Two Halves of One Whole

Hair Today

Wow, three treatments down, only 13 to go- lucky, lucky Reporter Girl, right? I have to say, it's pretty weird to sit there and know that they're pumping all those crazy toxins in my body and basically not notice- like I don't feel anything as I sit there watching movies and that seems so counterintuitive to me- shouldn't I have some kind of sense for what's going on in my body? In the movies, the evil scientist gives the victim the serum and there is like an immediate reaction, a very real and noticeable result of it- but chemo apparently just ain't like that, all I can do is hope and trust that it's working, huh?

Oh, shout out to everyone who suggested the seasickness wristbands- they do really seem to help a bit- I was spending so much time getting sick that Mac was joking about getting me knee pads I could keep next to the porcelain throne, but it seems to be getting a little better and I'm choosing to believe it's the wristbands. Anyone know if there are any designer-y versions of them? Can't you just imagine what Michael Kors or maybe Kate Spade could do with the idea?

Anyways, back to the fun topic at hand, this was my big third treatment and I have been warned to be on hair watch. I'm actually going to go get my hair cut super short (think Audrey Hepburn in Sabrina or Mia Farrow in Rosemary's Baby), a lot of things I've read have suggested that it's going to be less traumatic when it starts falling out if it's not the giant clumps of my long, brown tresses- of which I know that I'm far too vain. To be honest, this is turning out to be one of the hardest things to come to terms with- I've made a few hair faux pas in the past: my Freshman year of college bob was not my best look... and the self-perm I did in 9th grade that made me look like Marsha Clark was about as big of a mistake as you can imagine. But since then I have managed to learn how to keep long, shiny, healthy looking hair, how to curl it just right... I've even learned that I can rock a little color- I'm telling you that magenta or even green are actually pretty hot when streaked through randomly. And while I think I have a pretty cute face (with skin like a baby's ass as my mother has commented far too frequently for my liking), I'm just not sure I can pull off the pixie look- I mean, seriously, Audrey and Mia have set a bit of a high standard.

And then there is wig shopping to think of... wow, I went online and had no idea how much there is to know! You've got synthetic hair wigs and human hair wigs; you can do a full wig cap that's supposed to be fairly comfortable, but it's going to be hot, a lace wig wherein the hair is all attached by machine to a lacy cap, there is a wefted base which I still can't figure out the meaning of (but do enjoy the word wefted)... oh, and then of course there is the delight I had in finding out my insurance will actually cover the cost of one wig, up to $600, I just file it under cranial prosthesis. $600 to spend on a wig? Wow, I thought the world was my oyster... wrong! I was shopping online for a good quality human hair wig and found one that looked almost exactly like my existing style and color... on sale for only $1360! It really makes me furious that poor, beautiful Fantine only made 10 francs for her hair (that's about one week's wage for a factory worker at the time- and yes, I did the research and the math on that one).

So I have to admit I am now doing extensive research on synthetic wigs as well as hats... I found some great YouTube tutorials for how to tie scarves around my head- I could probably buy an entire hat shop for the cost of one or two good human hair wigs, even after my insurance chips in. Again, I can't help but think that I'm lucky- I know if I ask my parents or grandparents for help, or if I really wanted to dip into my savings, I could easily buy any wig that I want, I'm lucky in that respect, but I also know that I'm unusual in that respect. I spoke with a woman as I was checking in for my treatment and this was her third time coming out of remission and needing chemo in ten years- she has four children and wigs just aren't where she chooses to spend her money. Instead, and I really loved this, she shaves her head and once a week her kids get to use finger paint all over her bald scalp- drawing anything they want. She is also learning to make wigs herself now, hoping to start a charity that will donate one wig to underprivileged women and children going through chemo for every wig that she sells- check out a link to her website on the left nav, Gettin' Wiggy with Kit- I'm so awed by her tenacity and strength under what must be relentless pressure.