saw myself.”

That conversation gave her the idea for her first book, which is the baby sitter story re-written about a girl who feels the same way.

The best part of her book comes near the end, where common scars for kids are seen in an imaginative way.

“Like a train track for heart surgery, a lightening bolt for cleft pallet,” says Murchison. “So that kids could see themselves in a book.”

The book will be on pre-order in January. In the mean time , Murchison snaps photos of people scars and shares their stories on social media.

“I wanted to create a space where people could feel confident telling that story and it was kind of cool to tell that story,” says Murchison.

Her goal, to show normality in people differences.

“The truth is, there isn’t a normal. What’s normal for you is who you are, and what’s normal for me is who I am.”