Behind the Hashtag: Why Lex Gillies is taking make-up free selfies to raise #RosaceaAwareness

"My skin looked so awful when I woke up that I didn't want to leave my house."

Lex Gillies remembers hiding away in her early twenties because of her flushed complexion. She was diagnosed with the chronic skin condition rosacea while at university almost 15 years ago.

Now a British Skin Foundation Ambassador, she shares her experiences online using #RosaceaAwareness to connect with others with the same condition.

More than a bad skin day

Unaware her condition had a name, Lex put her pink-toned skin down to late nights, a poor diet and drinking too much while at university.

It wasn't until she visited her GP that she was diagnosed with the inflammatory skin condition that affects around 1 in 10 people in the UK.

"When he told me that there wasn't a cure and that this was something I would have to live with for the rest of my life, I was devastated," Lex said.

The ruddy complexion she fought to cover up was more than just a few bad skin days and something that followed her from university to adult life.

Lex said: "I found it quite difficult when I had an office job because I never wanted to be the person that would speak up in meetings or put myself forward for anything."

Accepting her flareups

As rosacea commonly affects older people, Lex thought more could be done for people like herself.

Known as TalontedLex online, she shares her knowledge about the condition on the blog she started in 2011.

Keeping up with the online community has helped her to accept her condition.So much so, the flareups that once left her embarrassed, soon became the subject of her selfies.

Rosacea often presents itself as bumps, veins and redness on the face a look Lex hopes more will embrace on social media.

Lex said: "On one side you see people sharing their highlight reels so their perfect holiday or their perfect face or their perfect family and I think it's impossible for you not to compare yourself to that."

The filter free movement

The regular makeup free pictures she posts with #RosaceaAwareness inspired a filter free movement online.

More than 2,000 posts have used the hashtag on Instagram with people sharing everything from skincare tips to personal stories.

Lex receives hundreds of comments and messages on her Instagram @talontedlex and has become a beauty guru for people with rosacea.

"It's something that not a lot of people can understand if they haven't suffered with it themselves and so a lot of people just want me to sit there and say 'yeah, it's awful, I've had those days as well and I've come through them.'," she added.

As a British Skin Foundation ambassador she also works to raise money for skin research and campaigns for both acceptance and awareness.

Lex said: "I think a lot of people see me as a positive person that they can come to and see someone that's living their life, not letting rosacea get in the way and that's sometimes all that people need."