“The Death of My Hair as I Knew It”: Jayme Eileen on Scarring Alopecia & Hair Toppers
You’ve written that your hair was “extremely valuable” to you, and that you spent more than three years after your diagnosis wishing and willing it to grow back. What finally helped you stop waiting and start looking for a way to feel like yourself again?
"I honestly think it just took time. I had gotten to a point where I had gone through two years of experiencing holidays and vacations with this lingering sense of dread about what I would do with my hair for those events.
Finally, on the third year of it, I started experimenting with toppers because I realized I needed to get out of that rut.
I had seen so many women online find such freedom in wearing hair.
At first I would cover the front with a wide headband because I was paranoid about people noticing the blend in the front. (Baby steps!) But even that helped me to practice and gain confidence.
Scarring alopecia (FFA/LPP) is permanent, and you’ve called it a “ticking time bomb.” What do you wish more people understood about living with a form of hair loss that won’t grow back?
"With scarring alopecia you don’t really even have a glimmer of hope.
There is no chance of regrowth.
There’s something so defeating about it. It truly feels like the death of your hair as you once knew it! I used to think that made it harder than other forms of hair loss.
But now that I’ve accepted my fate and embraced hair toppers as my “new normal”, it’s perhaps easier because I know the time spent wishing and hoping for my hair to grow back is better spent on just enjoying life (after popping on my hair topper for the day)!"
You went from hiding under hats, to saving your topper for special occasions, to wearing it for errands without a second thought. What helped you make that shift?
"I think the more I practiced and got used to seeing myself in the mirror with a hair topper on, the less weird it felt.
Just like I put on makeup when I get ready, I can put on my hair topper. It slowly became just another step in my getting-ready routine.
I started to accept it as just ‘my hair’.
Your son once lifted the front of your topper and couldn’t tell where your hair stopped and the topper began.
You’re now trying our Kenny Ultra-Thin Rim Silk Topper, which is made for that seamless blend.
What would you tell a woman who’s nervous to try her first one?
"Well, first of all, we are all our own worst critics! We see our own faces (and hair!) more than anyone else will ever see it, so of course it can be strange to see yourself looking different when you first try out any hair topper.
But truly, the only thing anyone else will see is that your hair looks beautiful!
I know for me personally, I would rather have to beautiful hair- even if it means it’s hair that I have to clip on- than feel trapped by my alopecia.
And the Ultra-Thin Rim Silk Topper is so seamless and undetectable, so there’s no need to worry that anyone would assume it’s not your own hair! It’s such a confidence boost."