Four courageous women reveal how they came to terms with alopecia and embraced their baldness
RICKI Lake showed off her new shaved-head hairdo on social media.
The US talkshow host went on to explain her chronic hair loss has been “debilitating, embarrassing, painful, scary, depressing, lonely” but that she is now “so done with hiding”.
And these four gorgeous women are following suit.
Here, they tell Yasmin Harisha about living with alopecia, and about how they are bald, bold and proud.
'I only took off my wig for the first time last year'
JEWELLERY designer Farah Mohidin, 26, was ashamed of her alopecia until boyfriend Ben Allison, 27, a musician, helped her embrace it.
Now she sells jewellery inspired by the condition. Farah, from Richmond, South West London, says: "At the age of seven, small patches of my hair started falling out.
My mum used styling such as side-partings and pigtails to hide them.
By the time I was 15, I was completely bald and diagnosed with alopecia. I was distraught.
I wore wigs which never looked right and would try out hats to distract others. I was ostracised by girls while boys couldn’t understand how someone my age would need a wig.
Hair is seen as such a critical part of female beauty, so when you are bald your self-esteem falls away rapidly.
After school, I went to Central St Martins University in London and did a three-year jewellery design degree.
As part of my final project I designed a range of jewellery including necklaces, earrings and silver wire baseball caps which revealed the head based on my alopecia experience.
In November 2018, I met Ben. He thinks I am beautiful with or without my wig. He encouraged me to embrace being hairless and gave me the confidence to set up my own jewellery business.
I quit my job as a shop assistant, set up as FarahM Ltd and sell jewellery inspired by alopecia.
My designs include bald-headed women necklaces, hoops with bald-head trinkets and bracelets. I only took my wig off in public for the first time last year and I was terrified.
Now, I haven’t looked back. I want to show girls battling hair loss they are beautiful. You can achieve your goals with or without hair."
'I love that I can help other alopecia sufferers'
SINGLE Christala Fletcher, from Greenford, West London, has alopecia areata – also known as spot baldness.
Her condition encouraged her to set up a wig-making business in 2017. Christala, 27, says: "I was a nine when my hair started to fall out in coin-size pieces.
As I grew older, more came out and my mum took me to the GP.
After blood tests I was diagnosed with alopecia areata – an autoimmune disease often linked to stress.
In secondary school, I wore wigs as I had big bald patches. But they would never fit and were scratchy. Bullies made me feel like a freak.
Aged 17, I developed a blood infection and had to have a transfusion. After that my hair grew back in small tufts.
I would cover it up with head scarves and wigs. But when I got to the age of 20, my sister Helene convinced me to shave it.
I started spending thousands on wigs. Then four years ago I took one apart and tried to make my own.
The ones I made fitted better but I needed to learn more. I enrolled in a year-long course at The Wig Academy, in Eastbourne, East Sussex.
In 2017, I set up my company Lace By Lala and now I make bespoke wigs for clients all over the world.
A basic wig takes me 120 hours to make and sells for £1,250. Some of my clients have hair and want to try different styles out, others are bald.
I love that I can help alopecia sufferers, trauma victims, people who go bald naturally and chemotherapy patients.
Most days I go bald but on other days I wear one of my own wigs. I’m privileged to have the choice."
'Burlesque empowered me to shave my head'
CAULETTE Campbell started suffering from alopecia when she was 15 and has since taken up Burlesque dancing.
The payroll manager, 37, from Darlington, who is single, says: "When I was 15, I had the flu jab and almost immediately felt unwell.
I believe the flu jab weakened my immune system and sparked the autoimmune condition which causes alopecia.
My hair started falling out and I used a range of unusual hairstyles to hide my bald patches.
When I sat my GCSEs, the stress of study and exams caused my hair to fall out completely.
I got a wig from the NHS but it didn’t stop other teenagers from pointing and staring. At times, I would lose my eyebrows and eyelashes. I had no self-confidence.
My hair would grow back sparsely and then fall out without warning. I wore wigs and head scarves – it really affected my social life.
Ten years ago, a friend who was doing burlesque in Newcastle kept nagging me to come to a class. I finally gave in and it was the best thing I had ever done.
On stage, I wasn’t the 'bald girl', I was a glamorous performer who got standing ovations.
I now perform as my alter ego Ebony Silk. I design my costumes, and wear performance wigs and headpieces.
Burlesque empowered me to shave my head completely. Now I love wearing a range of cool wigs, colourful turbans or when it is warm enough, just going bald.
Having no hair shouldn’t hold you back. I am a bald burlesque beauty and proud."
'It's taken 30 years, but being bald is truly beautiful'
ADRIANA Gambardella, 39, from Edinburgh, was diagnosed with alopecia at nine.
It inspired her to become a cancer research scientist. Adriana, whose boyfriend is shop owner Daryl Bertram, says: "When I was nine, I started losing small sections of my hair.
By 12, my hair, eyebrows and eyelashes all completely fell out. Tests revealed I had alopecia universalis, an extreme autoimmune disorder that attacks your body’s hair follicles, leaving you with no hair.
My mum got me a wig but it was ill-fitting and I was targeted constantly by school bullies.
I was always picked last for team sports, kids avoided me and my self-esteem plummeted.
Studying biology at university, I ditched the wig and wore scarves and hats. I focused on my studies and considered myself ugly.
When I was 27 I met Philippe, who was two years older than me. We married in 2007 after a year of dating. I walked up the aisle in a specially designed headscarf with flowers.
But we divorced in 2010. Because of my alopecia and low self-esteem, I had married Philippe for the wrong reasons.
In 2015, I started working as a cancer research scientist.
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I found the work so empowering. I met patients who were bald due to chemotherapy, and seeing their strength was amazing. They shared their personal hair-loss stories with me.
I now go bald at work. Their encouragement has made me even more determined to help find a cure for cancer. It has taken me 30 years but I’ve realised being bald is truly beautiful.
I’ve so much to offer and shouldn’t be afraid of my condition or my looks."
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