Singer Louise Redknapp felt 'held back from living in the moment' for one key reason

Singer has spoken out about how her appearance and confidence issues held her back early during her career. The 50 year old star has revealed how her insecurities about her body affected her , despite being voted one of the world's sexiest women.

She confessed that battling and anxiety about unexpected photographs, prevented her from living in the moment and enjoying things fully. She has also admitted that her concerns about her looks held her back professionally. She pinpointed that her confidence took a significant hit after becoming a mother and experiencing a flare-up of her skin issues.

The former Eternal band member expressed: "There's been lots of times in life that maybe being worried [about] how I looked has held me back from really living in the moment and enjoying things. ".

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"Every moment being on the beach, worrying that somebody might take a picture of you in an unflattering angle – I spent most of my holidays lying flat in the hope that no one would spot me."

Her self-esteem was further impacted by struggles with skin pigmentation, particularly severe during her twenties. She recalled a dermatologist telling her that the pigmentation she experienced post-childbirth was among the worst they had seen in a long time.

She revealed: "I said that I looked like I had the map on my face," and spoke of the impact on her self-esteem, stating, "It really affected my confidence, because on one hand, I was so happy having this gorgeous baby, and on the other hand, I didn't know what I was going to do with my face."

Louise shared her struggles following her collaboration with fellow stars affected by hyperpigmentation in the 'I AM... Thiamidol' campaign. This powerful initiative includes four candid interviews in which each celebrity recounts their journey towards regaining skin confidence.

star , relationship expert and co-host of Married At First Sight Paul C Brunson, author Louise Pentland, and she were all part of a live billboard stunt organised by skincare brand Beiersdorf, the company behind NIVEA and Eucerin.

Despite her past insecurities, Louise is optimistic that today's popstars will be able to express more vulnerability than she could during her chart-topping days in the 1990s and early 2000s.

She said: “I think I come from an era in music where everything was so sort of perfect and you never really got to show your true self at all, because every time you went out and you did anything, there was hair, there was makeup, there was the whole kind of showbiz element behind it.

“I feel as time's gone on, especially in today's world, we're so open about talking about mental health, anxiety, actually, talking about yourself, which shows a real of strength and character.”

Even on a bad skin day, she now has ways of trying to stay positive. She added: “I think we've got to accept we're not always going to stay really positive but remember that not everybody's seeing what you're seeing.

“The things that we think are terrible - blemishes on our face, pigment on our face - people might notice it, but it's not the first thing they judge you on, and if it is, you don't want to know them anyway.

“Trying to keep a positive mental attitude is really tough but just remember that everybody's fighting their own battles and believe you me, whatever you're fighting at that time will not beat the forefront of their mind.”

Find out more about the I AM.. Thiamidol campaign by visiting @nivea_uk on .