I went to the local ‘quick car oil change’ place near our home last week. I went inside the lobby to wait. A few minutes later a woman came in and sat beside me. I smiled as she sat down.
A minute later she looks at me and asks “So did you get a bad hair cut or was it chemo?” Yeah, I know! Who asks that! I politely answered that it was chemotherapy and that I had leukemia.
She then went on to explain that her sister had cancer and had under gone chemotherapy and radiation treatment. She said that she was familiar with the “chemo hair.” So that explained her question but still who says that!
It was the first time that I had actually gone out without wearing a scarf! During our conversation, I discretely took a scarf out of my bag and put it on. Perhaps I am just not ready to show my new hair. (This picture was taken a few weeks before this incident. So my hair looks a bit longer.) I'd love to hear opinions- bad hair cut or chemo hair. I'll post the results!
A minute later she looks at me and asks “So did you get a bad hair cut or was it chemo?” Yeah, I know! Who asks that! I politely answered that it was chemotherapy and that I had leukemia.
She then went on to explain that her sister had cancer and had under gone chemotherapy and radiation treatment. She said that she was familiar with the “chemo hair.” So that explained her question but still who says that!
It was the first time that I had actually gone out without wearing a scarf! During our conversation, I discretely took a scarf out of my bag and put it on. Perhaps I am just not ready to show my new hair. (This picture was taken a few weeks before this incident. So my hair looks a bit longer.) I'd love to hear opinions- bad hair cut or chemo hair. I'll post the results!
16 comments:
When I saw you on Friday I loved your hair. It is growing out pretty nicely. I cannot believe someone would ask you that though!
I love you Courtney, and I'm a bad person to ask about the hair- I thought you looked beautiful with no hair.
i think it looks great. and i cant believe how dark it is! i am shocked someone would say that. but i think u truly do look good.
even me(who only opens my mouth to switch feet) would have never asked that question. Who in the world does she think she is to have the right to ask anyone that question? I am always amazed at the fact some people have no filter from their brain to their mouth...and I am usually one who blurts stuff out!
I gotta say though...you have been sporting a really cute look through this whole ordeal. You always look fabulous!
Now, I gotta say... in the lifetime I have known you and all of the terrible things I've seen you do to your poor hair (the home cuts, color, highlights... need I say more?), I think your hair looks great! :) It looks thick and wavy, too. That's crazy!
Now remember, you promised Pablo you wouldn't do anything to it!
And you looked gorgeous bald, too, for the record.
Love you.
I love your "Tinkerbell" hair. It's awesome and when you have been bald, any hair at all is wonderful.
People sometimes think they can say anything just because they know someone who went through a similar situation, but you know that everyone is different. I have had some pretty dumb comments made to me too. The worst so far was, "Are you sure you want to get your tubes tied because when Alexa dies you won't have two kids anymore." I won't tell you who it was, but it was someone in my own family.
I just do what we talked about: Deal with your situation just like you want to. Ignore everyone if you want and cry as much as you want to because no one knows what it is like except you.
I will pray for MOTHER strength for you. It is the most powerful of all but the hardest to hang on to. Hope we can get together soon. Hang in there.
I agree with your friends that you looked stunning even while bald! In my experience only medical professionals had enough nerve to comment on my hair - I'm sure that lady just wanted to relate with you on some level but she was out of line.
Beware however that you may start getting hit on by women - I was often mistaken for a lesbian - I never did figure out how to handle that one appropriately!
Wear a scarf - don't wear a scarf - do whatever you feel like doing - you're beautiful!
~Lisa
I personally think your hair is lovely--chemo or not!!
hey when was I supposed to come over to visit? I think I forgot!
I myself have never been one to be bothered by what people think or say because lets be honest it is only the inside of people that matters the most. When I work in the ER it is usually the best dressed and proper person that is the meanest and when someone comes in smelling like the milk parlor they are the first to apologise and they are the ones that make my job worth every second I am there. What I mean to say is Courtney your inside is so BRIGHT it makes you beautiful no matter if your hair is short as a pixie or in a pony tail.
Rhonda, WI
Hi, Courtney:
I actually think it's cute :) I used to keep my hair not much longer than that - on purpose. I loved it - "gel and go". No hair dryers or curling irons, from bed-head to ready in 3 minutes or less. And no bad hair days!
There aren't many people who can pull off a Sinead O'Connor look, and you did it stunningly. Your eyes pop with a short haircut. My mom's hair fell out as well when she had lymphoma. When it started to grow back, she spiked it up (uncharacteristic of her), but it looked great.
Ya know, you don't know me from Adam... But here is my .02. I got to your blog from a friend (Meredith) of a friend (Sis-in-Law, Jenifer)
I just think that she was looking for a way to try and bring a little levity into your life. She tried to say something funny (Or at least mildly amusing) to get a conversation started. I wouldn't read too much into it. I know my M.I.L who recently passed from her second bout with Breast cancer had a similar situation and she just said, "Ya know, you just have to laugh about it, cause life is too short to get all worked up over nothing..."
I don't mean to come of harsh. I can never understand the entirety of what you have been through. I am proud of you (even though I don't really know you) in how you have handled the cards that you have been dealt. Keep up the smiles.
Wow... this woman's attempt at a unique conversation starter fell about as flat as a tire driving on a field of nails. (She probably had a bad hair cut of her own.) I bet she was just jealous, because everybody knows that those who undergo chemotherapy grow back the most gorgeous and beautiful hair... and this includes you, Courtney! (You know, out of the furnace of afflictions, you grow stronger (and more beautiful)... so does your hair!)
Your hair is beautiful, and you should show it off!
Love,
A fellow cancer survivor who had stupid things said to her, too.
you are so stinkin cute! glad you are able to smile and be so nice about awkward moments. bald is beautiful... and even short chemo hair is beautiful... and on you, even a bad haircut has got to look good. ;)
I think your hair looks great! Guys like me can honestly say that any hair on your head is great! Most of mine are falling out!
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