She’s been through many rounds of chemo now and it hasn’t been easy. Two different kinds of cancer was found in one of her breasts, so you know treatment was fast and furious and now she’s bald. That’s what so many chemo’s leave as a trademark of treatment.
At first, she wore scarves, sometimes hats….these were ways to disguise her baldness. This woman has one of the best faces too. Big brown eyes that speak to you with a simple glance. Her cheeks are full and they frame a beautiful smile. So I’m sure she felt uneasy in the beginning, without her hair. She didn’t want her young daughters to be embarrassed of Mom.
But now that’s changed. Now, it’s her daughters who are telling her, ‘Go for it, Mom.’ And so that’s exactly what she’s done. She’s taken the ‘Bald is Beautiful’ approach and gone are the hats, gone are the scarves. With cancer you get this….a new look and a new strength to go with it.
My friend is back to work and back in life. And she’s getting more comfortable with her baldness every day. Her hair may be gone, but she isn’t. She is still smart. She is still savy and she is in the game.
And somewhere in her home, there’s a huge pile of scarves and a few hats too. Who needs ’em!!
July 8, 2011 @ 11:34 am
When my daughter’s hair started to fall out, she marched to the barbershop and told him to “shave it off”. He was VERY uncomfortable doing this and kept asking her if she was sure. My daughter was like that though; she was a very brave woman and flaunted her baldness. She did buy a few winter hats that tied under the chin to use when sleeping, because she said her head got cold. She also bought a few scarves for “special” events (more to let others feel more comfortable with her baldness), but often pulled it off before the end of the event. She laughed when her minister walked by, rubbed her head and said “bad hair day, Liz?”
We each face cancer with the tools that we have and that we think we need. Hats, bands, scarves, tatoos, or shiny pates….doesn’t matter. What matters is what makes the patient most comfortable and fits their personality. What REALLY matters is winning the war against cancer!
July 6, 2011 @ 7:38 pm
Wishing your friend the best as she continues her path to wellness.
Also asking that my friend L. be kept in everyone’s thoughts as she enters the hospital to determine where her cancer has gone.
July 6, 2011 @ 6:38 pm
IMHO ….no need for embarrassment because you are bald from fighting the beast. It is a badge of honor…wear it proudly that you are standing and fighting as hard as you can. I know it brings stares. Take the opportunity to engage the person who is staring if only to say Hello and Have a good day. It will speak volumes without saying much. I always look the person in the eye and say hello and hang in there. They know that I know what’s going on without really talking but it also says….I’m pulling for you!!
I also like the hats and scarves….some are stylish and allow the character of the person wearing it to be expressed. The one thing that really touches my heart is to see a child who is bald. We all would like to their place and take their pain and allow them to be children. I wish your friend well. Bald is beautiful!!!