If there's any good thing living with alopecia can do for you, it's make you more sensitive and responsive to the support needs of other human beings. Like most, if not all, of life's challenges, coping with alopecia calls attention to the very human need for acceptance, affirmation, and other forms vital emotional assistance. It's yet another reminder that it is not good for humans to be alone, isolated and insulated from the embrace and encouragement of those around them.

As I've researched the various type of alopecia, and read about your experiences as alopecians, I've also come to realize that providing the support you need is largely a matter of making an honest effort to really understand and respond to what you've really been through and are really going through as alopecians. Careless and dismissive diagnoses of your struggles aren't helpful in the least. If anyone wants to be there for you, then the person must be willing, not only to listen to your concerns and needs, but actually learn about your needs and help address them as well. Of course, this too is a poignant and powerful lesson about what it truly means to be sensitive and responsive to the needs of others: To show real compassion, one must take time to comprehend real needs and concerns.

As you deal with alopecia, let this teach you positive lessons about how to deal with others. No one needs exactly what you need, but all of us need for those who claim to love and care about us to truly understand and make a genuine effort to help meet our most profound and pressing needs. Therefore, as you receive the support and encouragement you need, reflect on it and reflect this in how you treat others, especially those who want with all their heart to rely on you for genuinely supportive companionship.