14 DAY TRIAL // Sarah Atwell is anything but the “typical” viral star. Like her mother tells ABC, she never knew that she was different, so she never imagined people would be so mean to her because they did not even try to understand. Sarah has a genetic disorder that has deformed half her face.
She lives with her family in Nova Scotia and, until just recently, she was constantly bullied in school because of how she looks. Fed up and discouraged, she went online to plead with people for some understanding: she didn’t look like that because she had some sort of monstrous contagious disease, but because she had a tumor on her face.
Sarah’s amazing story, her standing up against the bullies and her going under the knife once more to have the tumor removed, is documented on the special “The Girl with Half a Face,” which will air on Discovery Fit & Health on December 18.
A video from the special is also included below, embedded at the end of the article.
Sarah and her mother tell ABC News that they never imagined she would get so little compassion from her peers and even less understanding.
“Sarah never noticed she was different – she always thought she was the same as the other kids. They didn't understand it was a tumor and thought it was some kind of horrible disease they could catch,” her mother explains.
She too has a milder form of the inheritable condition, known as neurofibromatosis and described as “a genetic disorder that disturbs cell growth in the nervous system, causing tumors to form on nerve tissue.”
“I was in grade three and people were calling me names like ‘fat face’ and ‘ugly’ and were pushing me around. They said I had a disease. Most of the time, I just walked away and didn't say much to them,” Sarah reveals.
The bullying continued when she grew up too, which is what prompted her to send out her first message online, asking people to understand that she just had a tumor and “that’s all.” Since then, Sarah’s videos have been touching the hearts of people from all over the world who, in return, reached out to the teen to let her know that she was an inspiration to them, a true example of inner beauty and exceptional strength.
Sarah has had facial surgery and her transformation will also be shown on the TV special.