jannica olin
jannica olin

Jannica O.

I love that I can add on any hair I want.

When I am walking around in the world with no hair on, people usually assume that I shaved my head, or that I am sick. When I then tell people that I have Alopecia and that I would never label that as a disease, people wish for my hair to grow back. Assuming, of course, that I want my hair back and to be normal again. Then I say the unexpected: – “I love it and I would never want my hair back.”

I welcome people’s curiosity; their questions. It is not common to see bald women. And it is less common to hear that someone loves their auto immune condition. I truly see it as a blessing and an access. Out of losing my hair I got confronted with my idea of what beauty was. I had heavily identified with my long blonde hair, and now it was gone. Through that loss, I found a deeper confidence; one rooted in my soul as opposed to the kind that supported my identity of the “blonde, blue eyed Swede”.

I love that I can add on any hair I want. The only difference is that it is detachable. Of course I have moments when I don’t feel like standing out. I have moments of wondering if I am seen as attractive. I feel insecure. I feel like I have to walk taller to make sure no one sees “sick”. I notice those thoughts and feelings, but I don’t identify with them; they come and they go.

I still always feel so blessed, because I wouldn’t get to be who I am today or do a lot of the amazing work that I have done. And at the end of the day, it’s a lot more fun to stand out than blend in! When you embrace who you are and what is so; what you can’t change, you are truly free and have the power to create your life the way you want.