Putting Our Heads Together

After receiving a cancer diagnosis it's reported that one of the first questions women ask is, "Will I lose my hair?" Being bald is a huge blow to your self-esteem. It can be the first and most visible sign that you have cancer.

Vickie Girard, author of "There's No Place Like Hope" wrote, "When I lost my hair, my eyelashes, my eyebrows, I felt as if I were being erased...Hair loss allows our illness to enter the room before our name."

Depending on the type of chemo drug being used, hair loss often happens sometime after the second treatment. Women are advised to be proactive and cut their hair before it can fall out clump by clump. That's what many of my friends have done--and they say it was sad, cathartic and liberating all at the same time.

For many women getting a great wig is a must. Again, lots of advice is offered about when and where to get a wig. Thankfully many affordable and wonderful looking wigs are available. Nonetheless, the insecurities and sadness that result from hair loss can be considerable.

After experiencing and processing the initial shock and sadness, my friends have been very "matter of fact" about this situation. They go on with their lives telling themselves and others that hair loss is an indication that the chemo is working.

I have always marveled at their resilience. I wanted to do something tangible to support my friends. I decided to grow my hair long enough to donate to an organization that makes wigs for individuals going through cancer treatments. In fact, I wanted to follow in the foot steps of my 10 year old niece, Hannah. Last winter she donated about 14 inches of her thick, fabulous red hair. Imitating her good example felt right, so it was a shock when I discovered that the amount of gray in my hair (and here I should say that no one, not even me, really knows exactly how gray I am because I have my hair artfully colored) made me a less than desirable donor. Ouch.

I quickly came up with another plan. When in trouble turn to family. My younger daughter, Lauren, has beautiful, straight, shiny hair-she could make the donation.

Here's what you need to know about Lauren--she also lives with a diagnosis--pervasive developmental delay. She is 23 years old and functions at the level of a 2-3 year old. Don't feel sorry for her or for us. She is one of the most wonderful individuals that you will ever meet. She is funny, stubborn and very, very social. Virginia Woolf could have been thinking of Lauren when she advised, "Arrange whatever pieces come your way." Lauren has done just that. And along the way she has helped us learn how to manage some of the more difficult "pieces" that life has thrown at us.

When Lauren was a baby we felt like all we could do was react to the reports the doctors gave us. We felt powerless. That must sound all too familiar to anyone who has gone thorough cancer treatments.

Lauren had her own way of reacting to her prognosis, she just keep on living her life, having fun and being her goofy little self. The rest of us took note and decided that all we really needed to do was support Lauren and be happy as a family.

We also learned that Lauren has a lot to contribute to any situation--and in this situation it was going to be her beautiful hair. So we did some research and found -- Pantene Beautiful Lengths --a non-profit organization that uses donated hair to create real-hair wigs that are given free-of-charge to women going through cancer treatments.

We want you to know about Pantene Beautiful Lengths. Check it out at http://www.beautifullengths.com/

So now, somewhere, a woman is sporting a shiny black wig that contains some of Lauren's hair. Another woman, a red head this time, is feeling good about herself because of Hannah.


Here are some pictures of Lauren getting her hair cut. Cindy --our wonderful stylist--was excited to be a part of this process. Cindy has had several clients who have had cancer and lost their hair. Helping Lauren make this contribution was a project that was near and dear to her heart. It was an emotional moment to watch Cindy put Lauren's hair in a ponytail and cut off the required 8 inches. Other stylists from the Hair District came to watch and offer praise and encouragement to both Lauren and Cindy.
















A few weeks after mailing the ponytail to Pantene we received a really lovely acknowledgement--here is a copy of the letter that they sent to Lauren.

Think about joining in and contibuting to the Pantene Million Inch Chain.