Self image and cancer

"When I see others post their own brave the shave videos on social media, it does bring back a lot of emotion for me. Some look back and think the time of losing their hair as a painful memory. There’s no right or wrong on how to feel in cancer, however I look back at it in a more positive light, because I took control of choosing when my hair went, I actually felt free once it happened. It was finally a decision that cancer didn’t get to choose, I did.

It is a brave move, I commend anyone who does it, my hair was my favourite part of me appearance-wise. I always had a decent amount of it also, so to say goodbye to it completely was a worry of mine, I just didn’t know how I’d cope. Yet when I did it, I felt so powerful."

"My hair was part of my identity. I had always had long hair down to my waist and the idea of not having it really upset me. It sounds vain, but the image side of things really did get to me. I was feeling really bad about myself at times - my looks have basically completely gone. I sounds really conceited, but I actually used to consider myself to be an attractive woman and I would care about how I dressed and things and feel good about myself. That was all taken away. I lost my hair, my nails were horrible, I lost a breast and then I put on weight with the chemo but was ill looking. I would forget how bad I looked and then be shocked when I caught sight of myself in a mirror. I did have a couple of wigs, but they felt like they were fake and unpleasant. I didn’t like fake things so I would wear a head scarf more than anything else. 

I’m just feeling back to myself at last after first hair loss. My hair's thick and bouncy, a bit thinner on the crown, but back to how it was mainly. It feels very healthy and same texture as before. Before loss, it was right down my back, I'm now hoping to grow it long enough to cover my breasts (and the mastectomy)."

"Having had all my treatment I had my final scan and it still showed cancerous cells which meant I went back under the knife for neck dissection. I now have an impressive scar which is my survival badge and I wear it with pride."

If you have permanent changes caused by cancer treatment, we have information to help you manage these.

"I tried to keep moving as much as I could, or when I could. Obviously, there would come a point where I’d find I had no energy. But certainly during my breaks, I’d take myself to the gym, do a cycle, a walk on the treadmill, do whatever I was able to.

I truly believe that it wasn’t for my level of fitness, I would have found going through treatment a lot tougher. I look at what I eat, so with that and the fitness, I feel a lot better. Anything now regarding my health, I’m cautious. Whereas before, I’d eat anything."

We have information about eating well and keeping active.

“I felt a bit down when I saw myself in the mirror. Including the clothes I ended up wearing – which were loose fitting to make treatment easier but didn’t make me feel good. After treatment I made the effort to get in shape again, joined the gym and bought some new clothes. I had lost my hair and rather then go back to how I was I decided to embrace being bald and I think I look better now as a result.”

Read our information about changes to your appearance and body image.