I was born with dextrocardia, which is a condition where the heart is placed on the right side of the chest instead of the left. Thanks to Allah, I did not need any surgery. I am 49 years old, married and have two beautiful daughters who do not have the condition.

I have lived my life without any restrictions or limitations. I played cricket, volleyball and table tennis in school and college and loved swimming in the river near my house in Mangalore.

I first came to know about 
my condition when I was 16 
years old at the National Service Scheme in Mumbai, India, where we were holding health camps for slum dwellers.

I do have other deformities. My left hand has joined fingers and my shoulders are not an equal length. My chest is also different, with the right side protruding while the left is a bit hollow.

The doctor at Jaslok Hospital gave me a medical certificate about my condition which I have never needed to use. When I was 19, I wanted to get my left hand corrected with plastic surgery, but the doctors said that since it was past the growing age, my bones would not grow and it was costly, too, so I gave up the idea.

I came to Dubai in 1991 and initially I did fail the medical test because of the chest X-Ray. But in the second trial, the government doctor cleared the test because I was fit for the job. From then on, I’ve been doing mostly clerical jobs so it wasn’t exhausting. After nearly three decades, I’ve put on eight kilograms and I am fit and fine.

Currently, I’m working as a receptionist and telephone operator in a large media company and attend to almost 600 calls daily. Sometimes, we need to deal diplomatically with irate callers.

I remember a joke with a medical intern at the Dubai Hospital. He put the heart monitors for electrocardiogram (ECG) on the left side of my chest and everything was blank. It was inverse in the printings. The intern scratched his head and when he asked what was wrong, I laughed.

I’m from a family of nine brothers and I’m the fifth. I belong to a family of farmers and I was told that after my birth the fields prospered, so they considered me lucky as I was different. That’s why I wasn’t treated early for my deformities.

I want to spread information about my condition with medical experts if possible, so that there is widespread awareness. With a heart on my right, I have been living a normal life with no complications. Please know that this is a special part of me, it’s rare and for that, I know I am unique. 

(As told to Raziqueh Hussain)