Diagnosed with vitiligo in 2002, Phelix Owiny says life has never been the same.
Vitiligo is a long-term condition, where pale white patches develop on the skin.
It's caused by a lack of melanin, which is the pigment in the skin.
The 22-year-old biomedical engineering student says he has faced so much stigmatisation.
Speaking to the Star, the soft-spoken young man says even his parents thought he was doing drugs.
"My lips started changing in 2008, I didn't know it's vitiligo," he said.
"At first, nobody knew it's vitiligo. Some thought I was abusing drugs.
"Other people thought I had been burned. I was taken to the hospital but I was just given some cream to apply. By then, we were just trying to treat what we didn't know."
Owiny says with time, the vitiligo spread to his neck. This made people afraid of interacting with him due to the limited information they had about the condition.
As time passed, it (vitiligo) started to spread on the neck area. What followed was more hospital visits.
"We visited so many hospitals, spending huge amounts of money, only to learn that what we're struggling with is vitiligo and it does not have a cure."
Acceptance is the first medication to vitiligo, it boosts your self-confidence and makes you stand out. Nowadays, I embrace my flaws because I know they are beautiful
A clueless Owiny had to learn to live with the condition, but initially it was intimidating.
"My self-esteem went down. I kept covering myself up since people viewed me differently," he said.
"Some would make fun of it. Some would laugh at me but with time, I learned a lot. With time, I started meeting people with the same condition. That is when I started to accept myself."
This was one way of him dealing with the condition and avoiding getting depressed over the constant stigmatisation.
"Acceptance is the first medication to vitiligo, it boosts your self-confidence and makes you stand out. Nowadays, I embrace my flaws because I know they are beautiful," he says.
Owiny says like most people living with the condition, he has been denied chances to participate in events just because he looked different.
"Yes, I have been denied chances before. Some time back, I couldn't even participate in some extra-curriculum activities just because I looked different," he said.
"Some thought I would affect them. The treatment made me feel really bad. We're all the same and should be considered equally."
Despite all the negative energy, Owiny is happy about the progress he has made.
Unlike before, he now enjoys the stares people give when they see his 'patched-up' body. He says vitiligo is like an artiste, while he is the canvas.
"My best moments are when I pop up in a place and people stare, some get shocked. Some are always like, 'Aww, you look beautiful and unique', then I will be like, it's vitiligo and it's beautiful.'"
Most people are still clueless about vitiligo. Some associate the condition with family curses and witchcraft.
To educate society about the skin condition, Owiny has an organisation called Royal Patches Foundation, which creates awareness on vitiligo through the entertainment industry.
This includes art, music, modelling, acting, dancing and events in general.
"I'm a model so every opportunity I get, I use it for awareness," he said.
He uses his Instagram page, @kenyan.vitiligo.finnest, to interact with people living with vitiligo as well as those who don't have the condition but would like to know more about it.
"Most people who have vitiligo hide out of fear, but when they see how you interact with it, they also accept their condition," he said.
"We're also just appealing for the government to help us in this journey."
Felix says dating has not been easy due to the misconceptions people have about vitiligo.
The condition can affect any area of the skin, but it commonly happens on the face, neck and hands, and in skin creases.
The young man, who was born in Kisumu, enjoys meeting new people and making friends during his free time.
Do you know anyone battling with vitiligo who has no moral support? Get in touch via [email protected]
