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Funny acts of alopecia

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Welcome Ladies and Gents. Welcome to our new group. As we always hear about the how good old alopecia changes our life sometimes for the worse. Have we actually seen the funny side of alopecia?
Ray joined Tiffany B's group Aug 30, 2011
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Lois left a comment for Ray
Hello stranger...how's your life? I'm enduring LIFE WITH DROUGHT as grass withers, birds stop singing, and cracks divide the soil. Please send some of your damp, wet weather this way before I go cabin-crazy surviving in my air-conditioned…
Aug 30, 2011
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Dom left a comment for Ray
6 years now with AU......Lovely weather. I'm fine for i have been blessed with insight lol When you can't have what you want and you know you can't buy it or find it or ever get it! Well......one must adapt or you just end up kicking…
Mar 22, 2011
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Ray left a comment for Lois
Slowing down sounds like a great idea. The problem is that it is easier said than done. I like the idea of reading in the balmy backyard. I'm looking forward to the weather picking up and spending some time lying in the sun with a good book…
Mar 21, 2011
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Lois left a comment for Ray
Hey Ray. Thanks for stopping by. Has been a stressful year so far...am working on slowing down, less electronics, more strolling outside, and reading books in the balmy backyard. How are you? Bye for now.
Mar 21, 2011
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Ray left a comment for Lois
Hi Lois, sorry for not beng in touch but the last few months have just been so busy which is a good thing in one way (business wise) but bad in another way (socially). I hope Christmas was good for you and that the New Year brings lots of joy to…
Mar 15, 2011
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Lois left a comment for Ray
Well alas I was wrong per my last post below...maybe I'll know what's wrong by Christ*mas. That would be quite the gift. And how are you and family doing? All the grown kids home for the holidays? Working at breakneck speed or chugging…
Mar 15, 2011
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Ray and Mikael Nilsson are now friends Jan 28, 2011
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Photos posted by Ray Sep 13, 2010
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Ray left a comment for hannah sophia holland
Manchester is a great city also!!!!!!!! My daughter is touring Europe at the moment but moves to Sheffield on 19 September. Oh to be young!!!!!!!
Sep 3, 2010
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Ray left a comment for Lois
Hi Lois, I hope the adventure was not to adventurous!!!!!!! I had a couple of hairs grow the other day but they have fallen out again now LOL.
Sep 3, 2010
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Lois left a comment for Ray
How are you Ray? I'm okay but have been on a medical adventure this summer. Hope this is as bad as it gets, haha. ciao!
Sep 3, 2010
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hannah sophia holland left a comment for Ray
Hi Ray, I'm very well thankyou :) Oh wow! I only get to stay here in the summer now as I'm at Uni in Manchester, but Sheffield is a fantastic place to come home to! :D x
Sep 3, 2010
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Ray left a comment for hannah sophia holland
Hi, I'm good. How are you? I see your from Sheffield. My son was at Sheffield Uni and my daughter is starting there in September. A great city!!!!!
Aug 4, 2010
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hannah sophia holland left a comment for Ray
Hi Ray, thanx for the add! :) How are you? x
Jul 26, 2010
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Lois left a comment for Ray
Sugaring? Huh? Sounds nice and 'sweet' but have a few ideas but not sure what your's are!
Jul 26, 2010

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Relationship Status:
Married
About Me:
Who am I?

I am a 54 year old male, born in Widnes, a northern town in England.I now live in south Warrington. I have Alopecia Universalis.


I have always had thick strong hair and I was the last person that you would expect to go bald. In fact it was a statement often made by friends whenever the topic of going bald was discussed.

Like most people, we all have friends who start to loose their hair. Some start to shed their locks very young while others start later in life. Some people never loose their hair and at one time most people would have put money on me always having plenty of hair.

Looking back on how this thing developed, I recall having a small itchy patch on the right side of my head just above my ear. I thought it was an insect bite at first and I remember feeling a smooth patch of skin but I just thought that it was due to the tiny sore brought about by a bite. The patch remained with my and after a while my wife noticed another bald patch near to the crown. This patch was not noticeable when my hair was dry but was very visible when I came out of the shower. Pretty soon another patch developed and at this point I went to see my doctor who referred me to a consultant.

The consultant I saw was absolutely brilliant. She showed true understanding of the situation and the effect that it had on people with the complaint. I was quickly given various treatments for the alopecia including a course of steroids and I also had steroid injections into my scalp. None of the treatments had any effect on the growth of my hair but I did feel better in myself.

