Losing Hair Through Chemotherapy
How do you help cancer patients whose hair has fallen out?
I came to a crossroads in my life. Two years ago I did the biggest show I'd ever done, and in my opinion it was the best show I'd ever done. I thought this is the point where my life's in hairdressing is going to change. I'm gonna start putting my energies and efforts into trying to help women in their darkest hour of their lives. Being not only told that they've got perhaps a potential fatal disease, but you're going to lose your hair as well. And it's like the biggest double-whammy that any female could ever accept. And I decided to stop doing shows, stop doing photographic work, stop doing all of that what I call surface 'stuff', I've got a stronger word but I can't use it, and do something much more important and that's cut wigs for cancer patients and alopecia patients. And that's all I've been doing for the last year and a half. I've set up a charity called "mynewhair.org" and the money that's donated into that and it's from people like, for example, I've just cut a lady's wig a little while ago and I didn't charge her and she's wrote a little check out for twenty pounds for the charity, which I accepted, and the money that's in that charity is for buying wigs for people that can't afford them because there's a lot of people that just can't afford it. And I buy wigs for people that need it and that's why this is the last chapter in my hairdressing life and it's gives me more pleasure doing this than anything and everything that I've ever done in hairdressing. And I'm talking about all the glamorous stuff: flying around the world, doing shows, fashion models, and celebrities, this does more than all of that.
Will I lose all my hair if I have chemotherapy?
When you're diagnosed with cancer, the surgeon or doctor will tell you if during the chemotherapy that you're going to receive, you will lose your hair. Some sorts of chemotherapy you don't lose your hair. Now, it's a medical thing, that I'm not qualified to know which one does mean you lose your hair and which one doesn't, but the hospital do. And if the hospital tells you that you are going to lose all your hair, you will lose all of your hair.
I'm going to have chemotherapy and I'm going to lose my hair - what should I do?
If you're going through chemotherapy you do have options when it comes to losing your hair. The obvious one is to buy a wig which can be customized and made to look real. Option two, you could wear a bandana, but to me that's kind of pointing the finger at yourself, so to speak. The other option is to wear some kind of beanie hat, for example. And you can actually buy these, its like a fringe that sticks to your forehead. You put the hat on and it looks like you've got fringe, a head of hair. So that's the options that are available when it comes to losing your hair. My recommendation is a wig though, customized.
Is a wig the best option if my hair falls out?
There are many options if your hair falls out, and the best one depends on you. If you don't want to wear a wig, there are bandanas and hats too. You can even buy a fringe that you stick on your forehead and when you wear a hat it just looks like you've got a fridge. That works for some people. I think the wig is the best option if your hair falls out, although for some reason they always put too much hair into a wig. It always looks like an abnormal amount of hair. So you have to thin that out and customize it, and then it can look like real hair. And the technology that's in wigs today is fantastic. Visually you can't tell the difference between real hair and synthetic hair.
Will people know I am wearing a wig?
A lot of people have a bit of an old fashioned idea about wigs. Most people think if you're wearing a wig you can spot it a mile off. Well, that used to be the case but the technology today is fantastic. I've actually been to Thailand where I've seen these synthetic wigs being made and the technology is incredible. It looks and it feels like hair. And if it's customized and thinned out (there's always too much hair in a wig for some reason) but if you thin that out and just customize it, it can look really really realistic.
I can't afford a wig - what can I do?
I've set up a charity called mynewhair.org, and the money that's donated into that, and it's from people like, for example I've just cut a ladies' wig a little while ago, I didn't charge her and she's wrote a little check out for twenty pounds for the charity, which I accepted. And the money that's in that charity is for buying wigs for people that can't afford them, because there is alot of people that just can't afford it. And I buy wigs for people that need it.
How do I customise a wig?
To get a wig customized, log onto my website, mynewhair.org and it will have a list of hairdressers that are around the country – in Scotland, north of England, Midlands, London, South, Ireland – we have hairdressers strategically placed. And we are talking big names, we are talking Charles Wilmington, Andrew Collins, Mark Hill – people like that, of that stature. They will all do this service. I can't do it all by myself, so I've had to find mates of mine that I know can do it and are prepared to do it. And I'm hoping to teach other hairdressers through seminars so we can really spread this new service out.
How much does My New Hair charge for a wig to be cut?
The cost of cutting a wig. Because no one's been trained and it's not a service that's available really up until since I started this whole project. I personally don't charge a penny. Unfortunately that creates a lot of people wanting me but it also creates a long waiting list. So I got like a four-month waiting list. The other hairdressers, the reason I don't charge, there are a few reasons, one I get more satisfaction then the money will ever give me but the other reason is I want to set a precedent for all other hairdressers not to take advantage of peoples' situations because it's so easy to say well she needs a wig cut, I can charge more money you know. I've said to all the people involved in this organization the most they can charge is the price of a cut and blow dry because it takes some time to cut a wig, I give one hour per client. So if you charge for a cut and blow dry then I think it's a fair price. And bear in mind the wig doesn't grow so why not pay me.
