"In 1997 at the age of 7 i survived a gas explosion. I have undergone 27 reconstructive surgeries. I have always been comfortable with my scars, to me they are beautiful and they tell you different stories. They are special.”

“When I was 14 I rescued a stray horse called Fly, and I fell in love with him immediately. One morning, I was feeding the horses in the field (just like every other morning). Fly tried to kick another horse behind him, but missed and kicked me in the face, just below my left temple. At first I was shocked, I was young and alone in a field and covered in blood. However after a few trips to the hospital the scar is just a part of my face. Now it’s been 4 years since I was kicked, the scar has created an adhesion to my cheek bone which is why is is noticeable. Although being faced with an opportunity to remove the scar, I never would. I don’t think beauty has to be symmetrical!.

“I started self harming when I was 13 and have struggled with it ever since. The issue with self harming is it gets progressively worse and you end up doing more and more damage to yourself than you think is possible when you first start. It truly is an addiction and you get to a point where surgeons tell you that plastic surgery can’t fix the appearance of the scars, so the only thing you can do is love your scars so much that all the negative connections that come along with self harm slowly disappear - along with all the pain attached to the scars. My scars tell my story, and I’m never going to let anyone else’s thoughts or opinions change that. “

“I was born without both radius. When I was one I had my first surgery on my right hand. One year later doctors decided to operate on my left hand. Two different doctors operated on my hands. The first operation went well. During the second operation, there were some complications. Doctors didn’t know that bones in my left hand are different from the ones in my right hand. When I was 15, I noticed that there was something wrong with my left wrist. I had to have surgery once again. This disease is called hemimelia, and a case like mine happens for 1 in 100,000 people. I always had a big problem with my scars - I couldn’t accept myself because of them and other people also had a problem with my scars. Now I think that this is who I am. Finally I can feel that I don’t have to hide it, because this is the real me.”

“When I was in my 20s, I was taking a short cut through the local park when I realised the gate had been locked. I decided to climb up over the railings and my footing slipped, catching my face in two places. The spikes passed through my face. Luckily the park attendant noticed what happened and called an ambulance. I feel like my looks were ruined by the accident, but I carried on as normal. People often think I’ve been in a knife attack or fight, so believe I’m a bad person.”

“I was only 8 years old when I had a car accident. I was with my friend and her mother, sitting in the back seat of the car. I wasn’t wearing a seatbelt. All of a sudden a car jumped out of nowhere, and came towards us. We crashed violently, the car flipping twice. Unfortunately I was the one who was injured badly - when the car was flipping, I broke the window by falling on it. I hit my head on the ground (losing part of my hair), and the car was on top of me with half of my body inside, and the other half outside. I was taken to the hospital by helicopter. The doctor put me into a medically induced coma and operated on my ruptured liver. I suffered a chest and head trauma. I was in a coma for 10 days, and on the 10th day the doctor told my mother that there was nothing else they could do, and that I wouldn’t survive the night. The day after I woke up with a 42c temperature because of the medicine I had been given. The doctor told my Mum that I was a miracle. I have been carrying this scar for the last 22 years of my life, and it has been like a tattoo with represents a new chapter.”

“In 2014, I was diagnosed with Ewings Sarcoma, a bone cancer. I had chemo for nearly a year and several surgeries for bone transplantations in my arm. They took pieces of bone from my leg and thigh. One time, my transplant broke, so I had a major surgery which took 8 hours. In two years I had 10 surgeries and I have one planned for November 2017.”

“I’ve become the strong and independent woman I am today because of my Mum, and because of what happened. It has all been a part of my journey. It started when I was 5 months old - whilst taking a nap, a fire started next to my bed and I lost two fingers. It took one year of recovery at the hospital, and 25 years to accept it. I went through awkward handshakes and looks, children’s whispers and hiding it at all costs - which meant always using my other hand. Because of what happened, my Mum raised a fighter who is not afraid of who she is anymore. I am not going to hide it, although it still hurts when I move my hand and it is sometimes a mental struggle to fully accept it."

