Grace & Beauty Defined – A Truly Amazing Video

by Y on April 20, 2014

Hi Everyone!  Happy Easter! I’m about to get myself ready for the day, but before I hop (like a bunny hop — hop) off to the shower and wig up, I wanted to share something amazing with you.

I believe we hold within us the power to conquer insurmountable obstacles and struggles, like hair loss. I’ve always believed we are stronger than we usually give ourselves credit for. I believe in the ability to allow acceptance to free us from that which pins us down and prohibits us from living our lives. Acceptance of ourselves.

Enjoy this amazing and touching video, and Happy Easter to all.

Much Love & Hugs,
Y

{ 24 comments… read them below or add one }

caseys April 20, 2014 at 7:05 am

Wow. Just wow. I cannot stop my tears from flowing. Love these people so much. They are gorgeous in every way.

Reply

S April 20, 2014 at 8:29 am

This felt a lot like my journey. I recently shaved off all mine too. I took my own photos and shared with those clse to me. It was very freeing. I thought Icwas done with the suffering. And I was for a bit. But then I’d notice young girls with their flowing hair and glowing skin. Older women with gorgeous hair and Greta style. And all those negative voices and fears started up. So it takes a lot of breathing and awareness to let go.

What this woman did, sharing herself like that, is so brave and courageous. I felt more emotion for her than I did for myself! And what her family/friends did? Amazing. And I think she looks gorgeous. Fierce. Edgy. Stunning.

This video gives me strength. It lets me know that I’m not alone. There are people who get it, no explanations. Thank you.

Reply

AJ April 20, 2014 at 12:37 pm

Thank you for sharing this video with us, and thank you to the wonderfully brave & beautiful woman who made it. I also had to take this drastic step last year at the age of 40, having lost 75% of my hair in just 6 months. Seeing other wonderful women being so brave, gives me strength, and I’m so grateful to all of you who share this silent journey with me; I’m thankful just knowing you are out there.

Reply

Naomi April 20, 2014 at 1:51 pm

Thanks for the support and your deep compassion. It means so much!

Reply

imintheresomewhere April 21, 2014 at 12:53 am

Well, I’m crying now and I can tell you I haven’t cried about my hair for a year (all stuck inside, just busy trying to get along no matter what). Hellcat really looks beautiful and especially in her shaved head! I’m hoping for the day where I might feel beautiful the way she is whatever the state of my hair.

Hugs and thank you for that.

Reply

Angie T April 21, 2014 at 8:25 am

Incredible. INSPIRING. You are amazing and beautiful. Thank you so much for sharing such an intimate video with us. I agree with the previous poster that you look amazing without hair – a look not many can pull off. You looked gorgeous in the wigs you tried on, too. But most amazing of all is that YOU NOW CALL THE SHOTS. Whatever you decide to do hair-wise, you’ve given yourself back that power. And that is incredible, inspiring thing to do and pass along.

Much love to you and all the women here. I’m waiting for some more head shaving videos to follow!

Reply

Juliette April 21, 2014 at 2:57 pm

I´m crying right now. Very moving, very inspiring and very, very strong of you. I’m really proud of you and all women who make women´s hair loss project possible.
A huge hug and love for all of you from Argentina!

Reply

Annette April 21, 2014 at 3:43 pm

I love this…. this is so inspiring…. It is funny, though… People that aren’t going through this don’t think it’s a “big deal…” You know – “it’s just hair…” I have been on this journey for almost 4 years…. I thank my God that He has answered my prayers – I wear wigs…. I have 2 Nitas and one Folly wig… I plan on buying more…. My bio hair means (and I truly truly swear to God) my bio hair means absolutely NOTHING to me, anymore. I wash it, I mousse it, I dry it, and stuff it under a wig… I cannot express HOW MUCH YOU and all the ladies on this website have helped me come to this point…. A year ago, I wasn’t there – all of you have helped me “get there.” I thank you all so much… God’s Blessings to all of you… xox

Reply

Hellcat April 21, 2014 at 4:00 pm

Thank you all so much for your messages. When I was at my worst, the women here on WHLP as well as a few who shared their stories via video made such a huge difference for me. Before I found them, I came home crying, I stayed under a blanket in a dark room for days and could think about nothing but my awful scalp showing everywhere. Work was awful. Without them I would still be hiding, depressed, and broken. I grew a lot in the last few months thanks to these ladies just like you, and you are exactly right- I call the shots now. My hair no longer has the power to influence my emotions. I hope it stays this way…Messages like these help me stay focused and remind me of a little silver lining to my crap hair. Thank you again, and please know that you are not going through this alone. The emotional mess this causes can wreck havoc on your life, but there is hope!

Reply

Megan April 21, 2014 at 4:14 pm

Thank you Hellcat! Boy did I have a good cry. It’s a good feeling to know I’m not alone.
You are beautiful and the men in the video are so cute!

Reply

Lina April 22, 2014 at 8:12 am

Hi honey 🙂
Thank you for sharing such a personal experience with us.
It was particularly touching to see the love and support you have, great man!
I understand the journey and the head shaving and it would of been a blessing to be able to have someone to share it with but you girls have been my angels.
It is very empowering to take control over something that seems to be out of our control if that makes any sense. I still am awestruck how all encompassing dealing with hair loss has been and how deep and how much it affects. Thank God for you all and the power to conquer.
I wish you a future full of peace and happiness and no more hiding in the dark.
Love you all
xo

Reply

Prini April 24, 2014 at 8:41 am

Truly inspiring video of a woman who was truly suffering, and turning it around, and not letting it CONTROL her emotionally and physically anymore.

You have a cute round head and a beautiful face. You can go out without a wig and rock, but I understand if you would be uncomfortable.

