Acknowledgments

Assalamualaikum and hello, peeps!

First of all, I would like to introduce myself. The name given is Nur Sabrina binti Suhaimi. I am from DEC 5A and I am currently majoring in English Communication.

A big of applause to my lecturer who also my advisor, Madam Hawinda binti Karmon for guided and helped me a lot in this blog process. I have been through a lot of hardships in order to complete this task. Googling and do some reading day and night to provide the best information on rare diseases.

It is such a waste if I wrote the articles without any objectives. Actually, the reasons I chose this kind of theme because I love medic. I love to get to know new disease or rare disease that we are never knew! Somehow, it helps me to realize that nothing is impossible if God’s wills.

So, here are my objectives:

•          To reveal several rare diseases around the world
•          To get know the history of the diseases, the treatments that they used and the symptoms of the diseases
•          To gain some medical knowledge
•          To help patients who are related to the diseases
•          To show support and solidarity towards the patients

I would be happy if the information here really helps you guys especially in gaining some information about the diseases and also towards the patients who have the disease.

Enjoy your reading and don’t forget to drop any comment to show your support and to help me improve the blog!

Thanks!

FAMOUS CASE: PROSOPAGNOSIA

OLIVER SACKS

He was a British neurologist, psychiatry and a writer. Do you know him? 

He is Oliver Sacks who also known as the best author in writing his own patients' case studies. In 2010, he revealed that he was suffered from face blindness. And the disease was noticed by himself during his middle age. Then, during his meeting with his own older brother in Australia whom he hadn't seen much for more than 3 decades, he found out that his brother also had the same difficulties. 

Even though he categorize his disease as moderate, but still, he barely to recognize his own personal assistant of six years and his psychiatrist whom he had been seeing twice in a week. Unfortunately, this wonderful man had died on 30 August 2015 at age of 82. 

You may read his masterpieces at The New York Times 

CHUCK CLOSE

He is not a psychiatrist or neurologist. But, he is an artist! 

Known as Chuck Close, he is such wonderful painter even though actually he suffers a spinal artery collapse that left him a quadriplegic. He was born with prosopagnosia. But, how he can even paint?

According to his explanation, he able to recognize some people if they were static or 'flattened out' images (potraits), but if they move their head even for inch, then it become a new face that he never known before! 

For your information, he still do paint since it was the only way for him to recognize people arounds him. 

FAMOUS CASE: ECTOPIA CORDIS

CHRISTOPHER WALL

Okay people. Now, who is Christopher Wall?

Christopher Wall was born on 10 August 1975 with Ectopia Cordis. Due to his condition, the doctor unable to reposition the organ back inside the chest cavity and the skin was stretched over the heart instead. Fortunately, with a breastbone grafted from his leg, he is able to breathe without a respirator! 

Such a rare case, he is now still breathing and counting his days live with his heart outside his chest. What is unique about him is, he never let his external heart keep him down. Instead, he lives just like people around him live. May he lives for a long time.

He such an inspiration!

RYAN MARQUISS

Now, let's focus on Ryan Marquiss, a cute little boy who born in February 2009 beats the odd after a dozens successful surgeries. He, 6 seems healthy and prove the world that he is strong enough to beat the disease with several heart defects.

Thanks God, now he is able to enjoy his childhood after struggling hard grew in hospital for 11 months before he able to come home to meet his sister and spending time with his families!

Such a cute hero!

FAMOUS CASE: HARLEQUIN ICHTHYOSIS

HUNTER STEINITZ

Here we got Hunter Steinitz in the blog! 

She is known as a teenager who has a rare condition that has left her skin so damaged that many people believe she has been involved in a fire. She is only 18 years old and unable to close her eyes, wears a wig because her hair follicles are blocked by the skin and is in constant danger of dehydrating because she cannot sweat. 

Pity her but we wish all the best for her!

STEPHANIE TURNER

Next, Stephanie Turner. 

She is well-known as the second  oldest person in the U.S. who is live with Harlequin Ichthyosis. In 2013, she who is 21 became the first person with the condition to give a birth. Now, she is 23 and celebrating the second child as she battling with the disease. 

She also a blogger at here. Indeed, she is superwoman proving that Harlequin Ichthyosis patient also can get married and have a happy family!

FAMOUS CASE: DISSOCIATIVE IDENTITY DISORDER

KIM NOBLE

Have you ever watched Oprah Winfrey Show? It was the best reality talk show. But, I don't want to talk about the reality show. I want to talk about a woman who was appeared at the show due to her multiple personality.

During her childhood, Kim Noble was physically abused and then she suffered from many mental problems as a teenager. In her twenties, her other personalities emerged, and they were incredibly destructive. In 1995, she was diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder, and she has gotten psychiatric help ever since. She is currently working as an artist and she does not know the exact number of personalities she has but she thinks it is somewhere around 100. She goes through about four or five different personalities a day, with Patricia being the most dominant one. It must be reallyhard for her to adjust the situation.

Here, I attached the video of Kim Noble as Patricia and her daughter appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show in 2010. She also published a book about her life - All of Me: How I Learned to Live with the Many Personalities Sharing My Body in 2012.

BILLY MILIGAN 

Ohh! This is very famous case. 

Billy Milligan, 22 was accused kidnapped, robbed and raped three woman from  14 October until 26 October in 1977. However, he does not know that he was the one who did the criminal! 

After his arrest, Milligan went to met a psychiatrist, and he was diagnosed with DID. Altogether, he had 24 different personalities. So when the kidnapping and rapes happened, Milligan’s defense attorney said it wasn’t Billy Milligan who was committing the crimes. 

For your information, there are two different personalities were in control of his body. First, Ragen, who was a Yugoslavian man, and the second one is Adalana, who was a lesbian. 

The jury agreed, and he was the first American found not guilty due to DID but then he was confined to a mental hospital until 1988 and released after experts thought that all the personalities had melded together. Unfortunately, Milligan died on December 12, 2014 at the age of 59 from cancer.

He is lucky enough for not being arrested but somehow the disease quite torturing the patient.