“I managed to make it from 1993 - 2014, to 21 years old having no health issues whatsoever. No broken bones, no serious illnesses - then suddenly, I was having brain surgery. I was so stupidly happy not to lose that much hair when I had my 2 operations, a year a part. I didn’t even lose much during radiotherapy. I do have this line now, all the way around the side of my head that will never grow hair. I love it. Every day I see it, and the dent in my head beneath it, and the lump where muscle has slipped and gathered. It reminds me what I’ve been through - and how I didn’t just survive, I smashed it. I will be having the scar on my head “re-opened” early next year (2018) - they’re reconstructing my dented face. I am hoping for the best resulted, but also that I get to keep this pronounced, near perfect line. My tummy scar is newer. That’s been harder to come to terms with - but i’m trying not to give it too much power. I’m owning it. My body is a collection of markings, and memories. It’s a map of me. Someday I’ll leave this world, I will escape my skin, and I will leave behind a form of myself that was loved - so loved - by myself and others - and it will have been lived in!”

Scars on my left arm are from self harm over the past 7 years. Scar on the top right abdomen is the result of surgery to extract rib cartilage to reconstruct my left ear"

"I've had 15 surgeries, a brain tumour, a punctured intestine, an obstructed bowel, a cyst in my brain and a condition called Hydrocephalus. I grew up without realising my body was different until one day I wore a bikini and was met with looks of pity and shock. I thought the solution was to hide them and never talk about them, but in fact, what helped me was the exact opposite. When I was 21, I finally started embracing my scars and accepting my body for what it does. In celebration of that I launched a campaign called #scarrednotscared because I knew I couldn't be alone. I didn't want anyone to feel isolated in their struggles with physical illness and chronic pain, and it became the perfect platform to remove the shame around our scars and our bodies in general."

"My first scars arrived at 14, whilst playing a chasing game with friends. I jumped over the wall, but the wall moved and I ended up scarring both of my legs. For years I've been paranoid about showing them and only wore trousers. The scars on my left arm and face were given to me by a deranged person out for revenge, the worst part it was not meant for me. I got caught up in a fight where the person had a glass in her hand whilst punching me. I was only aware of it when blood was pouring from my face. I didn't notice my arm until I looked down to see my arm opened up like a butterfly chicken. I now love me for me, ever since I started Focusing On Creating my Ultimate Self."

"At 18 I was diagnosed with Ewings Sarcoma, a rare bone cancer that predominately affects young people. Before my diagnosis I had never heard of Ewings and had no idea how much it would impact my life. Part of the treatment process involved having my femur replaced with titanium which resulted in a scar the length of my thigh. I often felt as if the scar would remain a constant trigger of the times I spent sick to my stomach in hospital, but I'm gradually learning to view them as symbols of health, recovery and a chance at a long life. I can now zoom out and see more than a sick body, but a person even more motivated in life than before."

“My scars were made whilst I was in a coma for 90 days. The scars on my face, neck and groin are there because I was on life support known as ECMO - my lungs had been devastated by a necrotising pneumonia and they had to stop me breathing - the ECMO oxygenated my blood and kept me alive for 66 days. The other round scars on my body are from chest drains because both my lungs had collapsed and infection and air was trapped in my chest cavity. The scar on my back is from surgery I had because my chest had filled with so much blood that it was impacting my heart. All this began when I went on a school trip to the Ardeche in France. I left on the 26th June with the school and came home on the 24th October. I was in a French hospital in Montpellier, in Intensive care all that time. They never gave up on me and fought with me. My scars are the map of my survival and I’m very proud of them. They give me strength and individuality. It’s very rare for people to survive this infection - and in actual fact I survived two, because after the first pneumonia, I suffered a second infection - hospital born MRSA and went into multiple organ failure. We all fought on. I have a small scar on my throat where I had a tracheostomy - it was strange to have no voice when I woke up, but I wasn’t afraid - I only believed.”

