Jessica McGirr, a 24-year-old Irish woman living in New York, never thought that a boat trip along the coast of Tenerife would leave a permanent mark on her face. She was 19 when she fell asleep under the sun without sunscreen during a holiday with friends.
She was exposed to intense UV rays for at least four hours, causing burns all over her body and severe inflammation on her nose, which hasn’t gone away since.
“The redness has ruined my self-confidence, and now I wear makeup every day to cover it up,” Jessica confessed in an interview with the British publication The Sun.
Although the burns on her body disappeared in a week, the reddish tone on her nose persisted for months. Today, five years later, it is still visible and causes her constant discomfort in public, as people often ask her if she “is unwell or has some kind of skin condition.”
A Common Mistake with Consequences
Jessica’s case has gone viral on social media, where many users have identified with her experience. Dermatology experts warn every summer about the risks of falling asleep in the sun without sunscreen, especially in areas like the Canary Islands, where radiation levels can be higher for much of the year.
Jessica claims she was not initially aware of the damage but came to understand the severity of the situation over time. “I didn’t realise until I saw the weeks go by and the red nose wouldn’t go away. It hurt, swelled with the heat, and it’s still the same today.”
“The skin on my nose was very rough and often bled and formed scabs,” the young woman explains. “For the first three years after the burn, my nose was very inflamed. Now it is calmer. It’s still very red, but the texture is smoother.”
Overall, sunburns and sun exposure can cause lasting damage to the skin, including premature ageing and the development of precancerous lesions. Sunburns significantly increase the risk of skin cancer, but it may take years or decades to manifest.
Jessica has visited three different doctors regarding her nose, but no one has been able to help her or provide a clear diagnosis: “No diagnosis has been made, which is very frustrating because I would like to know why this happened to me and if there could be a cure,” she confesses.
At first, she was prescribed some creams and treatments for acne. When those didn’t work, she was advised to visit a dermatology clinic and undergo laser treatment, sometimes used to even out skin pigmentation. “I underwent four sessions of intense pulsed light therapy, but I saw no results. They have done visual skin assessments and blood tests, but no doctor has given me a diagnosis. They denied it was rosacea because it was only on my nose and remained constantly red,” the young Irish woman comments.
Sunburns can exacerbate or trigger rosacea, and without proper treatment, it can persist for years. Its main symptoms are facial redness, including the cheeks and nose.
Jessica states that she has not received serious treatment and that some doctors have merely told her to avoid spicy foods, which would be advice for those with rosacea.
“I feel very let down by the healthcare system in my country, as no doctor seems to care or want to refer me to a specialist. I now use sunscreen with a factor of 50 every day,” she adds finally.
