Loom bands everywhere!

I am sick of loom bands!

Do you know what I am talking about?
These things. Look familiar?

If you do, you are most definitely a parent, or close relative of young children, most likely girls. I tell you I find them everywhere, I swear the vacuum cleaner must be clogged up with them.

It was all getting a bit much, but this weekend, we had loom frenzy madness.
They have been around for nearly a year now and the interest just isn’t weaning.

Instead of doing the usual necklaces, bracelets and charms, see below

 

............it all went to a whole new level yesterday.
My youngest spent hours researching animals, objects and fancy patterns and then went about trying them all. There were many moments of frustration and anger, at which point I really wanted to ban the darn things and throw them all into the bin, however I restrained myself.

Despite the grievances, my little one perserved and ended up creating things she was very proud, and I guess secretly so am I. A chicken, a bee and a pencil!

That said, as creative as this is and as enjoyable as it may be, the moans and the groans of failed projects was quite frankly annoying.
Anyone else feel like this? Or am I just a rotten mum?

Freakin loom bands!

Cure........No, just frustration

A few weeks ago, I reported that a miracle had been found to cure alopecia.

It created a lot of noise in the worlds press and many people commented to me about it.

Whilst at the Alopecia conference a few weeks ago, this "breaking news" was discussed.

As it turns out, this drug is not a miracle drug for alopecia at all.

Here are the facts, as I understood them:

The drug would need to be adminstered every day of your life hence forth.
The drug, which incidentally is an Oncology drug, would have significant side effects
The drug, which would most likely not be reimbursed by any health authorities, would cost around 25,000 UK pounds a year.
The drug, has not yet been proven to cure alopecia on a wide scale.

So all that to say, that the article did raise hopes, only to dash them. Its unlikely that any alopecian would be interested in taking that drug under those conditions.

That said, it does give a signal that research is ongoing in the area and that maybe this drug and others like it, will continue to be made safer and possibly cheaper and that one day a cure will be known.

Until then, bring on the baldness!

Hardest thing to learn

What is the hardest thing you have ever had to learn to do?

Now maybe the answer could be learning to walk, talk etc, but I would imagine most of us have no memories at all of these difficult learnings. So lets stick to adult life.

What is the most difficult thing that you have consciously had to learn?

Well one of them I was reminded of this morning on my way to work.

There was a girl learning to drive in front of me. Luckily driving school cars are clearly labelled and brightly painted so they are easy to recognise (and keep a distance from). This morning, this bright blues car was going excrutiatingly slow.

The girl in the driving seat was indicating miles ahead of her turn and during the turn, she stalled the engine. Oh my word, this must have been her first lesson.

It just so reminded me of the difficulty of learning to drive. I remember I found it so hard. It was the coordination of the mirror, the clutch, and the accelerator and of course looking in front. All of which had to be done at the same time and ensuring it happened together was so hard to learn, well at least for me. Probably down to my uncoordinated motor skills.

I really do believe that driving was one of the most difficult things I have had to learn.

What about you?

I bet the list is so different from person to person. Let me know what yours was.

And watch out for those learners out there.

Bold, Bald and Beautiful

At last I live up to my blog title.

BOLD

BALD

and

BEAUTIFUL

5 minutes of nothing

Do you sometimes feel that the only place to hide is the toilet?

I remember this when the children were small, the toilet was sometimes the only place where I could go to be on my own. It really was the only minute of peace in a day. 

And now at a five day meeting, I feel the same. I find myself slinking off to the toilet whenever I can, just to have a five minute break from the constant noise. I find myself just sitting in the cubicle for a few extra minutes to enjoy the silence.

Am I the only weird one doing this?

It would be odd to just go sit in the corner alone, people would think I am anti social or just plain odd,  but no one can see you when you are locked in the white box. So it's ok, to just sit there and be quiet for a few undisturbed moments.

It's a fabulous release.  A little escape. 

What's do you do to get your five minutes of nothing?

Do tell. 

Feeling blessed

I spent my day yesterday with people just like me.

Well maybe they weren't just like me at all, however we had one big thing in common. We all had a form of alopecia. Or loved someone with it. 

