He couldn't bear to look in the mirror and now he's a bodybuilding champion

Isaiah Griffin from Kansas suffered from severe acne as a teenager. When Isaiah and his father visited a doctor they learned that Isaiah had developed a condition known as keloids. Keloids are benign growths which develop as a result of the body over-healing itself.

Isaiah's confidence was severely knocked by his condition. He says:

It hit me to a point where I kind of stopped being myself. I was really scared about what people would say and what people would think. So I would hide in like a shell.

What are keloids?

A keloid is a type of raised scar that grows much bigger than the initial wound. In most cases, keloids can develop from anything that might normally cause a scar - for instance cuts, severe acne or burns.

However, in very rare cases - such as Isaiah's - keloids can form of their own accord without any injury. These are known as 'spontaneous keloids'.

As keloids grow they can become painful or itchy and in some cases especially large keloids can affect the ability to move the part of the body they appear on.

How bodybuilding helped

Taking up bodybuilding has helped Isaiah come to terms with his condition and take pride in his body again.

He says:

At my first show I don’t think I was nervous. I was just ready. I was really just ready to get on stage and get it done. When I achieved it, it was overwhelming.

Bodybuilding changed my life to where I can feel good about myself, increase my confidence in myself, be proud of who I am and really start to see who I am and not what happened to me and not let that stop me.