‘We’re All a Little Special’: A TikToker’s Video About Her Hand Condition Has X Divided Between Support and Dismissal

A TikTok creator @emily_1889's emotional video about a congenital hand condition has now made its way to X. Below it, many viewers empathized with her insecurities while others corrected misconceptions about the condition. In the video, the creator said she has brachydactyly type A3, a condition that affects the little fingers.

"So I might look normal to you guys, but I'm not normal," she says before explaining that she has "small pinkies" and "no knuckle." She then adds, "Please don't laugh at me and don't make fun of me." The creator also said her mother "smoked dope" while pregnant, though she acknowledged she did not know whether that caused the condition.

On X, one of the replies said it does not matter whether prenatal drug use occurred. They write, "Little finger brachydactyly (...) is the most common type of brachydactyly. It is inherited and harmless. It is not due to her mother smoking dope or whatever while pregnant."

Several users said they didn't initially notice anything unusual about her hands. "I looked at my hands to see what the difference was and thought her pinkies and thumbs were on the wrong sides. We're all a little special in some way, or another," one person wrote.

Others felt the creator was worrying over minor things: "She seriously acts like little pinkies are a horrendous thing. Jesus! I was waiting for something dramatic, and that's it. Get a grip, girl!" another pointed out "[People] with sober moms get issues like that too."

According to the National Institutes of Health, brachydactyly is a group of inherited conditions in which the fingers or toes are shorter than usual because certain bones don't develop to their full length.

Type A3 specifically affects the middle bone of the little finger, which causes the pinky to appear shorter or curved. The condition is generally harmless and does not usually affect hand function.