Thanks for sharing a beautiful story – your friends are angels.

Prini

Reply

hair44zs April 26, 2014 at 8:35 pm

You are stunning and beautiful. So many women like me sit in silence and pain. Thank you

Reply

Firefly April 28, 2014 at 2:19 am

You have such a positive outlook and you are an inspiration. You look absolutely gorgeous with or without hair. Thank you for sharing, your such a brave women. BTW, has anyone ever told you that you look like Maggie from The Walking Dead? x

Reply

Jrehan May 7, 2014 at 7:36 am

You look so beautiful in all the wigs. Personally, I love the long one! But I have to agree, you look stunning with just your shaved head! A look not many people can pull off! Thank you for sharing this video. I’m 21 and have PCOS related AGA. I am looking forward to the day when I decide to do the same thing you did. Praying for the strength and bravery that you have.! Oh and you and your man are too cute!

Reply

Pam Y May 7, 2014 at 5:53 pm

What an absolutely beautiful video and so inspirational. And you have the most gorgeous face! Thank you for this.

Reply

Hellcat May 8, 2014 at 10:55 am

All your messages mean so much to me! You ladies are really the best. I do go out usually on the weekends without hair on. I always wear hair to work, though.

Firefly- I have heard that actually 🙂
Jrehan- You can get there! I was scared to death too, but I won, lol. Hang in there 🙂
Megan- sometimes a good cry is exactly what we need. Lots of love your way.

Thank you all for your compliments! Sometimes it still takes courage to get out of my car if I’m going somewhere hairless. Bigs hugs and lots of peace to you all 🙂

Reply

Patty May 23, 2014 at 10:37 am

Can you feel the cap of your Follea wig when you run your fingers thought it? Can your fiancé feel it? how do you swim? Thanks so much for your forum. I think I’m ready, at the point you described when you got your first one. Thanks!

Reply

Josie 8) June 1, 2014 at 10:42 am

So inspiring! I keep dancing around the idea of shaving my head. My hubby shaves his just to avoid all grooming except the utmost minimal level. He supports my choice, either way, and I am so lucky for that, but I can’t seem to get there. I keep telling myself, if I lose weight and if I commit to wearing make-up every day, then maybe I won’t feel like it doesn’t look pretty enough. While I deserve to achieve health and beauty in my daily life, I need to stop making these prerequisites to being happy with my hair. Occasionally, I catch a glimpse of my future look, when my short hair clings to my scalp after a shower, and I’m surprised to see that maybe I will like the shaved head look. That my skull isn’t as big and boxy as I think it might be. That my eyes seem bigger. That there is potential for acceptance, liberation, and even celebration.
Cheers to you, Hellcat! You are beautiful sans locks. I hope I’m brave enough to share my buzz down when the day arrives!

Reply

Rukhsana June 11, 2014 at 3:38 pm

I am so, so thankful to women like you, Hellcat and Y, for sharing your inspiring journeys with the world. I feel like we are all in a sorority, bonded by the fact that we’re experiencing something seemingly benign (androgenetic alopecia) but still traumatic, something that no one but us could understand.

I just went on a trip to see my sister. She’s only 18 and is set to go to college this fall. This should be the most exciting time for her, but I noticed with sadness that she is also experiencing hair loss. I didn’t want to say anything, but then she asked me, “Is it thinning?” I had to be honest with her just in case there was a medical cause (she’s been under stress from applying to college and finishing her senior year of high school). But since almost everyone in our family, male and female, has thinning hair, it can only be genetic.

It makes me so upset to think that my baby sister has to go through this at a younger age than me (my HL first presented when I was 22). But she is a stronger person than I am. Immediately, she listed all the things she’s thankful for, and that she wasn’t going to let this affect her self-esteem. Perhaps I shouldn’t have done this, and Hellcat, I hope you don’t mind, but I showed her the video of your contemplating shaving your head–the one you courageously put on YouTube. It was at that point that my sister realized how unfair it could be to lose your hair at a young age. And that this was real and was happening to her. I guess I wanted to prepare her for the road ahead, because she was convinced that it wouldn’t worsen until she was much older. I think she realized then how unfair all of this is, especially for women who experience hair loss in our teens and 20s, and who have to go through so much heartache and distress about something most women our age take for granted–having hair! Needless to say, my sister became very upset.

But then I showed my sister videos of Y with her awesome Follea “hair babies,” and my sister’s mood instantly changed. She was shocked that you were wearing a wig, Y. It gave her (as it gives me) hope for the future. Although she and I still question when we will plunge into wig-wearing, and how, it’s nice to know that no matter what we will have each other for mutual support.

Now that I have to put on a brave face for my little sis, I more greatly appreciate the brave face that the women of WHLP put on for other women experiencing hair loss. Thanks for everything!

Reply

Geri_zFranchi July 15, 2014 at 3:31 pm

Thank you so much for post your emotions here, its make me feel than im not alone in this battle. Everyday when i look in a mirror is not that i expected but is just me is like who i am. I learned that the beauty is inside, sound like a cliche but is true. All women’s are beautiful only for being 🙂

Reply

Beth S July 24, 2014 at 5:22 am

I don’t know why I haven’t seen this post months ago, but I’m glad that I finally did see it. This love and beauty in this video just made the tears keep on flowing. When I see other women on the street with obvious hair loss I just want to run over and give them a hug, but of course, I don’t. With this happening to so many of us, why is this issue still in the dark ages?

Reply

Styllista January 30, 2015 at 5:28 pm

I’m not alone.. thank you for sharing…

Reply

Sweet Sue February 7, 2015 at 8:57 am

Hellcat, you really are just as beautiful with a shaved head as you are in your wigs; maybe even more so.

Reply

Leave a Comment

Previous post:

Next post: