Olivia Farnsworth is a UK-born teenager who does not feel hunger, pain, or fatigue. This is as a result of an abnormality known as Chromosome 6 deletion. Doctors have nicknamed her “The Bionic Girl” and her family fondly refer to her as “Girl of Steel”.
Farnsworth’s Chromosome 6—which accounts for about 6% of the body’s total DNA and is responsible for immune responses and other complex body functions—was totally deleted during the process of cell division. Since very little is known about Olivia’s peculiar case of Chromosome 6 deletion, there is no known cure or treatment for her condition.
10 Facts You Did Not Know About Olivia Farnsworth
1. She had an Abnormal Developmental Stage
Olivia Farnsworth mother, Niki Trepak reported that as a baby she rarely ever cried which got her suspicious of something wrong going on with her child. At the age of nine months, She stopped napping during the day and has had a hard time sleeping ever since.
Due to her abnormality, she didn’t grow hair on her head until she was four years old. She was teased about being a boy for a long time. Farnsworth does not have a sense of danger because she does not understand what danger causes.
However, her condition has not deterred her from living an almost normal life as she has no cognitive or physical disabilities.
2. Olivia Farnsworth’s condition was discovered when she was 7 years old
Farnsworth was 7 years old when she was involved in an accident. While walking to school with her mother and siblings, she was hit by a car and dragged down the road. Everyone was screaming in horror, but Olivia simply got up and walked back to her mother like nothing happened after the car let her go.
Because of the impact of the accident, she should have had severe injuries but she only had a tire mark on her chest and a few injuries on her toe and hip.
She was taken to the hospital and doctors noted that although she had tire marks on her chest and no skin on her hip and toe, she was perfectly fine. She did not suffer a fracture because she couldn’t recognize that she was in danger, so her body didn’t tense up when the car ran over her.
3. Olivia Farnworth had a Major surgery without Anesthesia
While in nursery school, Farnsworth fell and suffered a torn lip with a broken tooth buried in it. Other children would have screamed out in pain or promptly started crying, but instead, she just walked over to her teacher with her bloodstained face and informed her that she had fallen.
At the hospital, the doctor noticed that Olivia wasn’t feeling any pain as he inspected her injury. He was able to perform correctional plastic surgery to fix her wounds without any anesthesia.
4. Olivia Farnsworth can also go without sleep
Unlike normal human beings, Olivia can also go up to six days without sleep and would not feel any fatigue. She takes sleeping pills every night to get much-needed rest.
5. She has constant medical check-ups
Due to her condition, Farnsworth is required to have medical checkups done every week to make sure she has not sustained any internal injuries or fallen sick because her body doesn’t register or display signs of illness like that of a normal person.
6. Olivia Farnsworth is one of the very few people with her condition
Although there are over 100 reported cases of Chromosome 6p deletion in the worldwide medical database, all of which are extremely rare, Olivia’s case is the rarest of them all. She is the only person in the world who manifests all three symptoms of no hunger, sleep, or pain.
A former research biologist, Dr. Beverly Searle said that Olivia’s case was the only case of its kind that he has heard of and there may not be anybody out here who might have the same case as her.
7. Olivia Farnsworth has occasional violent outbursts
One unfortunate symptom of Olivia’s condition is occasional violent outbursts. According to her mother, Olivia becomes extremely angry sometimes and tries to harm other people with whatever she can find, starts forcefully hitting her own head on the wall, or swears loudly.
Her mother said she sometimes finds it embarrassing when Olivia starts hitting, punching, and kicking her as a result of her reoccurring outbursts. She has to explain to people why she acts the way she does.
8. Help seems to be far away from Farnsworth
A number of psychiatrists and psychologists have been consulted to help with Olivia’s anger issues. They haven’t been able to do much because it’s a symptom of the structural problems in her chromosome. There’s no known way to rectify that, at least not yet.
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9. Olivia Farnsworth is a really picky eater
Since she feels no hunger, it is easy for her to be very choosy with what she eats. Sometimes all she wants to eat is milkshakes. She loves chicken noodles and butter sandwiches. Farnsworth has been known to survive only on them for months at a stretch.
10. Her family is raising awareness of the Chromosome 6p deletion
The Bionic Girl and her family are raising awareness about Chromosome disorders. Olivia’s siblings Ella-Mae, Bradlee, Archie, and Poppy have received support from the chromosome disorder group unique.
Her mom said it is important to raise awareness of her daughter’s condition because she doesn’t look sick. People do not understand what is going on or why she acts the way she does. Especially when she starts displaying some of the symptoms associated with her condition.
They are soliciting funds from the public to help fund research that could shed better light on Olivia’s condition.
