My First Wig...

When I finally broke down and decided to buy a wig it was awful. The wig was fine, but making the decision to buy a wig felt like giving up. It felt like I was saying there was no hope for my hair to ever grow back. I would have this albatross, in the form of a wig, for the rest of my life.
I had no idea where to begin.

Where does a person go to get hair? I knew where to go to get hair cut off, but that clearly was not a problem anymore. I was directed to a lovely woman that worked at a salon that had worked with cancer patients before. I should have done more research on my own, but I didn't know better.

Disclaimer: Although I understand the impulse to jump to an assumption of cancer with baldness, I hate it!

Still, people with alopecia and people undergoing cancer treatment frequently have baldness in common. So, I went to the salon and was left to look through catalogues of wigs and make a selection. I was there no more than an hour. Never having an experience with wigs before, I assumed that a human hair wig would be the best choice. So, I picked a long, Raquel Welch, human hair wig. It was beautiful. Unlike my own hair which had been straight, my wig was wavy. I figured if I'm going to have different hair I am going to have different hair.

Here's the other thing...wigs can be very expensive. It wasn't that I didn't expect a cost. I did, but I wish I knew then what I know now. When I left that salon, my heart was lighter for having made a choice and knowing that soon I would be able to stop wearing my scarf which seemed to only reinforce the cancer assumption. I was also $800 lighter. A tremendous expense as I was recently laid off and had a 7 month old baby. I am grateful to my family, my parents, grandparents, and aunt, who all chipped in to ease the burden.

I learned through research that I could try to go through insurance. It was likely that I would have a hard fight ahead of me, only after I had a doctor write a prescription for a hair "prosthetic" and a note explaining the need for my mental well being. Seriously?! I am bald! clearly there is a need. I would think that having a doctor's documentation of hair loss and unsuccessful treatment would be enough for an insurance company to be willing to foot the bill for a wig every couple of years...kind of like getting new eyeglass frames. It has to be cheaper than whatever the insurance company shelled out every 4-6 weeks to the dermatologist during my treatment.

Anyway, back to the wig. I waited a few weeks for the wig to come in and the day I went to pick it up I was filled with such nervous anticipation. Of course I wanted a full head of hair, in whatever form it came in. What if I didn't like it? What if my husband didn't like it? Did I just waste almost $1000 for nothing? If I don't like it I was not going to wear it. This is what I ended up with...

It was okay, but felt foreign. I tried to find the funny in my situation, so I put it on my daughter. She looked like an adorable little doll.

It took some time. I took help from a friend, a breast cancer survivor, to teach me how to accessorize my wig, and help me to feel more comfortable with my new normal.

Luckily me for me, my friend KC owns the Diaper Bag Wrangler. KC stocked me up with head bands. At one point I think I had about 17 and they were double sided, so at least a months worth if I chose not to repeat. Before wigs I would typically wear my hair in a ponytail and only leave my hair down if I was dressing up. At least the head bands kept the hair out of my face.

So began my life with wigs. It was a hard thing to come to terms with. It took a long time for me to see it as an advantage, at least some of the time. Even now as I am in the market for my next wig I lament that I even need to have one. Yes, I know could just be bald, but that's not my style. Now, I can look at them as an accessory. I choose when or if I wear it. I choose who can see me with or without it. It is my choice and I own it!