7 Extraordinary People Living Without Limbs | BORN DIFFERENT
In this Born Different special, we take a look at seven incredible individuals who live without limbs and do remarkable things.
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00:00 The world is full of incredible people and among those are individuals who live their lives by promoting positivity
00:07 despite being dealt a difficult hand in life.
00:10 These seven individuals all live their lives without all their limbs, but never let that fact hold them back.
00:16 Their inspirational way of living was so compelling that millions and millions of you watch their stories across Facebook, YouTube and Snapchat.
00:25 Here's a countdown of seven amazing people living extraordinary lives without limbs.
00:31 I walk out the door and I feel like I'm Beyonce.
00:35 Hello!
00:37 At number six.
00:39 Tilly lost her hands when she was just 15 months old to meningitis.
00:45 I was originally diagnosed with an ear infection and sent home, but it just really escalated from there.
00:51 When I went to change her nappy, we noticed the, I say they look like bruise-like marks.
00:57 This woman came over to me and just said, "We think your daughter's going to die."
01:02 And I was just like, "What? Will she live? Will she live?" That's all I kept asking.
01:08 And the nurses were just like, "We don't know. We can't say. We don't know anything."
01:14 They did say that I had to amputate my hands.
01:16 And of course my family did worry about that, but for them, that was a really small price to pay for my life.
01:22 Her story went viral across the internet when she debuted her unique bionic arms.
01:28 I love to like match them with my outfit. I've got quite a lot of cases. I've got like six or seven pairs.
01:36 It's like picking out a new handbag, thinking what shoes you're going to wear, matching it all together.
01:40 And I just love it. It's just so much fun.
01:45 22.2 million people have watched her story online.
01:49 And Tilly has even taken to improving her makeup skills using her bionic arms.
01:54 Although there's some elements that still need a bit of practice.
01:58 Who do you trust to do your makeup?
02:00 Don't lie.
02:02 After last night, she booked me an eyebrow mascara.
02:05 In at number five.
02:14 Aged just five, Victoria was involved in a freak electrical accident
02:19 that caused her to lose both her arms and one of her legs.
02:23 [Spanish]
02:26 [Spanish]
02:31 [Spanish]
02:37 [Spanish]
02:50 [Spanish]
02:52 [Spanish]
02:57 Having lost her limbs at such a young age, Victoria was able to adapt to life without them.
03:03 And the things she can do with her leg inspired people across the world.
03:07 Due to all the incredible things that Victoria has been able to do,
03:13 she's become an established influencer and uses her platform to inspire others.
03:19 [Spanish]
03:22 At number four.
03:27 My name is Sonequo Kademaunga. I'm 24 years old.
03:32 I don't know if there's a specific name for my disability, but I was born without limbs.
03:38 I don't have hands. I don't have knees as well.
03:41 Growing up in Zimbabwe without all her limbs, Sonequo had it harder than most.
03:46 When I was born, it was very hard for my family to accept that I was born with a disability.
03:54 Because by that time, when a child was born with a disability, it was considered to be a curse from the gods.
04:00 Growing up without limbs, it was very difficult.
04:04 Especially when I go out there to meet with other kids.
04:07 People, they used to stare at me. Some kids, they laughed at me.
04:11 So I faced a lot of challenges, which made me realise that I was different.
04:16 But despite this tough start to life, with the support of her family, she learned to block out those who judged her.
04:23 I have to be kind to myself. I have to love my body.
04:26 Because if I don't love my body, who's going to love me?
04:29 I realise that this is the body that God gave me, and I'm going to live in this body forever.
04:34 So I just need to love myself and accept that this is who I am.
04:37 She's got such a big personality. She's someone who's very loving.
04:41 When I look at some of the things that she's been through,
04:44 I think I wouldn't have been able to go through half of the things that she went through
04:50 and still have a positive attitude and mentality towards life.
04:54 Next up, at number three, not one, but two inspirational women
05:01 who thought they were the only ones with a disability like theirs until finding one another online.