As my alopecia progressed, the rate that the hair fell out accelerated. I woke up every morning to find lots of hairs on my pillow. When I showered lots of hair came out in my hands as I washed my hair. I found strands of hair all around my desk at the office and about my home. The problem became more and more at the forefront of my thoughts. I spent far too long dwelling on the matter and I worried about how the problem would end. My real low point was once when I was away in Ireland on business. I woke one morning and not having a rushed start to the day, I started to count the hairs on my pillow. Although I was feeling better physically, I realised that I needed to come to terms with my situation.

By this time it was late November and I had lost about 40% of my hair. It was no longer possible to hide the hair loss any more and as such I felt that I needed to shave my head completely rather than look like a “comb over” man. On 12 December 2008 I booked into my barbers, a personal friend who had been incredibly supportive throughout and told him that I wanted him to shave my head. He arranged to see me late in the day just as the shop was closing. As his staff left the shop he locked the door, sat me in a chair and said “are you sure”?

I can honestly say it was a most liberating experience. Suddenly I was completely bald!!!! There was not a hair left on my head and I felt fantastic.

I had been very nervous about shaving it all off before the act of liberation. What would I look like? Was my head a strange shape? Would I look like an old man? All the thoughts that went through my mind were worrying and left me quite nervous but it had to be done as I looked so very strange with patches in odd places about my head. It was not like male pattern baldness which usually follows a symmetrical pattern of hair loss. My hair loss was in random patches and I really did look odd.


My new image was fantastic. I looked OK, my head was not a funny shape and many people actually said I looked younger rather than older.

After shaving I obviously had no hair on my head but I was still left with a “map of the world” on my head as the areas where the hair had not fallen out were still showing like a black pattern. It looked a bit weird but it was better than having hair and bald patches. Now I simply had a bald head with a strange pattern on it.

I had to now shave my head every day as the remaining hair grew at quite a rate. I can honestly say that shaving my head was quite a pleasurable thing to do and I still enjoy the task. The feeling of having just shaved you head is excellent and I can really recommend it to anyone who is just at the point of considering that they should shave.

After the course of steroids I was given various blood tests which showed that I had a thyroid problem and I was therefore prescribed Thyroxin tablets to resolve the situation. After a while of being on these tablets I felt much better and I started to show signs of re-growth. The hair started to come back albeit white and rather fine like bay hair. The re-growth has continued no for 4 or 5 months and I have been discharged by my consultant. I have full re-growth albeit with white patches. I still shave most days but if I leave it for a couple of days my head shows a lot of stubble like a number 1 and the white patches are reducing. It seems as though they shrink as the outer edges change to my natural colour and the white patch gets smaller.

Even though it is all growing back I continue to shave as I am now fully relaxed with my new image and like being bald. I realises that my hair could all fall out again just as suddenly as it started before but what difference does it make now. I am happy as I am.

.
Do you have alopecia?
Alopecia universalis
Are you age 18 or older?
Yes - I am 18 or older

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Ray

Reliability!

Posted on November 4, 2009 at 6:10am 7 Comments

Just as you start to get used to your current form of alopecia it changes.



I have had nearly twelve months now with AU. Not a hair anywhere other than the fact that I still have to shave my chin now and then. Even then the hair on my chin is now much finer than it used to be. I’ve had no eyebrows, no eyelashes not anything.



The last couple of weeks though I’ve noticed that I’ve got a few eyelashes come back and the front section of my head has started to have hairs grow… Continue
Ray

That Time of the Year Again!

Posted on October 1, 2009 at 11:14am 6 Comments

It is nearly that time of the year when I have to start looking for some new hats to wear. The summer is gone and autumn is getting chilli. Winter will soon be here and my head is starting to feel the cold already.



I cannot decide exactly what style of hats to wear this year. In the past I have simply worn beanie type hats but perhaps this year I will try something a bit different. A friend of mine has suggested a Theodora. What on earth is that I hear someone say? Well it’s a bit… Continue
Ray

Sun & Hair

Posted on August 11, 2009 at 4:44am 1 Comment

Going on holiday is great but it is always over far too soon!!!!!!!



It only seems like yesterday that I was packing my bags and getting ready for a week in the sun. In a blink of an eye I am back at me desk in the office looking at the everyday problems of business today. It’s a good thing that I enjoy my work!!!!!



