To you

Hi there. :-)

I went to bed last night thinking about possible reactions to what I am writing, and how I'd want to respond. So, without further ado, below are my imaginary conversations with many of you.

To friends and family who already know about my walk with alopecia:

Thank you. Thank you for being here with me and for me. Thank you for listening to me and laughing with me, and especially for just being normal with me and allowing me to be fully myself. It means more than I can ever say.

To friends and family who are clearly aware that something is up but with whom I really haven’t discussed it:

Thank you for your graciousness. You have allowed me space and treated me normally, even when you have had questions or have been so curious to know more. Your silence on the topic has been a gift, I am grateful for it and for you. I imagine you do have questions… let’s talk.

To friends and family who haven’t known anything about this:

To be honest, I am delighted that you exist. It means all of my efforts for all of this time to cover up and to project normalcy haven’t been totally in vain. Please know that this is not a reflection of you or of my value for our relationship… this hiding has been about me trying to figure myself out while enjoying living in (and desperately preserving) the façade I have created. Thank you giving me grace in this. If you have questions or want to know more, let’s talk.

To readers who don’t know me but who can relate to my journey:

Thank you for being here with me and for getting where I am coming from. I know that everyone’s experience is different and we all process things in our own unique ways, but it means so much to me that you are here and that you “get it.” This is not a journey I have walked before with people who can truly relate, so being with you now is especially meaningful to me!

To readers who don’t know me and can’t relate because while you have alopecia, you have chosen to walk this path in a completely different way:

I am thankful for you. I am so glad that you have not been trapped the way that I have, or paralyzed for a (long) time by your fears of what others may think. I am inspired by you and hope you will keep doing it your own way and sharing yourself with others and with the world! Thank you for being you.

To readers who don’t know me and can relate to the struggle of living in hiding but whose issue is something other than alopecia:

I feel you. We don’t all have the same challenges, but our hearts sound pretty similar. I have chosen “camouflage” for many years, and it has both helped and hindered me. I suspect you may have done something like this too. I am thinking about you, praying for you, and cheering for you.

To readers who don’t know me and just can’t relate to this at all:

Thank you for being here and for taking the time to read my words. It is generous of you to give me space in your mind and in your life to express myself. I am so glad that this is not a struggle for you, and I pray that you will be protected from going through anything like it.

The bottom line is, if you are reading this at all, you are special to me. You have been or are now part of my walk to open myself up to others and to the world, and I am thankful for the space you are giving me to do so. I am praying for you right now as I write this – for your own life, for your experiences and joys, and that you will be victorious as you walk through your own trials and hardships. Thank you for being with me in mine.

XO,

Lindsay