It was so much fun looking at others wigs, others scarves or admiring their shiny scalps. 

It was ok to stare, ask questions and even touch!

The insights, images and memories will emerge in my blogs over the next few weeks as it is impossible for me to process everything right now. 

But the power of a support network is immense. It turns fear into hope, it turns alone into belonging, it turns sadness into peace and it turns weird into normal. 

I am feeling blessed right now.  Especially as someone who loved me was by my side. 

More to come soon on this experience, right now I am just processing it all. 

You have what?

This weekend is the alopecia conference I talked about months ago.

I am so intrigued. Excited. And nervous. 

So today I told my girls I was leaving for the weekend.  At first my oldest was sad I was going. Especially when I told her in which city it was.

She went on to ask me what I was planning on doing. I told her the truth, namely that I was attending the alopecia areata conference. 

She then asked me a question that floored me.

She asked me what alopecia was????

I was so surprised. What did she mean that she did not know what alopecia was???

And then it became clear. 

I had never told her the real name for my condition. 

She has grown up experiencing the disease and seeing it. Yet never had we called it by its name. 

ALOPECIA

When I told her, all I got was an "oh"

But it was a reminder to me that as parents, we often don't use the technical terms of medical issues, but rather describe them. 

So now my daughter knows the name of my condition and equally importantly, tomorrow I am off to the conference. 

Wish me luck!!!!

Humans with stories

Take a moment to stop and breathe.

I did this this morning on my way to a meeting.

I was cycling over a bridge where the view was spectacular and I stopped.

Just literally for 5 seconds. I stopped, looked at the water, and took one deep breathe.

It was lovely.

Although any yoga practioner would say that you should not think of anything at this time, except your breath, I didnt. I had my head full.

My thought at that moment, was that we are all humans, with our own story.

That was it.

I then began peddaling and rode on my merry way to my meeting.

What I did not expect, was that in that meeting, I would come back to that moment and share that exact insight with the group of Engineers I was standing in front of.

I told them that I was aware that they were all humans with their own story.

Shortly after one of the participants, when prompted, got up and told a story about his child and how it had given him purpose and meaning. It was such a wonderful moment. Such an inspiration.

It was amazing to see what that one moment of pause and deep breathe, had caused in another person. And I dare say, in a broader group of people.

I then began wondering what if I had had two breathes!! Lol.

So I encourage you all to take 5 seconds out of your day and breathe. Just one, long and focussed deep breath.

See what changes happen because of it.

Let me know............

Make the ordinary come alive

Fridays are my alopecia days.

I have instilled a discipline that on Fridays, my blog is always about hair, or lack of it.

However the last few weeks things have been on their head a little and today, I am chosing not to blog about alopecia.

Instead, I will post a few words about a man to whom today, we are saying our goodbyes.

He was a man who taught his son all of the things mentioned below and the one that stands out the most is the line about the touch of a hand. How this father, always took his sons hand and held on to it, during dinner, whilst watching TV or just so.  This touch always caught my breathe, in its tenderness and in its simplicity.  It will always stay with me, beautifully.

Enjoy the words...........

If you were not afraid

I have heard the question posed a lot, either amongst friends or in leadership articles. It is a fun question and often gives interesting insights.

So the question goes: "What would you do if you were not afraid?"

So really, think about it. Take all your fears and inhibitions away and what would you do?

Would you sing on stage?

Would you tell somome you loved them?

Would you resign and open a flower shop?

Would you take off your wig and go bald?

Would you wear your bikini on the beach?

Would you have an affair with your neighbour?

Would you buy a dog?

It's a fun question to deliberate on.

Today I found my answer.

If I was not afraid, I would tell people exactly what I think of them. God or bad.
I think I would have more fun with the bad though.  It would include things like, did you know your dress sense is awful, did  you know that you annoy me, did you know that I hate the way you sit in meetings, did you know that I cant stand the way you always talk about yourself all the time and on it would go............

I would behave like a child in puberty, like someone with no filter.

I am not sure I would have many friends afterwards, but it would be fun for a day.

So what would you do?

Go on, do tell.