What I wish I knew, when I was in School

I remember vague memories of looking at myself in the mirror as a child when we first moved to the UK in 1992. I was only 3 years old. The memories are fuzzy, but I recall wondering about the bumps on one side of my face. As I got older, I remember primary school wasn't a place I wanted to be. Reflecting on it now, we often don't realise that children can also suffer from mental health and anxiety issues.

I particularly dreaded PE lessons for two reasons: when the teacher would say to pair up with someone, I'd see all the children running to their friends, and when we played football, and two captains had to pick players, I was always left waiting.

Many of the children thought my condition was contagious, while others avoided me to avoid being deemed uncool.

I would come home and cover half of my face, wondering how I would look without this condition. But the condition never went away. I often made excuses to avoid school because I feared spending another day sitting alone with the support teacher by my side. The other children often stared at me, and when new children joined, they would point and ask what happened to my face.

Bullying was a big part of my life. Children were very blunt and often made comments that still linger in my memory today.

I really wish someone had come to my school when I was a child, someone with lived experience who could have told me and the other children that it's okay to be different and that we are all unique. I wish someone had come to my school and told me that the most important thing is your personality and who you are inside.

Let that shine!

This is why I now want to share my story far and wide. I want children to understand empathy and learn how to deal with bullying.

You can find out more about a campaign I am running, which has raised over ￡5000 to help me on this mission.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/2srv99-support-my-journey