{"id":16120,"date":"2022-07-25T14:59:42","date_gmt":"2022-07-25T12:59:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/commeundiademe.com\/?p=16120"},"modified":"2022-11-13T11:20:15","modified_gmt":"2022-11-13T10:20:15","slug":"hair-topper-and-other-peoples-reactions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/commeundiademe.com\/en\/2022\/07\/volumateur-capillaire-entourage\/","title":{"rendered":"Hair topper &amp; androgenetic alopecia: the reaction of those around you after a week of daily wear."},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"16120\" class=\"elementor elementor-16120\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-409dde60 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"409dde60\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-5b61318e\" data-id=\"5b61318e\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6c024038 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"6c024038\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I was diagnosed with androgenetic alopecia at the age of 20. Ten years later, as my insecurity grew and my scalp gradually became more visible, I decided to wear a hair topper for the first time to conceal my alopecia and finally move forward. <\/p>\n<p>One of the things that made me most anxious was how the people around me would react. How would my family, my partner, my friends, and my colleagues at work respond?<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">First step: telling my family.<\/h4>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The thing I dreaded most was telling my parents that I\u2019d decided to wear a hair topper. I was 30 at the time, but still quite young at heart, and I often needed their approval for my choices.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My mother reacted pretty badly. She kept telling me, \u201cBut you\u2019re not really going to wear that! It\u2019s for bald girls, Laure!\u201d She said I didn\u2019t need it and that I was worrying about my alopecia for no reason. To her, it was all in my head, even though she was the one who had first noticed my alopecia ten years earlier. To be completely objective, my alopecia was already quite advanced at the time, and considering a hair topper made perfect sense at that stage. I actually found out much later that my colleagues had noticed my alopecia and discussed it among themselves (it was humiliating to learn that).<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My mother\u2019s negative reaction made me realize that, to her, what I was considering was a shameful solution. So it took me about four years to dare to walk into a wig store. But one day, I realized that I was the one suffering from this insecurity every day, and that I shouldn\u2019t keep waiting for other people\u2019s approval before moving forward.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My partner, on the other hand, reacted really well. I think he\u2019d noticed that I was losing my hair. He didn\u2019t judge me and said he thought I looked fine as I was, but if this would help me feel better, he had no problem with it. Having his support in this decision was important to me. Looking back now, I don\u2019t know if I would have taken the plunge if I\u2019d felt he was judging me negatively.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After talking it over with him, I decided to make an appointment at the store for my first try-on. I took photos of myself wearing the hair topper. Then I showed the photos to my parents and my partner. They confirmed that it looked very natural and was completely undetectable, and encouraged me to take the plunge. Their approval made me feel good, even though I\u2019d actually already made up my mind. I was going to wear a hair topper. I wish I hadn\u2019t had to go to the store alone and that I\u2019d felt truly supported through this step. But today I\u2019m also proud to know that I was able to move forward on my own instead of waiting for someone to reassure me about my choices.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">I get my first hair topper, then tell my closest friends about it.<\/h4>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After choosing my hair topper at the store, I decided to contact the brand about a partnership. I had a YouTube channel, and I thought it might be of interest to them. The upside for me was that I would get the hair topper in exchange for posting videos about the product. I have to admit that when I sent that email, I didn\u2019t really think they would agree. I also thought I\u2019d then have to be comfortable with my decision and appear publicly wearing a hairpiece, which was far from easy for me!<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The brand agreed quickly. I then realized that some of my close friends followed my YouTube channel and would find out that I wore this type of solution to conceal my androgenetic alopecia. So I decided to get ahead of it and tell them myself. I thought they might take it badly if they found out at the same time as my subscribers.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019m a very private person, so I\u2019d never discussed this insecurity with my friends, despite the negative impact alopecia had on my quality of life. So telling them was very difficult for me. I was ashamed to talk about my insecurity and worried they would feel sorry for me. They might not know how to react, or might instinctively try to comfort me, which made me very uncomfortable. I didn\u2019t want them to pity me. I spoke to one of my best friends with my voice trembling, while trying to sound casual. Trembling with shame and vulnerability. She reacted really well and didn\u2019t judge me at all. I felt supported.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For another one of my friends, I handled it differently. I sent her a photo of myself wearing the hair topper on Messenger and asked what she thought of my new haircut and hair color. She said it looked great on me. So I told her it was a hair topper and that I was going to talk about it on YouTube. She said she\u2019d never noticed my alopecia, but that the result looked really good.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">My biggest fear: how my colleagues at work would react.<\/h4>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I decided to wear the hair topper for the first time when I returned from a three-week vacation. Talking to my colleagues about my hair topper was out of the question. So I was very anxious that they would notice my hairpiece. Showing up at work one day with three times as much hair is very difficult. You tell yourself that people are bound to notice.