Kelly Bensimon Reflects on Having Psoriasis and Her Nude Playboy Shoot: ‘No One Is Perfect’ – PEOPLE.com

Kelly Bensimon says shes dealt with psoriasis her entire life, and the condition made her scared to bare all for her 2010 Playboy shoot.

The former Real Housewives of New York City star and model tweetedabout her psoriasis on Friday as she was getting ready for a new photoshoot.

Ive had psoriasis since I was a kid. I hated it. I found it so embarrassing, Bensimon, 49,writes on Twitter. When I was a teen, I would spend hours in tanning beds, trying to get dark enough to cover it up. Not healthy! And not something I would recommend to anyone! But I was desperate. I thought that I couldnt be pretty with this issue.

She ended up becoming asuccessful model, but Bensimon says even then she doubted herself up until age 41, when she posed for Playboy.

Even as an adult, especially when I was modeling, I felt terrible about my skin. When I had a breakout, I wanted to hide from the world, she says. So, when Playboy asked me to bare it all, there was a part of me that was scared not because of the nudity, but because of the psoriasis!

But a funny thing happened when I took off my clothes and got in front of that camera. I forgot about all my imperfections I forgot about the itchies and flaws. I just felt beautiful. Like, if Playboy thought I was beautiful, then maybe I really was! I realized that my flaws were part of my whole, and that my whole was pretty great! Showing so much allowed me to finally drop my judgement[sp].

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Bensimon said in February that she wants to pose nude for Playboy again.

I am 49 and I did the cover 10 years ago [in 2010]. So I feel like I look better now, she told Page Six. I am glad that they are going back to showing women naked, it was a beautiful layout. And it would be a test to show that you can still look good at any age.

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Kelly Bensimon Reflects on Having Psoriasis and Her Nude Playboy Shoot: 'No One Is Perfect' - PEOPLE.com