Are You Bald Yet?

By Leisa Mayer



I never could have imagined all of the baldness I would have in my life. My husband—bald; two of my three children—born bald; and I still vividly remember that day in 1988 when my grandmother took off her wig to reveal her bald head for the first time. She laughed in her giggly way—like a young child revealing a secret to a pal. Then, two months later, she died, unable to fight the cancer that overtook her body so quickly. Soon after, a friend of mine, just 22 years old, lost his battle with Hodgkins Disease. And in the next 10 years, my uncle, my aunt, close friends of my parents and others in my life all battled cancer.

In the Calendar section last March, Sacramento Parent featured a local event benefiting the nation-wide non-profit St. Baldrick's Foundation (www.stbaldricks.org). People in our area joined in to help fight childhood cancers by gathering pledges (or "bet you won't shave your head money") and shaved their heads bald. The donations collected at each event go directly to curing childhood cancers. As I read the event listing last year, I remember thinking how supportive the act of shaving your head was, considering all of the children who become bald from various treatments. Little did I know, one year later, I would be joining in the cause too.

I have always had very thick, strong hair, so I never really considered what it would be like to suddenly not have any. My husband has informed me how difficult it is to lose that part of yourself. Our hair not only changes how other people look at us—more importantly, it changes how we see ourselves.

Many children each year are diagnosed with cancer, then they start the long, arduous process of attempting to kill off the disease. Hair loss is one of the sad side-effects of some of the treatments. For children who are already suffering from this very painful, invasive disease, the loss of their hair can be devastating. While adults can tell themselves, “It’s only hair… Just an accessory… Not really who I am,” every parent knows this rationale just doesn’t work for children.

How would you react if your child was diagnosed with cancer? Your own hair days—good or bad—would probably become trivial. And I bet you would be grateful for anything that eased at least one aspect of your child's struggle.

By choosing to shave my head bald this spring and donating my braids to Locks Of Love (www.locksoflove.org), I'll be joining thousands of others in raising awareness, showing support, and generating research funds to help local kids fight cancer. The internet is filled with organizations that work with individuals who want to help children restore their self-esteem and confidence while they battle illness. Donated hair is used to create natural, higher quality wigs that give these kids a chance to feel more "normal" around their peers and others, and a little bit closer to being healthy.

By going bald and donating my hair, I'm not only striving to make a sad, sick child feel a bit better; I'm also hoping to give something to my own children. I want to open their eyes to the power, and responsibility, they have to help those in need.

I hope you’ll join me, if not as a fellow shavee, then as a sponsor, a barber, or a volunteer. I welcome the company. Look for more details on the St. Baldrick’s event in upcoming issues. In the meantime, if you’d like to sponsor me or just show your support, please send an email with your name and contact information to info@sacramentoparent.com, Subject: St. Baldrick’s.