LEIDY Ardila from Neiva, Columbia suffers from fibrous dysplasia, an uncommon bone disorder where scar-like (fibrous) tissue develops in place of normal bone. The condition developed after Leidy had heart surgery when she was a baby. Doctors warned her mother that Leidy wouldn't be able to walk - and that it was likely she wouldn't survive past her 12th birthday. But Leidy more than proved them wrong. Aside from the surgeries and hospital visits Leidy has endured, it has left her face enlarged and it's perhaps this visible aspect of her condition that impacts Leidy the most. Now 29 and working as a graphic designer, Leidy is using social media to promote body positivity. It took a friend's encouragement to give Leidy the confidence she needed to start posting on Instagram and Facebook and during the 2020 pandemic Leidy, like many others, turned to TikTok and has been amazed at her growing number of followers.