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My first hair topper was much blonder than my own hair. It wasn\u2019t my choice. In fact, it was the only blonde model they offered me at the store. But the upside was that it helped divert attention. My colleagues mainly noticed that my hair color had changed. I remember one of my younger colleagues saying when I arrived, \u201cHi, Laure! Well, don\u2019t you look all bright and cheerful!\u201d Another colleague asked if I\u2019d been to the hairdresser and said the new hair color suited me. She even touched my hair and asked if I\u2019d straightened it, and I said yes (never contradict someone who\u2019s wondering!).<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The entire first week went really well. I remember regularly going to the restroom at work just for the pleasure of looking at myself and feeling beautiful for once. The hair topper was a major turning point in my life. There was clearly a before and an after. It helped me regain my confidence and feel beautiful again.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">And what about you? How do you think things will go with your hair topper?<\/h4>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Women considering wearing a hair topper or a wig often worry a lot about how the people around them will react. They\u2019re afraid people will realize they\u2019re wearing a hair topper or a wig and make hurtful comments.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But in fact, it\u2019s very rare for people to notice a hair topper, unless you\u2019re already almost bald and your alopecia has already been clearly noticed by those close to you. In that case, yes, people may well realize that you\u2019ve started wearing a hair topper. But with \u201ctypical\u201d alopecia\u2014that is, visible but not so obvious to others\u2014people won\u2019t notice anything because they aren\u2019t analyzing the density of our hair every day. They\u2019ll probably notice a change in your hairstyle, of course, but they won\u2019t imagine you\u2019re wearing a hair topper, since most people don\u2019t even know hair toppers exist.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At Comme un diad\u00e8me, I\u2019ve been offering hair toppers to women with androgenetic alopecia for about 3 years, and I\u2019ve never received feedback from a woman whose hair topper was noticed by those around her. On the few rare occasions when it was noticed, the alopecia was truly very pronounced (the person was almost bald on top of her head), and therefore obvious even before she started wearing the hair topper.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There\u2019s another thing to keep in mind. After a few years, you\u2019ll also understand that there\u2019s nothing shameful about this product. We have the right to find a solution to a problem that makes us self-conscious and causes us a lot of distress. Who would judge that negatively? Should we make our choices based on what these kinds of people think? I don\u2019t think so \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n<p>I now often find myself telling people I don\u2019t know well\u2014or don\u2019t know at all\u2014that I wear hair toppers. And I can assure you that it has always been very well received. You can see me talk about my solution with ease, confidence, and pride. And when people see that, they don\u2019t feel like criticizing because they know it\u2019s not about shame, but about restoring a sense of self.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And just so you know, my mother is now my brand\u2019s biggest fan \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/commeundiademe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/volumateur-capillaire-entourage-1024x1018.jpg\" alt=\"Hair topper and wig\"><p><\/p>\n<figcaption>I\u2019m wearing a wig here, and my mother is wearing a hair topper.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Watch the YouTube video from after a week of wearing my first hair topper every day to see my reaction at the time:<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<figure>\n<div>https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=gP1AzNDDk1M<\/div>\n<figcaption>Hair topper: Everyday wear &amp; reactions from those around me<br><br>Watch Comme un diad\u00e8me videos about hair toppers and wigs:<br>https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCgFJ9SejriuuyUGDZ6GT9kA\/videos?app=desktop<br><br>Discover the Comme un diad\u00e8me store:<br>https:\/\/commeundiademe.com\/store\/<br><\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mon alop\u00e9cie androg\u00e9n\u00e9tique a \u00e9t\u00e9 diagnostiqu\u00e9e \u00e0 l&rsquo;\u00e2ge de 20 ans. Dix ans plus tard, le complexe grandissant avec mon cuir chevelu qui se clairsemait progressivement, j&rsquo;ai d\u00e9cid\u00e9 de porter pour la premi\u00e8re fois un volumateur capillaire pour masquer mon alop\u00e9cie et enfin aller de l&rsquo;avant. L&rsquo;une des choses qui m&rsquo;angoissait alors le plus \u00e9tait [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16122,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16120","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-non-classifiee"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/commeundiademe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16120","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/commeundiademe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/commeundiademe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commeundiademe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commeundiademe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16120"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/commeundiademe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16120\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27118,"href":"https:\/\/commeundiademe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16120\/revisions\/27118"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commeundiademe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16122"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/commeundiademe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16120"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commeundiademe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16120"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commeundiademe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16120"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}