Get involved

When you first discover that your child has alopecia it can be difficult to know how to react. With young children they might not seem too bothered while older children might start asking you questions about why they are different from their friends. By being involved with your children, being open about their alopecia and also listening to them you will help increase their self esteem and help them feel more confident talking about their alopecia to their peers.

You will have a lot of different emotions about your child’s alopecia. You may feel upset, angry or guilty. You may be fed up with having to explain your child’s alopecia to friends and family as well as strangers. All of these emotions are normal and you will find that other parents will often feel very similar.  

When talking to you child about their alopecia it is important that you are honest with them. There is always a chance with alopecia that the hair will not grow back.

Help your child feel they can talk to you about how they feel about their appearance. Our research suggests that children and young people with alopecia find it helpful to know that even if they are the only person in the school with alopecia there are lots of other people the same age who also have alopecia. You may find encouraging them to use the message board on this site helps them realise they are not alone.

Don’t worry if you don’t always get it right, if you feel you could have handled a situation in a more positive way, make a note of how you might have handled it differently and it is always ok to try again. There is a message board just for parents, where you can share experiences anonymously and get tips from other parents in the same situation.

If you feel you would like some more information on talking to your child about their alopecia the charity Changing Faces has some excellent guides that go into detail about talking to you child about your feelings and their feelings. The guides can be downloaded for free on their website:

www.changingfaces.org.uk


Date: 21 June 2007