Having been away, I must say that I really enjoyed my time without the hustle of routine and I had some valuable time with my family sitting in the sun, eating,… Continue
Ray

The British summer!!!!!!

Posted on July 21, 2009 at 4:30am 1 Comment

What is so wonderful about British weather is that it changes so much and so often. Only a few weeks ago we were all basking in a glorious hot summer spell. The sun was warming my bald head whenever I went outside and it was wonderful. Today as I walk along my head is drenched and the rain is running off my head and down into my unprotected eyes. On an appearance basis my lack of eyebrows is not a problem as I quite like the total hairless image but they did serve a purpose in that they did… Continue
Ray

A Perfect Sunday!!!!!

Posted on June 29, 2009 at 11:00am 2 Comments

Sunday was an ideal day, the weather forecast was good and so we got up early and set off for the beach in Wales. We go to a beach between Barmouth and the Clynn Peninsular so it’s about a two and a half hour drive away from Warrington. We break the journey up with a coffee stop at Bala which is always a good place to break the journey. We always use the same coffee shop as the coffee is excellent and the coffee shop itself is an interesting place to visit. It is an old chapel converted into a… Continue

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At 1:33am on August 29, 2011, LoisLois said…
Hello stranger...how's your life?
I'm enduring LIFE WITH DROUGHT as grass withers, birds stop singing, and cracks divide the soil. Please send some of your damp, wet weather this way before I go cabin-crazy surviving in my air-conditioned lifestyle as the Fahrenheit climbs to 107 (41.6 Celsius). Rain is NOWHERE on ANY horizon...Hurricane Irene was no help at all and at this point that kind of storm is what might push the heat plug away from us...winter cannot come fast enough for me.
I still have large bald spots but keep my bio hair...it's almost grown down to my shoulders..can almost put it back in a ponytail.
Hope to hear from you someday...God bless you and family...LoIs
At 9:43am on March 22, 2011, DomDom said…
6 years now with AU......Lovely weather.
I'm fine for i have been blessed with insight lol
When you can't have what you want and you know you can't buy it or find it or ever get it!
Well......one must adapt or you just end up kicking your own butt. So many peeps still won't 'the load' go. They think there is some avenue unexplored. That's where i come in. Not to dampen hope bit to flatten false hopes....for there is a lot of distractions in the way of the Alopecian.

I sometimes come on here and post but never look at AUK. life is the same with or without hair. Just treat people the same way as before, act accordingly and people jsut accept you...lol
dom
At 3:03am on March 19, 2011, LoisLois said…
Hey Ray.
Thanks for stopping by.
Has been a stressful year so far...am working on slowing down, less electronics, more strolling outside, and reading books in the balmy backyard.
How are you?
Bye for now.
At 9:26pm on December 2, 2010, LoisLois said…
Well alas I was wrong per my last post below...maybe I'll know what's wrong by Christ*mas.
That would be quite the gift.

And how are you and family doing? All the grown kids home for the holidays?
Working at breakneck speed or chugging along?
Cheerz...don't be a stranger, Ray!
At 12:33am on September 3, 2010, LoisLois said…
How are you Ray?
I'm okay but have been on a medical adventure this summer.
Hope this is as bad as it gets, haha.
ciao!
At 7:29am on August 11, 2010, hannah sophia hollandhannah sophia holland said…
Hi Ray, I'm very well thankyou :)
Oh wow! I only get to stay here in the summer now as I'm at Uni in Manchester, but Sheffield is a fantastic place to come home to! :D
x
At 10:01am on July 19, 2010, hannah sophia hollandhannah sophia holland said…
Hi Ray, thanx for the add! :)
How are you? x
At 8:49am on June 23, 2010, LoisLois said…
Sugaring? Huh? Sounds nice and 'sweet' but have a few ideas but not sure what your's are!
At 9:40am on June 14, 2010, LoisLois said…
HI RAY!
Just tried chatting you but guess you're busy.
How's your June looking? Any holidays? Grown kids keeping you busy? Dang, mine are and it isn't always pretty ya know?
Hang in there. Bye for now!
At 11:41pm on May 26, 2010, LoisLois said…
Funny...I spent a few years of childhood living in Warrington.
Warrington, Florida that is.
Hee.
pax!
 
 
 
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