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NAAF Conference! Want to be a counselor?
4 Replies
Started this discussion. Last reply by Cheryl Carvery May 4.
Profile
- Relationship Status:
- Single
- About Me:
- Hey there! My name is Jessica and I am 20 years old and a sophomore at Northwestern University. I love so many different things and I plan to attend veterinary school as soon as I graduate!
I was diagnosed with alopecia at 6 months old when my mom noticed I was not growing any eyebrows or eyelashes. At 2 years old, the first hair of my life began to grow and it stayed until 4th grade when I started to have patches on the back of my head. I had long black hair at the time, so it was a real shocker for me - especially since I didn't really even know I had the condition until then.
I did the monthly steroid injections in order to get the patches back, and it seemed to work so much that we actually stopped after 7 or 8 treatments because it was just too painful. Then, on the morning of the 12th birthday… I remember it like it was yesterday… I woke up to my hair falling out every which way I turned. In a few short weeks, I was diagnosed with universalis.
Loosing my hair at that age was really hard at first. I was very athletic in basketball, volleyball, and softball and the fact that I did not have a pony tail anymore, let alone any hair at all, made it hard for me to be the athlete I was. Not to mention everyone thought I had cancer, and people were afraid to play defense against me, come near me, date me, or even give me a chance to explain that I was completely healthy. I distinctly remember referees accusing me of being a boy on a girl’s team because I played my heart out and the fact that I didn’t have hair coming out of the back of my hat made them believe there was foul play. It was moments like that that almost made me want to quit all the activities I loved so much. I didn’t want anybody to look at me, so I stopped playing well and tried to get myself benched as often as possible.
I wore a wig for a few years and now that I look back on it, I don’t know why I ever did. I continued playing varsity volleyball and softball through high, but come junior year, however, I couldn’t stand digging for volleyball or diving for a grounder with that annoying, hot wig on my head.. so, off it went!
Since then, a lot of my hair as grown back, but I still have big bald spots all over my head and only1 & ¼ eyebrows. I embrace my alopecia wholeheartedly and if I loose it again I am sure as hell never going back to the wig... I love who I am without it.
I made some of my best friends in the entire world at the yearly NAAF conference and it is to them that I owe the strength that I have. I wouldn’t be who I am today without either them, or alopecia, in my life.
My suggestion for people with alopecia? GO TO THE CONFERENCE!!! You won’t regret it.. I promise =)
For the teenagers/college students in alopecia world, I wanted to see if any of you were interested in becoming counselor for Corporate Kids Events. They are in charge of putting together the children, tweens, and teens camps during the day. Since I "graduated" from the camp 2 years ago, I have worked as a counselor ever since and it truly is a great way to stay involved in the camp even though you are not a "camper" anymore.
Gaven, the president of CKE, is really excited about getting more NAAF people involved in his program at the conference!!
Interested? Shoot either me or Gaven an e-mail - Jessica-Beltran@northwestern.edu and garen@corporatekidsevents.com
- Are you 18 or older?
- Yes
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Thanks for being such a wonderful role model for other women.
LeslieAnn
My name is Steve... I do not have Al. but I am a retired professiona camp and youth director for the methodist church ( 43 years young) and although I currently live in Northern Kentucky... my home town is in Louisville...if there is some way I can help...I would be delighted to help out in anyway...You can contact me at Athoughtfulspot@aol.com...I can at least be a source of information for you ....someone once told me, " A new broom sweeps cleaner...but an old broom knows where the dirt ( in this case fun ideas) is. Talk to you soon
Steve
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