05:07 When you don't see people like you, it feels like you're the only person in the world that's like that.
05:12 I really thought I was the only one out here with that condition until I found Chastity.
05:17 We caught up with them on the day when they finally met in person for the first time.
05:22 We're going to see Jalisa. Going to see Jalisa. I'm super excited.
05:26 We are about two minutes away.
05:30 Hey! Hi!
05:34 What's up, Jalisa? Nice to meet you. Oh my God!
05:39 I'm Chastity. I'm from Arlington, Texas. I am 32 years old.
05:46 Hi, my name is Jalisa Aspina. I'm from Houston, Texas. I am 31 years old.
05:50 You have more toes than me. I'm jealous.
05:54 44.7 million people across social media tuned in to see these two bond over their shared experiences
06:00 of living life without all their limbs. And you can understand why.
06:05 I walk out the door and I feel like I'm being asked that.
06:09 Hello!
06:11 At number two is Kaitlyn. She was just 18 when she contracted meningitis.
06:19 Within those first 12 hours, literally my whole body started to turn purple,
06:24 like right before my family's eyes. It progressed very fast.
06:30 We were constantly being told that they're doing everything they can,
06:34 but chances are not good. Prepare yourself for the worst.
06:38 I ended up getting all of my limbs amputated.
06:42 Having to adapt to such a massive physical change at that age was a huge adjustment for Kaitlyn.
06:48 But she found ways of seeing the positives.
06:51 And that's why this film racked up an amazing 68.5 million views.
06:57 I wanted to start my YouTube channel because I used to watch a lot of makeup tutorials.
07:02 That's when I became obsessed with makeup.
07:05 If you want to see me go from this to this, then keep on watching.
07:09 I was like, that looks really fun and something that I could do.
07:14 [Laughter]
07:16 Our number one most viewed video is all about Gabe,
07:23 a young man who was born with Hanhart syndrome,
07:26 which resulted in him having no arms or legs.
07:29 But he inspired us all by showing us how he's adjusted to life without any limbs at all.
07:35 Some of my biggest proudest moments in my life would be learning how to walk,
07:42 learning how to get myself dressed.
07:45 But it wasn't an easy journey for Gabe.
07:48 There were so many times when I was younger that I didn't understand why they wouldn't just do it for me.
07:53 Like, I have no arms and legs, please just do it for me. I don't want to do it.
07:57 And they'd just say, no, you can do it. You'll figure out a way.
08:01 The biggest concern as a parent, obviously, was how do we raise a son with no arms and legs to be independent?
08:10 I've worked hard with Gabe to help him overcome different challenges and handicaps and to help him be independent.
08:20 Despite the hardships he's faced, Gabe didn't let his condition stop him from pursuing his passions.
08:26 I first started dancing when I was in the seventh grade.
08:33 I told myself that I wanted to try out for the talent show.
08:36 I didn't tell anybody that I was trying out just because I wanted it to be a surprise.
08:40 So I tried out and I made the audition and I went home and I told my family and they're like, what did you do?
08:46 I was like, no, really, I danced.
08:48 I performed that dance in front of my entire junior high school and I got a standing ovation.
08:58 That was just a huge eye-opening moment that this is something that I could do, that I wanted to do.
09:03 And that if I just pushed myself, I could definitely do it.
09:06 And now I'm doing benefit concerts and helping raise money for people with sicknesses.
09:11 Gabe's story accumulated a huge 182 million views across Facebook, YouTube and Snapchat.
09:19 And it's clear to see why.
09:21 I've been able to accomplish so much and I think it's funny when people say, do you wish you ever had prosthetics?
09:30 And my answer is always no, because I've already come so far in my independence without them.
09:36 I like my body the way it is and I'm proud of what it's capable of doing.
09:41 So next time you're having a glass half-empty type of day, think about these seven amazing individuals
09:48 and how they've made so much out of their lives without having what so many of us take for granted.
09:55 [Music]
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