11/20/2025
✨️ Representation matters — in medicine, in wellness, in *everything* ✨️
Open any medical textbook and you’ll see page after page of illustrations showing illness, pregnancy, muscle tissue… but almost always on white bodies.
Meanwhile, people of color — especially Black people — have historically been *the most studied, tested on, and experimented on* in medical research.
As a massage therapist who works with clients of all skin tones, I get downright nerdy-excited when I find medical illustrations that actually represent the people I see on my table every day. Because skin tone isn’t just aesthetic — it’s clinical.
Melanin changes how illness, inflammation, rashes, bruising, and other conditions appear.
What stands out clearly on my very non-melanated skin can look completely different on Brown or Black skin. And when medical books only show one skin tone, it makes identifying certain conditions harder and conversations with clients less confident than I want them to be.
Accurate representation helps me keep my clients safe.
It helps me recognize when something is a contraindication.
It helps me know when to ask questions, when to reassure, and when to recommend seeing a medical professional.
So today I want to spotlight someone making a *huge* difference:
🎉 Meet medical student + illustrator Chidiebere Ibe
His work is breaking barriers, reshaping medical education, and giving long-overdue visibility to conditions as they appear on Black skin.
Go follow and support this incredible creator:
We need MORE representation of BIPOC individuals in medicine, wellness, and everywhere else.
This is how we change the future. 🤍🖤🤎
