Hi,

I am hoping to remain anonymous due to circumstances. I am a female in my 20s. During my teenage years, I lived with some relatives in a very abusive household. I experienced heavy abuse and malnourishment for years. I became homeless for a while. Despite the obstacles, I managed to get myself out of that situation through lots of hard work and sacrifice.

With time, I have managed to heal many of the emotional scars, but the physical ones have remained.



The biggest one that affects me is my permanent hair loss. When I was in that situation, my hair started falling in clumps. This went on for 5 years. Baldness as such a young age weights heavy. I feel a lot of shame.



It's been 4 years since I have been living a good and healthy life. I have gone to doctors in hopes of treatment. They all have told me my hair will not grow back. That the follicles died after such a long period of chronic stress and malnourishment. I do not qualify for traditional hair graft transplantation due to the extent of the hair loss. The best I've been able to do until now is hide it.

Recently a new medical procedure became available. Hair stem cell transplantation would allow me to restore some of my hair without taking away the few hair I have left. This medical procedure has given me new hopes of being able to feel normal and be able to look in the mirror and not be reminded of trauma. It is quite hard having to come up with answers when people inquire about my lack of hair. With this procedure, I won't have to think of answers anymore nor worry about people noticing.



Sadly, this procedure is not covered by insurance and it is quite expensive. I am hoping to cover most of it through loans, but I would appreciate any help I could get. I really want to put this past me and see that my past does not define me internally nor externally.

