"EXCLUSIVE: Battling a rare health condition that has left half of her face disfigured, a 24-year-old Indian woman says she tries to live positively despite jeers by people. Sasikala K, from Chennai, the capital of India's southern Tamil Nadu state, suffers from plexiform neurofibromatosis, which has taken a toll on her face, affecting the right side. However, she admits her confidence has taken a hit of late. Sasikala, who prefers to live boldly and does not cover her face, likes dressing up and wearing make-up, much like girls her age, though she finds it difficult to execute them owing to her complications. She was only six-months-old when her parents noticed a part of her face swelling. However, they waited for another one and a half years to get medical help. ""I have always been very bold, however, with age, the condition progressed and no one has come for help,"" she says, adding, ""I am slowly losing my confidence."" According to medical experts, her condition affects the face and craniofacial region of the body. It can also affect the neck and other parts of the body, depending upon the host. The family had not considered the deformity to be a big issue until Sasikala turned six and the face started to swell at an unusual rate. Now, almost 18 years later, she finds it difficult to execute daily chores like eating and brushing. The 24-year old is an employee at an embroidery unit run by a trust. Sasikala took it up as a means to support her family after completing her diploma in nursing and unable to land a job in the hospitality sector. Kumar, 54, Sasikala's father, says his daughter has been under the knife four times, but it has only gotten worse. ""She was six when doctors operated upon her for the first time,"" Kumar says. ""The result was satisfying and she looked normal,"" he added. However, the joy was short-lived, as the tumours grew back again. Kumar says upon approaching the doctors again, he was told that it could be controlled but wou"
{}