Hello my name is Lamissah La-Shontae and I’m a 10 year old U.K Model and Actress Life isn’t about what colour hair or eyes you have .. or the shape of your body .. height or weight .. nor is it about the colour of your skin. Beauty is inside out.. we are all beautiful.. you just have to look deep inside to see and feel it... the eyes are the window to your soul and tell a thousand stories. I was born with several different marks and birthmarks .. most of which faded or disappeared with age, the Drs said it's a common thing in mixed babies. Last year a brown mark I had on my arm seemed to get darker, so I was referred to a specialist dermatologist. We were reassured it was nothing to worry about. Things carried on as normal. I was following my dreams - travelling the world, modelling and filming lots of amazing film productions. I was working very hard… until earlier this year when the mark on my arm seemed to grow rapidly bigger and darker - spreading into my armpit and slightly down my arm. My GP saw me at the clinic and rang immediately for me to be seen and referred to a specialist. 2 days later I received a call from the hospital - an emergency appointment had been made for me the following morning to see a specialist dermatologist again. The morning was such a whirlwind- everything happened so fast! We arrived at the hospital and I was seen by the specialist who said he wasn’t happy, and diagnosed it as a form of melanoma which was growing rapidly. It had infact grown another CM from the day the GP had referred me. He wanted me to be seen immediately by a plastic surgeon."

“I did not see myself before my scar - I have had it for as long as I can remember. I was 4 months old when I had a surgery to remove one of my spare kidneys. Yes, I was born with an extra one which was making me very ill. My mum says my scar was very tiny after they operated - probably because I was tiny over all. As I grew, my scar grew with me - and so did my discomfort and embarrassment over it. It’s very much a personal journey, but I am fortunate to have support from special people. It’s taken me 34 years to come to terms with it - I haven’t got to the point where I can confidently wear a saree, or a two piece bikini without a care in the world, but hopefully - one day - I will get there soon!"

“When I was 9, I broke my arm riding my bike on a rainy day, and as my arm broke when I fell, my appendix burst. All the focus was on my broken arm being at school, until I suddenly couldn’t walk or move. I was constantly throwing up, I went to the doctors and they didn't know until the very last visit. They told me and my family I had to be rushed into hospital ASAP in an ambulance. They later found out I had developed “pentinitis” where all the poison from the appendix had leaked into my bloodstream, so it needed removing immediately. I was in intensive care for months on bedrest, and had to learn how to walk again. I missed a lot of school, but later found out that If I had come in a day later, I would have died. So the scar represents that I have to really live everyday.”

"I have scarring and stretch marks on my left leg due to the condition Proximal Femoral Focal Deficiency (PFFD), a condition I was born with. This meant going through multiple operations at a young age. I have started to feel confident about my scars in the last few years, accepting them and embracing them."

“I was in a motorcycle accident 10 years ago with my dad whilst on holiday in Thailand. It was around 9pm and we were driving back from dinner, and a car coming from the opposite direction over took another care and came into our lane. My dad veered off to the left, so the car just hit us on our right sides. I broke my femur, which they say is as hard as concrete. I suffered cuts and grazes all over my skin, but luckily those didn’t scar - but my broken leg meant a long scar on my outer thigh. A couple of years later they also realised I had torn a knee ligament - I had surgery and came out with six new scars. Several years later they found yet another torn ligament on the side of my knee, so there was more surgery. I now have 8 scars along my leg, which I love, but since I have hypertonic scarring they’re all quite wide and evident. I remember the first time I wore a skirt after the accident, about 2cm of my scar was showing, and because of that, I didn’t even dare to wear it out. It took a couple of years to get used to the scars, for them to fade enough for me to forget about them. It doesn’t help much when people ask to feel them and then react with a grimace, and say “ew, that feels so gross.”. Slowly I’m starting to realise that they’re not there to make me hate what happened to me. The accident taught me a lot about patience and being thankful for what I have. I really thought I owed it to myself to fall in love with my scar just a little bit more. 10 years and 5 surgeries later, I do still feel the psychological and physical effects of the accident, but I don’t think I would change a thing.”

