Alopecia UK is a small registered charity working hard to improve the lives of those affected by alopecia. Every donation will make a huge difference as it will be matched by Lloyds Banking Group up to £500.

This is my personal story and a personal challenge to raise both awareness and funds for Alopecia UK. Thankyou for reading and for your support ❤️

My Story

My hair loss journey started in August 2023 with 2 bold patches which appeared 6 weeks before my wedding. By December I’d lost every hair on my head. By January, every hair on my body 😔

The feelings of shock and trauma over that period were quite indescribable. Feelings of grief at literally losing myself, along with my hair. Losing my personal identity, my confidence and everything that goes with it. Then there’s the anxiety, worrying every day if it will get worse, being scared to leave the house in case people notice, or comment or stare. Feeling isolated, feeling like no one understands, feeling scared. It’s a huge tangle of complex negative emotions and to be honest it’s just sh**

We usually have a fight or flight reaction to severe stress. But I couldn’t fight my hair loss, and I couldn’t run from it, it was there staring back at me in the mirror and I didn’t know where to turn.

And that’s where Alopecia UK came in and helped me find the way. I found a support network, understanding, compassion and education and I was able to gain strength from that to help me get to a point where I can take on this challenge.

My Challenge

Before my own hair loss I’d never known anyone with alopecia (or so I thought) I’ve since found out that thousands of people live with alopecia in various forms, but many keep it quiet. There’s a stigma, an embarrassment for many and a lack of understanding which is very isolating. I want to try and help that…

May will be my ‘Alopecia Awareness Marathon Month’

Don’t worry, I’m not running anywhere- instead I’ll be finding 26 ways to raise awareness of alopecia. From hosting an alopecia awareness online event, to writing a blog post for the Alopecia UK website and everything in between. I’ll be taking on some personal challenges to rock my bold head in the places that still scare me. Weirdly, putting the bins out bold is a big one (what will people say behind their curtains?) taking the kids swimming and getting back into the gym. With the motivation of raising funds and awareness I am determined to do all of those things. I’ll also be educating people about alopecia as much as I can throughout the month, proudly wearing my “I have alopecia’ t-shirt.

Thankyou for reading and for any support you can give ❤️