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Becoming is a series in which we show people who have had to overcome adversity to become the people they are today.
Throughout his childhood and into his young adult life, Amir Khan carried a chip on his shoulder.
Growing up with Tourette’s disease, which causes one to make uncontrollable movements or sounds (called tics), he was plagued with low self-confidence and was constantly worried about what people thought of him. As a result, it was especially difficult for him to fit in at school.
Amir used to come home crying from the bullies making fun of him, and it hurt more when the bullies were girls. He remembers crying to his father: “I will never have a wife or girlfriend.”
The 25-year-old mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter can now laugh at the memory, and not just because he not only has a beautiful wife and an adorable 18-month-old boy. But more than that, he managed to ignore that constant nagging self-doubt.
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The emir we see now is relaxed, self-aware and confident, with no tic in sight. Over the years, he has learned to control his tics when before, “he couldn’t even speak properly.” But the air of composure he exudes now was, for lack of a better word, close.
He dropped out of school in High 5 to pursue his MMA dreams, after convincing his parents to let him train in the United States for three months. But his hidden agenda was never to return.
“Part of the reason I went to America was because it would be a new beginning. People will just know me as Amir Khan, a Muay Thai fighter, without (Tourette’s) association.”
While he wanted to “run away from his problems”, he realized that he would never be able to return to Singapore if he did not work at NS, and realized that “it was not a good decision.
Your pursuit of happiness
Living in the United States didn’t make him any happier either.
“I realized that there is no way to escape your past. Now I am hugging him, this is who I am and I am so strong today because of it.”
But a more profound change came in Amir after suffering a series of defeats last year, the latest of which hit him hard and made him question his place in the sport.
“All the negativity got into my head … during that week I was a bit depressed,” he shares.
It got so bad that when he looked at his family, “somehow I convinced myself that they were disgusted with me and ashamed and ashamed that I lost. But they really weren’t.”
The shift from self-pity to self-awareness happened in an instant at the end of the week, and he realized he had a lot to be thankful for.
“Failures happen well and every journey is different. It doesn’t mean that if you fail at the beginning you won’t find success in the end.
“I’m living my journey, living my life and doing what I love every day, so (I should) be grateful and not feel sorry for myself. My mind was almost unbreakable after that.”
And that change in mindset has followed a year later. Now, just follow your heart.
“All my life when I had this Tourette syndrome, when I was walking down the street, I always worried about what other people thought of me and over time it just took hold. It took me a while to get rid of that habit and now just do what I did. want “.
And that also explains all the entertaining Tik Tok videos that he’s been making with his wife who is a YouTuber.
“If it makes me happy, it makes me happy. So I post dance videos because I don’t care what people think, because if someone knows me, I’m the worst dancer they can find. If I just want to do it, I do it. I do, I don’t care what people think of me. “
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So what would the amir say to his 15-year-old self if he had the chance to do so?
“I will say do not run away from who you are, be true to yourself and believe that one day you will do great things. Have confidence in yourself and recognize who you are.”
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He adds: “When I go out on my deathbed, I want to know that I lived life in every moment enjoying it, doing something that has a deeper meaning. You have to find something that gives you that purpose in life.”
Watch the video to learn more about our intimate and personal conversation with the Singaporean mixed martial arts champion and how he pretends to be a better version of himself every day.
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