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Carmit Bachar has revealed that she “lost count of the number of surgeries” she had as a child due to birth with a cleft lip and cleft palate – an opening or fissure in the upper lip and roof of the mouth.
The 48-year-old Pussycat Doll star, who was bullied for years, said she thought she looked “ugly and crazy like a monster” when she was younger.
The pop singer broke down emotionally in tears on Wednesday’s episode of This Morning as she opened up about her “insecurity” and how “terrified” she was about having children.
Wow: Carmit Bachar revealed that she had “lost count of the number of surgeries” she had due to her birth with a cleft lip defect and cleft palate when she appeared on Wednesday’s This Morning (pictured right in her youth)
She explained: ‘Most people don’t know I was born with a birth defect, it’s actually the third most common birth defect of cleft lip and cleft palate.
“Growing up, I had numerous surgeries, spent a lot of time in the hospital and ridiculed a lot as a child.
“If you’re born with a cleft lip and a split palette, you’re definitely insecure. One of my biggest fears was when I had my daughter.
“I was terrified she would be born with the same thing. I didn’t want her to go through what I went through, it’s the last thing I want her to go through.”
‘Surely leaves you insecure’: The pop singer broke down emotionally when she opened up about her ‘insecurity’ and how ‘terrified’ she was about having children
Carmit welcomed daughter Keala Rose with husband Kevin Whitaker in 2011.
Holding back her tears as she looked back on her childhood, Carmit revealed how she always hoped she would “come out of surgery perfectly, which she never did.”
She underwent several grueling annual surgeries from the age of just six months until she was 16.
Childhood: She underwent several grueling annual surgeries from the age of just six months until she was 16, always hoping she would “look perfect,” which she never did.
She continued, “It’s hard, I’d go to the hospital and think I’d come out and be perfect, which I never was.
“I thought I looked weird or ugly from a certain angle, certainly not pretty. When you’re young, you feel like you looked crazy, I looked like a monster.
‘Until I saw her (daughter’s) face, I was very scared, I couldn’t even speak. I am ashamed to say that I think and feel that.
She said: One of my biggest fears was when I had my daughter. I was terrified she would be born with the same’ (pictured with daughter Keala Rose and husband Kevin Whitaker)
“I have so many gaping fans who tell me I’m a role model and thank me for inspiring others.
“Someone said don’t insult the little girl who is a superhero and that landed for me. I will never let anyone take my insecurities out of my weakness again.”
One in 700 babies in the UK is born with a fissure. The type and severity varies widely. Some are born with a cleft lip or cleft palate, but about half of those affected have both.
Opening: She added, “I thought I looked weird or ugly from a certain angle, definitely not pretty. When you’re young you feel like you looked crazy, I looked like a monster’
It was Carmit’s love of performing that helped her become resilient. At the age of 10 she took lessons in dance, piano and drama, as well as taking up rhythmic gymnastics. In the end, she was selected for the US national team.
But despite numerous surgeries, her face remained scarred throughout adolescence — and she was even told by a talent agent not to hold any hopes for a career on stage because of her appearance.
After major surgery at age eight, which involved removing a piece of bone from her thigh to form the hard palate in her mouth, Carmit needed more surgery to correct the appearance of her scar.
‘I’m a role model’: Carmit inspires others born with a cleft lip and a split palette after her successful career with the Pussycat Dolls (photo Carmit, Ashley Roberts, Nicole Scherzinger, Kimberly Wyatt and Jessica Sutta)
Carmit also developed an underbite, a common complication of cleft lip and palate, because jaw growth can be disrupted by the recurrent surgery. Her underbite worsened from age 12 until she reached the point where she no longer recognized herself, and at age 16 she had major surgery to correct that too.
Due to the repeated surgeries, she had to relearn how to use her voice.
Carmit’s last surgery took place when she was 18, when bone was removed from her head to build a bridge in her nose.
Fortunately, the treatments have improved tremendously since then. Nigel Mercer, consultant cleft surgeon with the South West regional cleft lip and palate unit in Bristol, says: ‘The UK is a world leader in cleft care, and while 30 years ago children would have 17 or 18 surgeries, we now avoid that.’
Carmit had a successful career with the Pussycat Dolls alongside bandmates Ashley Roberts, Nicole Scherzinger, Kimberly Wyatt and Jessica Sutta.