Armagh woman turns alopecia journey into message of strength

Kacey Quigley was diagnosed with alopecia areata at aged six. At aged ten, her condition progressed to alopecia universalis and she had full body hair loss.

Kacey expresses how her alopecia has shaped who she is today and she wants to raise awareness on the issue of hair loss.

According to Alopecia UK, 1 in every 4,000 people are diagnosed with alopecia areata each year across the UK.

Alopecia is an autoimmune disease that causes hair loss across the body and scalp. Alopecia is not life threatening but it can have a huge impact on many diagnosed individual's mental health.

Kacey said: “At that time there was no alopecia specialist in the whole country; North and South." She had to be referred to a dermatologist to receive creams and steroids.

“The steroids caused all my baby teeth to fall out within two months.”

She feels a lot of people show prejudice against her when they first see her and assume she’s “sick with cancer”. This has given Kacey the insight that it’s adults that stare more than children, and not everyone has knowledge on what alopecia is.

“People do treat me differently, no matter how much people think they’re not,” she said. But she acknowledges: "A lot of the time, they don't mean any harm.”

Her alopecia affected her most during her teenage years causing anxiety and making it hard for her to leave her house without a wig but she said: “Over the years, I’ve come to terms with it."

A lot of people think because she wears wigs she’s not open about her condition but she believes that is totally wrong.

“I have confidence, but sometimes the wig just brings it out more," she says.

Wigs are fun to her and she loves trying new wigs and being able to change them everyday.

Kacey has a strong support system behind her with her family and friends normalising her condition and treating her the same as anyone else. She believes that having these supportive people around her has helped her to learn to love herself.

Kacey has had many moments of empowerment on her alopecia journey.

In 2019, she shared her alopecia journey with the world through a BBC Young Reporter documentary. “It was released on my 16th birthday and it was the best birthday present ever," she says.

The documentary appeared on UK news channels and CBBC’s ‘Newsround’ which amazed Kacey that she was on TV channels she’s “watched her whole life”.

In 2019, Kacey also won the Michaela Foundation Award for her bravery of sharing her personal journey with the world and campaigning to raise awareness for alopecia to empower others living with the same condition.

Kacey is delighted that people recognise that she is doing something different and projecting a change.

Kacey will continue campaigning to raise awareness for alopecia and empower others living with this condition through her social media platforms.