When I think of my fiancée, Cheryl Carvery, I don’t think of alopecia areata.

I think of a friend that sticks closer than any sibling; a compassionate person whose heart and life are wide open to other alopecians and who volunteers at a veterans’ hospital; a fun and inquisitive person who loves to travel and workout; a phenomenal woman who showers me with such sweet affection that I call it “addictive love.”

In other words, I think of an adorable human being who’s far more interesting than her alopecia.

Just as there’s way more to Cheryl than her alopecic condition, there’s far more to you than your hair loss or baldness. I can’t help noticing this as I peruse the profiles here in Alopecia World. It’s the amazing sum of your unique personalities, perspectives, priorities, and pursuits that not only makes each of you who are you, but deeply intriguing and fascinating as well.

To be true to yourself, and to be nobody but yourself, in a world that makes it much easier to be what others want you to be, is to fight not just the greatest, but the best fight of your life. Therefore, I commend you for your courage to contribute to this beloved community and encourage you to “keep doing you” because it makes a world of difference in your life and the lives of more people than perhaps you’ll ever realize.