Plus-size model reveals acne scars on Instagram after 20 years of being 'ashamed' of them

A plus-sized model has revealed her acne scars in a candid series of Instagram posts after hiding them for more than two decades.

Tia Duffy, who suffered from acne since the age of 12, took part in a special modelling project entitled Skin Works, which features unedited and unfiltered images of 60 women, in a bid to raise awareness around skin cancer.

Duffy claims that she was inspired to take part in the project after losing a close friend to cancer.

Taking to Instagram to share a picture of her scarred back, Duffy captioned her post:

"I have covered up my back for my entire life. I got acne on my back when I was about 12 years old and I had it for years and it left me badly scarred. I never wear tops that show my back and even as a model on shoots I would cover it with foundation and obsess about it to the point of exhaustion ... It’s controlled me and made me insecure my entire life. I always wanted to show this or post it I just never knew how."

She added:

"My friend Heather passed away last year from skin cancer and had a dream to raise awareness about it through a project. The project is called @skin.work. Along with the recent passing of my other friend @elly.mayday to ovarian cancer, I realize now more than ever that there is so much more to our bodies than our insecurities and we should NEVER take our bodies for granted ... I may have hid these scars but my skin is healthy and I am healthy!!"

"Starting today I will no longer hide these scars but embrace them instead. It’s so important especially on platforms like Instagram that some people keep it raw and honest. I hope this post inspires women/men to love every part of their bodies."

The response to her post was very positive, and many other social media users took to the comments to express their support of her. For example, one Instagram user with the handle saradxoxo wrote: "Thank you for sharing! I think it’s so important to show our beautiful imperfections 💕."

Endagill3546 wrote: "Don't ever worry about anything like that we all have our imperfections it's what's inside that matters ur still a beautiful person 😀[sic]," while another person with the handle ashleyesavage added: "It’s so nice to see other women with back acne. I’ve hid it my whole life and it’s reduced me to tears almost every summer. This photo is beautiful 💕"

But this isn't the first time we've written about people embracing their skin and their bodies. Check out this article we penned about a cancer survivor who covered up her mastectomy scars with these amazing tattoos.