Thai influencers who overcame their disabilities
If you’re in need of a shot of inspiration, then these Thai influencers have amazing stories that will motivate you into bettering yourself. These Thai influencers and celebrities have found massive success in spite of and through their disabilities.
Here are their stories.
1. Noorat (หนูรัตน์) – created some of the most popular modern Thai slang
Image credit: หนูรัตน์ via Facebook
Noorat has a hearing disability. But that didn’t stop her from expressing herself verbally.
She is a professional Likay (ลิเก) performer who often posts her dances and song covers on social media. Her on-camera personality quickly endeared her to Thai netizens.
Because of her disability, she developed a very unique accent that drew in both admirers and haters. She also coined unique slang that caught fire online. One of these was Deu (ดือ), which we featured in our Thai Slang You Need To Know series.
If you’re interested in checking her out, you can do so on Facebook here.
2. Faalsootting (ฟาอัลสุดติ่ง) – beauty & lifestyle influencer who overcame massive odds to find equally massive success
Image credit: ฟาอัลสุดติ่ง : faalsootting channel via Facebook
If you want to know what a stacked deck looks like, then this is about as bad as it gets. Faalsootting, or Faal Yawor, was born with imperforate anus. This is a defect in which a baby is born without an anal opening, so Faal had to get surgery.
They also had polio, which led to muscle atrophy in their legs.
If that wasn’t enough, their parents divorced while their mom was still pregnant with them. This meant that the household’s only source of income was Faal’s uncle who worked as bus and taxi driver.
Their disabilities made it hard to get an education or even have friends.
Despite all of that, Faal eventually got a huge break through their unbelievable determination for success. Today, they are an LGBT beauty influencer with over 1.5 million followers on TikTok, which landed them tons of deals with leading brands.
You can follow Faal on TikTok here.
3. faiifaii003 – born with one good leg, which she uses to teach people about makeup
Image credit: Buntida Chinnawong via Facebook
Faii is commonly known as Faii Chai Tao Taeng Na (ฝ้ายใช้เท้าแต่งหน้า), which in Thai means Faii uses her leg to do makeup.
Despite being born without arms and asymmetrical legs, Faii has an excellent mindset to do what she loves. And she loves beauty, so she put her all into it.
This started all the way from school where she would practice putting on makeup so that she could look more beautiful, but make it not too obvious so that the teachers would catch her.
Her continued dedication and effort eventually led to her amassing over 6 million followers in TikTok and tons of fans who learn from her about makeup.
You can follow Faii on TikTok here.
4. Maeya Sun Sun – ectodermal dysplasia did not stop her winning Miss Fabulous Thailand 2023
Image credit: โกศล แสงวิเชียร via Facebook
Maeya Sun Sun (เมญ่า ซันซัน) was born with ectodermal dysplasia. Despite this being a genetic syndrome which affects the ectodermal structure, which includes skin, Maeya overcame the odds to win the Miss Fabulous Thailand 2023 beauty pageant.
Her mindset is also as impressive as her feat of winning. She doesn’t think her condition as a disadvantage for her beauty. In fact, she also has zero consideration to get plastic surgery because she is comfortable and satisfied with who she is.
You can see what she’s up to through her Facebook here.
5. Bunrod from Poocao Channel – premature birth problems, but still one of the most positive Thai influencers
Image credit: Thairath
Bunrod (บุญรอด อารีย์วงษ์) is most commonly known as a co-host on the Poocao Channel on Youtube.
He was born premature at 7 months. Because of this, he has issues with speech and movement. Not only that, when he was only 3 months old, he developed liver cancer.
Despite all that, he has had one of the most positive vibes out of Thai influencers. What’s inspiring about his mindset is that he is advocating for people to understand people with disabilities better. To him, this means treating them as people who can be skilled, unskilled, good, or even bad.
You can follow Bunrod’s content on Youtube here.
Inspiring stories from Thai influencers who overcame overwhelming odds
Whether it’s for good vibes or to motivate yourself, these stories really make you think about what is possible if you put your mind to it. So stop letting it be only in your mind and get out there.
And by getting out there, we mean get out there and do these summer activities that won’t melt you in the Bangkok heat. Or if you’re looking for more inspiring stories from Thailand, check out these badass historical Thai women.
Cover image adapted from: Thairath, โกศล แสงวิเชียร via Facebook, Buntida Chinnawong via Facebook, faalsootting channel via Facebook