Thursday, January 23, 2014

The Day I Lost My Hair

Today, I shaved my head bald.

The past few days have been routine check-ups and making sure my body is getting all the meds and nutrients it needs. Since my immune system is totally out, I am on several antibiotics keeping my body safe for the time being; I have a lot of meds and they're for anti-rejection, anti nausea and more. I also have to wear a heavy respirator and surgical mask whenever I'm going around the hospital. It's hard to breathe in those masks and that's one reason I'm out of breath most of the time when we're out walking.

In addition to crazy masks and meds, chemo's side effects have started to show. Chemo does a lot of crazy things to your body. My skin is so dry and no matter how much lotion I slather, my skin still comes out flaky. My skin pigmentation is darker now, and most recently, my hair has started to fall off. This morning, I actually panicked when a bunch of my hair came off while showering. I screamed and Kepi had to come check on me if I was alright. I was upset and scared.

Kepi and I decided it's time to get it shaved to avoid another incident tomorrow morning. There's a salon that offers complimentary haircut for patients at the hospital. We called them up and they got me in at 2 PM.  Right after my doctor's appointments, we headed straight to the salon.

I was close to tears while my head was being shaved, but I decided not to. I thought this is a beginning, a phase of letting go of the past and putting my feet forward to a better future. My hair falling out is a symbol of my disease leaving me. A new and better hair will replace the old - a new, healthier life will replace the old.

All this hair came off today.
Kepi and I bought two hats - one for sleeping and one for outdoors. The ladies at the salon were really nice and helped me fit a few hats.

I am still getting used to my bald head and I know I'll be ok. It just takes some getting used to.


5 comments:

  1. "I thought this is a beginning, a phase of letting go of the past and putting my feet forward to a better future. My hair falling out is a symbol of my disease leaving me. A new and better hair will replace the old - a new, healthier life will replace the old." -- I totally agree and admire your bravery. Cheers to you on your road to recovery! Hugs :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hugs Kayni. Hang in there. The end of the rough road is coming to an end. Praying for you and Kepi.

    ReplyDelete
  3. You are going through so much ... I admire your courage in sharing it all with us. Keep strong. Will continue to pray for you.

    ReplyDelete
  4. You are strong, and indeed, it will be a healthier you with the new hair growing again.

    You will be well Karen.

    Tight hugs from us here... :-)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thanks for sharing us your courage and faith to go on living a normal life despite of what you are going through right now. Get well soon. You're in my prayers.

    ReplyDelete

I would love to hear your thoughts. Please leave a comment.