“Funnily enough I came to the shoot to showcase a different scar, but then changed my mind and thought I’d show the scars that really affect me. My acne scars. I suffered from I guess what you would call mild acne since I was a teenager, and although it’s cleared up since, I’ve been left with all the marks. I know some people may look at my skin and think “what’s the big deal, I’ve seen worse.”. So many people would always say that “It’ll clear up in time” or that “it’s just your age” or imply that I should “get over it” - but to anyone that’s suffered with bad skin, you know it’s not that easy. It’s difficult to understand the physcological effects that acne scars can have. For the longest time, I was so conscious of my skin that I wouldn’t go out without makeup and would literally spend tonnes on remedy beauty buys. Only now that my skin has improved have I gained my self confidence back, and begun to love and accept the skin I am in. It’s not perfect, and it may never be, but it can only get better, and most importantly I’ve got over it! The scar you see in the middle of my forehead is known as my Harry Potter scar, which, to be honest doesn’t really bother me at all. Maybe it’s because it has been dubbed with a cool name, or because I’ve had it for so long that it’s just become a part of me.”

"When I was 9 I fell off a swing on holiday and broke my arm quite badly. Being in hospital on holiday was a pain, but I made friends with the other kids on my ward and we remained pen pals for sometime after. My scar doesn't bother me at all, I forget it is there until someone else brings it up. "

“I started self harming at 11, and it got serious when I was 14. I managed to stop for a long time until last year when I lost most of the feeling in my left arm. I’ve been struggling with being confident with them, as the smallest recent mark can take you so far back in terms of recovery.”

“I have experienced mental health problems since my early teens. I have used unhealthy coping strategies including self harm, but I do not feel ashamed of the marks I have been left with anymore. They are not ugly or beautiful, they are just part of my body and should be able to exist, and move around the world without intrusive stares or questions. I know I have reached my lowest, and I guess my scars are a reminder of that, but they don’t make me feel sad. I don’t think I am damaged, I don’t want people to see me as damaged. I hope to fully recover and live a happy life. One day I want to be a Mum.”

“I got my scars from surgery repairing a damaged nerve. I snapped a wineglass at my waitressing job, the stem went through my hand and I had to go to A&E. I had to quit my job as I wasn’t able to lift anything for a few months, but I’m pretty much back to normal now asides from the visual reminder. I think they’re quite pretty, they look like a crescent moon and a lightning bolt to me - but that’s probably a bit optimistic!”

"In the summer of '15 I was in a house fire. My clothes and way of life up in flames. I spent my summer in London in a burns unit on Fulham Road. My scars and scar tissue continue to change, but I have never felt more beautiful."

"I've struggled with self harm since I was 8. For as long as I can remember, my emotions have been very intense, this was one of the ways I learnt to cope. I have been stuck wearing long sleeves regardless of the weather. The appearance of my arms is one of my biggest secrets. Learning to embrace my scars and accept them as part of me is a major step. I also feel that hiding them away perpetuates the feeling of guilt/shame. "

"I've always had scars for as long as I can remember. Acne scars. As I went through puberty I had irregular periods which made me decide to go to the doctors and they found a 12cm cyst on my ovaries. They did emergency key hole surgery, and when I saw the scars I was horrified. I thought I’d never be able to wear a bikini and at the age of 18, that felt like a big thing. Now I’m 22, I’ve over it and I’m quite open about the fact I have PCOS and I feel like it’s just become a part of who I am rather than a secret. I am more open to showing my scars to people now, and they definitely don’t stop me going to the beach in a bikini anymore. I decided it would be good to be a part of this series, as every one has scars, and a story behind them.”

"I am an enthusiastic amateur dancer and have been all my life. I regularly attend classes at Pineapple studios. I was dancing to a routine we had just learned and decided to "go for it" and really energised my performance. Unfortunately I landed badly after a "hitch kick" on to my left leg and it buckled underneath me and I collapsed on the floor. An MRI scan revealed that I had ruptured my anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). This ligament will not repair itself so you either have to learn to live without it or have ACL reconstruction surgery. The surgery requires keyhole work to repair the knee. A new ligament is made from a graft taken from your hamstring. This is threaded and stapled to the bone. The surgery is straight forward, but the recovery is very hard work, requiring 9 months to a year of physio to get strong again. The scar is fairly modest, but recognisable to anyone who has had the surgery. We give each other a nod of recognition in the gym because we know what we have been through. "