So, around last month, Locks Of Love called and invited my mother and I to the 5th annual Locks Of Love retreat held in West Palm Beach, Florida. My mother, of course, was thrilled, and said yes, we will be attending the retreat on June 27th. While my mom was excited, I was crawling with nerves. I was anxious to meet the other girls. But I'm glad I didn't back out because when my mother and I met at the Florida airport with the other moms and their daughters, all my nerves vanished. I met two other girls from Chicago, and quickly we became friends. We shared our stories: the good and the bad of Alopecia. That afternoon, all 18 of the girls (including myself) and 18 of the moms, with the 4 board members of Locks of Love had a dinner at our hotel, The Ritz Carlton. It was like a dream, in all honesty. Here I was, surrounded with girls who knew what I was going through everyday. It felt like the outside world didn't exist, and it was just us. The following morning, Lynette, our counselor, held a session in her suite, and the girls and I talked about our feelings about Alopecia. We all shared and supported each other. These girls were so open about everything. Two of the girls there, Olivia, and Mariah, didn't even wear their hairpieces, gave me courage to take a picture without my hairpiece that night. Something I've never done, and wouldn't even think about doing if it wasn't for them. It was such a blessing to go. The best weekend of my life. It helped so much, because when I got back, my brother booked a flight to Mississippi, and my parents, sister, and I went to drop him off. I didn't wear my hairpiece!! It was so liberating and exhilarating. I felt like a weight was lifted off my shoulder. I didn't care if people stared or not, I just concentrated on that high feeling I got when the wind wasn't blowing hair into my hair! It was the most amazing feeling, that the following week when we picked up my brother, I left my hairpiece at home. I'm not exactly ready to leave my hairpiece at home 24/7, but this is a big step for me. And I hope in the future, I could go grocery shopping with my mom, without the hairpiece. Well, anyway, that is all :)