Follicle Fallout
©2024 Susan Noyes Anderson
My hair is falling down like rain –
disaster in the making.
These wisps and tendrils, once admired,
are borderline law-breaking.
I leave a mess behind me nearly
everywhere I go.
My shoulders are a walking hairdrift.
(Would that it were snow!)
The kitchen is off-limits now;
my family shuns “haired” food.
This follicle fallout ain’t my fault,
but shedding comes off rude.
Am I a public nuisance then,
a hygiene-hampering hairball?
Why must my lovely locks rebel,
accepting this no-fair-fall?
Can you define pariah?
(I’m becoming one, I think.)
I must admit its getting hard
to find an unclogged sink.
I guess it’s time to shave it off.
(Oops, what’s that in your drink?!)
∞∞∞
For me, the best way to deal with chemo and hair loss is with a sense of humor. It worked pretty well for me. My son, with other family members watching, shaved what was left of my hair off on Thanksgiving weekend. They all wanted to join me in my baldness, but I talked them out of it. (For me, the shedding was getting so bad that I’m actually glad to have it gone.) Getting rid of the fallout from around the house and on my clothes is going to take a few weeks, though. Onward and upward!
If you enjoyed Follicle Fallout, you might also like to read Hair Platoon.
Tags: alopecia, bald spots, balding, baldness, cancer, chemotherapy, hair loss, shedding hair
