Alopecia World
www.alopeciaworld.com
Using my head
Last week I was grocery shopping and, when I went to check out, a woman approached me to say she thought I was beautiful and that she wished she could do what I do. She went on to explain that she lost most of her hair due to alopecia. I told her I was familiar with alopecia and, in fact, have it myself. She was fearful of what others might say if they knew about her condition, but she really liked my look.
She was wearing a wig and said she normally wears one, so I suggested she could shave the hair underneath and see how she felt. Perhaps wear the style around her house or among close friends, and if she got more comfortable with the look or idea, expand on it if she wanted. She listened and we parted ways.
Yesterday I was shopping at the same store when a woman came smiling towards me, exclaiming, “Hi friend!” It took me a second to realize who she was. It was the same woman from the previous week, only this time she had a shaved head and was wearing a hat!
She excitedly removed her hat to show me her cleanly shaven head. She said after speaking to me she decided to try it and actually loved it enough to go about her day-to-day errands without the wig. She was so excited about her newfound courage that it bought tears to my eyes.
Again, another example of me just being myself and at the same time unknowingly encouraging another. And all I did was use my head ;)
-
Comment by Mary on November 13, 2012 at 1:22am
-
WAY TO GO, CHERYL! This is what it's all about...showing other women that we DO have other options. What a wonderful experience to have! Every woman that ventures out in public bald is another ambassador, another example for other women with hair loss. When there are more of us OUT there, bald women won't be such an unusual sight.
While we're sharing...I had a not so fun experience last week that illustrates why we need more bald women out there. After boarding a small plane in Hawaii, with open seating, I was turned to the window and a young man came and asked me "Dude, is that seat taken?" When I turned around to face him, he got terribly flustered and apologized. This was a first...I was upset a little, but then had to laugh about it!
-
Comment by Cheryl, Co-founder on November 13, 2012 at 2:06am
-
Hi Mary, I totally agree with you. I had a similar experience at a gym many years ago. I wrote a blog about it, but I most have been for a blog that I had at the time. So, I just posted it here. Below is a quote from the post.
"That day I came to the conclusion that if I really wanted my freedom with alopecia, I was going to have to properly deal with uncomfortable situations..."
-
-
Beautiful blog, Cheryl!
-
Comment by Alliegator on November 13, 2012 at 12:33pm
-
Wow! That is amazing. Beautiful story. I was having breakfast one day. I heard two women sit down behind me so I turned to glance at them. One of them was wearing a hat, and she smiled at me. Then, not too long later, I heard her say "if she can do it, so can I". I gave it some time, and then turned around again.. she had taken off her hat! It almost make me cry out of joy for her, and sad that so many are scared to take off their hats.
-
Comment by JeffreySF on November 13, 2012 at 10:40pm
-
Nice!
-
-
Hi Rosy, As you know I truly believe a person choice to wear or not wear a wig is a personal one that only they can make. From her conversation, I knew it was a direction that she wanted to go in and just suggested a risk-free option for her to try and see how she felt. Many times when we are in a situation we can't always see all our options and suddenly someone bring up a "3rd" option that we never even considered. That is what I also LOVE about a community like Alopecia World so many different options are offered and some still even amaze me. I think options are a source of hope.
Alliegator, doesn't it amaze you on how something that was at one time a source of great pain has become a blessing to others
Thanks Jeff ;)
-
Comment by You can do it : ) on November 18, 2012 at 10:32pm
-
wow
-
Comment by Abooie on November 19, 2012 at 2:48pm
-
Such a beautiful story. Its suprising how inpirational others with alopica can be, it was because of seeing so many woman looking beautiful without hair that I shaved mine, I'm starting to take my scarf off around the house and around my boyfriends, all my friends and family know I have alopeica as I've posted photos on Facebook its just waiting now for that last bit of confidence (and warmer weather) and I'll go out proud :) xx
-
Comment by Norm on November 20, 2012 at 2:07pm
-
It's really uplifting to hear stuff like this! Like you say, Cheryl, it's often the case that you can be so close to a problem that you can't see a solution, and when someone comes along and says "hey, have you ever thought of...." you wonder why you never thought of it yourself.
But, this other experience that you and Mary had, where someone saw you from behind and assumed you were men - I've been waiting years for that to happen to me... *sigh* ;)
-
Comment by Tallgirl on November 20, 2012 at 4:42pm
-
Norm, you crack me up. But I have no doubts about you...at least, not in THAT way. Now let's talk about sanity...tee hee! ;)
Actually, sometimes it only takes ONE friend to nudge one towards a change. Then, after finally exhaling, one can try the experiment again and again and know that it will be okay MOST of the time.
.
.
© 2024 Created by Alopecia World.
Powered by
You need to be a member of Alopecia World to add comments!
Join Alopecia World