Bald is Beautiful

Robin Roberts, anchor on Good Morning America, is battling cancer and last week she graced us with her presence on the show. She was looking alive and well and she discussed her fight with cancer, particularly her hair loss due to Chemotherapy. It is funny that of all the trials you must go through while fighting cancer, the trial of loosing your hair is the most devastating.

As women we define ourselves by our attributes and hair is one of the most significant one. Some of us look okay bald but for the most part we all look pretty bad with no hair. Robin discusses the fact that many women hesitate and even refuse to do their chemo because of the impending baldness. Without exception, all women seem to have the same experience of pain and anger over having to loose their hair. We all experience initial denial

We all think, "not me, I'm the one that won't loose her hair", and even when they tell us it will happen we go into denial mode. Those of us that don't go into denial simply want to refuse treatment. Who willingly wants to take a tour of hell? But in the end we all experience the same thing, our hair comes out in handfuls until we are loosing our minds along with our hair.

You say to yourself, "I should have shaved my head like they told me too". So you finally go to someone that has clippers and talk them into shaving what is left of your hair off. When you have you head shaved you have to bow your head for them to get the back of your head. In that moment you experience the posture of defeat. Almost bowing your head in shame, it feels like one of the biggest defeats in you life.

Here's the deal though. This is not defeat. This is the way you survive, the way you live to see you children grow up. 10 years out from your chemo and radiation you will be proud of your fight and never look back with shame. And here is the good news; your hair may very well come back better than it was before. Chances are your hair will come back a different color.