BALING: Ichthyosis is a group of rare skin conditions that cause dry, scaly skin and for Mohd Zahir Abdullah has been ridiculed for his condition since he was a young boy in school.
Mohd Zahir, 32, has suffered from the condition since birth and is used to being on the receiving end of ridicule.
However, he refuses to let such shallow behaviour adversely affect him in any way.
Mohd Zahir, who lives in Kampung Tok Saba here, is confident, brave and daring and he has taken to social media by uploading videos on TikTok where he even sings Nasyid songs, something that he loves very much.
"I love to sing Nasyid songs and it was my friends who gave me the encouragement to set up my own TikTok account.
"So I decided to just give it a try and I somehow found the courage to go 'live' and to interact and engage with those who watch my videos.
"I did not expect so many to be so receptive towards someone like me, there were even those who prayed for me even though we have never met and only know one another online on TikTok," he said when contacted by Harian Metro.
Mohd Zahir said that he has been suffering from ichthyosis since birth and he and his siblings all suffer from the condition.
"I am the youngest of four siblings in the family, and the only ones who are free of this are my mother, father and eldest brother.
"Even though I have taken medication and even applied creams and ointments, nothing changed, it was all still the same as if I am not mistaken there is no treatment for this skin disorder at the moment," he said.
Even though he has such an ailment, Mohd Zahir said that he no problems making friends and acquaintances.
Instead, he has always been able to adapt and he was not cast aside or left out even though he was different from most others.
"To be honest I was not able to accept my situation at the very beginning because physically I was different, not like everyone else.
"Other students were afraid of making friends with me or coming near me when we first started primary school.
"Ony in the fourth year, I began to mix and mingle around, making friends with others around me.
"Friends in school last time treated me just like the rest and this is what gave me confidence," he said.
According to Mohd Zahir, there are those who are cynical when he was out in public but he brushes it aside and refuses to let such acts or behaviour get to him.
"Usually it is the children who gawk and stare at me, but there are also adults who behave in such a manner and there are a select few who even ask me what is the cause of such an illness.
"I explained with the hope that they realise there are people like me with such a predicament in the community.
"So far, I have not been subjected to enduring an experience of being insulted because of my limitations and what I am suffering from.
"On the contrary I have received a lot of support and I am very happy to be given the trust and responsibility of being the Bilal for Tarawih prayers at the mosque during Ramadan," said Mohd Zahir, who now does odd jobs in the village with his stepfather.
Mohd Zahir stressed that he was not out for sympathy, but wanted society to be more understanding and respectful towards those like him.
"I believe that there are others like me out there who also struggle with self-confidence because they suffer from some form of illness or ailment.
"I hope that those like me are able to stay strong, persevere and to take it as a test from Allah SWT.
"Even though we are born in such a way, we must stay positive and take it that having such an illness makes us even more unique compared to others," he said.