Treat Joshua Like A Normal Boy
An upset mother has spoken to Northside People of the hurt and frustration she feels about the public’s treatment of her young son who has a rare skin disorder.
Tracy Darby, a married mother-of-four, from Edenmore Park, says her eldest son, Joshua (11), is shunned by many people because of the disfigured look of his skin caused by the condition, Keratosa Ichyosis Deafness, also known as KID syndrome.
The condition has left Joshua with extremely bad cracked skin, a bald patch on his head, no eyebrows or any bodily hair, and the young boy also suffers from a profound hearing problem, meaning he has to wear two hearing aids.
Tracy said that she and her husband, Don, would like to let the public know that Joshua’s condition is not contagious and she wished people would just treat him like any normal young boy.
She said now that her son is nearing his teenage years, she fears the negative treatment he gets will have a serious impact on his life. “It’s really upsetting when I am out with Joshua and I see other people pulling their children away from him,” Tracy stated.
“There have been many occasions of this sort of treatment, even to the point were I have seen people wipe clean bus seats he has been sitting on and taking their children off playground slides he has been using. I just want to let people know that what Joshua has is a rare skin disorder that is not contagious and it’s just so unfair for a young boy to be treated in this way.”
Tracy said that as Joshua suffers from poor hearing he does not always realise the negative statements being made about him in shops and supermarkets, but that it is very upsetting for his family.
