A woman has just come up and said…

[Needhelp1000]

I’m currently in Spain and I’m a bit sunburnt from my first day here.
its now the secone day and a woman has just come up to me (on a local tour guide trip) and said how awful I look with sunburn. I’m upset about the comment.

AIBU?? A friend said no but I did comment to woman she didn’t need to be so rude.

I'd imagine she meant the sunburn looked after rather than you.

Get a UV rash vest type top OP…there isn’t enough suncream in the world to protect you at this point.

This sounds weird but believe me it works - smother the sunburn in plain Greek yoghurt and leave it for 20-25 minutes then wash off gently with lukewarm water. Repeat in an hour or so.
There's something in the yoghurt that takes the heat out and helps the skin to heal.

This is very useful advice 👍

Exactly what I immediately thought...how likely is it that a someone is going to walk up to a perfect stranger and tell them that they look awful with sunburn? Unless they were intoxicated I suppose and had lost all sense of what's OK?! 🙄

Good god, most of the people answering this thread are completely nuts.

YES SHE WAS COMPLETELY BLOODY RUDE. SHE should mind her own business.

Oh my holy gracious,she was of course out of line.
But as adult women/wives/mothers etc...
Stand up for yourself!
Do not allow strangers dictate how you feel about yourself.
The sunburn will fade.
Why let would you let a random person tell you how you should feel about?
Set a better example for your children...

Can you just imagine how pathetic her life is to point out the obvious to a stranger?

I don't know of anyone who means to go out and get sunburnt, I'm sorry that twat of a woman has put a damper on your holidays 🌸

Maybe you could have misheard what she said? Because you’re right, approaching someone to say that is rude. Especially if she’s British so is aware of British cultural norms. I’m wondering if she meant to say “your sunburn looks awful instead”. It’s not much better but could be said out of concern vs putting down your appearance.

As a pale blue-skinned Scot, even F50 is insufficient - wear full-length, lightweight clothing from neck to ankle, a wide-brimmed hat, stay in the shade, ideally indoors at the height of the sun.

Yes, it's a PITA, but my Northern European heritage hasn't set me up for success in the sun and I'd rather look like an eejit than deal with aggressive skin cancer.

“My sunburn will get better in a day or two. Pity you can’t do anything for your face, you bitter old woman!”

dont be so upset about a complete stranger . It is offensive but she could be on drugs , or a schizophrenic, or just a plain weird person . Pay it no mind .

If you are that badly burnt that someone can notice then how you look could be the least of your worries

People love to give unwanted comments or advice.
I'm very fair and put on wear plenty of cream. I also get the 'helpful' comments saying 'wow, can't believe how much cream you put on' . I make the sly dig about not wanting to age badly...then give them a lingering look

I am amazed at all the people on here saying Factor 50 doesn't work for them. I'm in Australia where we get lots of sun, and I have never seen an Aussie with bad sunburn, in fact I can't remember the last time I saw anyone here with sunburn that wasn't a tourist. In fact its pretty difficult to buy lower factors than 50, they are available but most people buy Cancer Council Factor as its cheap and effective ( about 15 UKP per litre). Maybe we just put on more sun cream?

As for the OP, I had a similar experience in Portugal once many years ago when some Aussie girls told me I'd been stupid and fried myself. I told them I was fine but turns out my head was just one big blister waiting to burst. Do not sun bathe on a windsurfing beach with low SPF! Lesson learned, I've never burned again and that was 30 years ago. Anyway, they gave me some aloe vera gel, which helped a bit, I was very grateful to them!

TBH everybody looks awful with sunburn but she was wrong to say it out loud to you.

Are you being unreasonable to think this woman was rude? No, but it really depends on how she said it.

Are you being unreasonable to be upset about a stranger commenting on your sunburnt skin being (as you admit) bad? Yes, who actually cares??

Was she British or another nationality?

She probably just meant the sunburn looks awful. Which it does. I hate seeing people with sunburn.

I was mortified to get some sunburn on my chest on a recent holiday in the Canaries. I'm normally really careful. The next 2 days I went out in a round necked cotton t-shirt to keep that area protected - with F50 underneath. I was also horrified at the number of children with sun burn on faces and arms. So many little children on the beach and in the pools with no protective clothing and hats etc. Funnily enough, there has been a massive increase in malignant melanomas.

who cares?

think it but no need to share it.

Any stranger who feels the need to share an opinion on a part of my appearance that displeases them had better be braced for a full and frank critique of their body.

I wouldn't let it get to me - some people are just rude. You are on holiday, forget it and enjoy. The world is full of twats like her.

I wonder if its a language barrier. My son used to have awful excema and he's face looked red, chopped and scarred. A mum (who was actually spanish) at the school came up to me and asked what I was doing about it because it looked really ugly. I cried and said actually we are under the Dr about it. She didn't mean ugly she meant sore.

@Dojoqueen if click see all, you can see all the OP's posts. She has said this woman was English.