Happy Hair-iversary!

Today was a milestone day - I got my first haircut since June 2021.

One year ago, Nichole shaved my hair off. It was a day that will forever be etched in my memory, and a day where I had to face the fact that I did indeed have breast cancer - there was no way to hide it when I was practically bald.  Over the course of the following three months, I lost all of my remaining hair, eyebrows and eyelashes.  

It took nine months for my hair to grow back to a length that could justify a haircut, which is a little bit longer than the average for most cancer patients, and my hair came back curly.  At first, I liked having curly hair but as it grew through the "old lady perm", the "clown donut" and "wicked witch mullet" stages, my enthusiasm for the curls waned.  

Now most of the curls are gone and I no longer have a head of chia pet hair. Lucky for me, my new stylist knew just what to do, having cut and styled the manes of several other people with chemo curls.  When he lifted up the mirror to show me the cut at the back, it looked just like it did pre-cancer.  My bottom lip started to quiver and my eyes teared up, which caught me completely off guard.  Sometimes it is the smallest thing or gesture that can bring on the emotions.

So, I am now back to looking pretty much like I did 18 months ago.  And I am feeling more like myself, too.  I will always have the scars of Toby marked on my body, and his shadow perched on my shoulder, but I feel like I can finally relax and really start appreciating my new normal and survivorship.