Eleven-Year-Old Alopecia Sufferer Inspires Others With Her Wigs And Becomes A Model [Video]

Katelyn Payne was diagnosed with alopecia at the tender age of two. By the time she was nine, she had lost all of her hair. Her parents, Ann-Marie and Darren Payne, tried various treatments, none of which were successful. At first, Katelyn was upset, but she decided to make the best of the situation. She stated the following according to Metro.

“I was quite upset at first but then I thought I won’t let this knock my confidence.”

She’s 11 years old now and a pop music fan. So she decided to wear colorful wigs that resemble her favorite singers’ hair styles, like Taylor Swift, Cher Lloyd, and Little Mix. She even got a wig modeling contract with Joli Cameleon, based out of Beverly Hills, according to In Touch. She wears a unique blonde wig that she compares to Paloma Faith’s bright hair, and she also wears sleek styles similar to that Cher Lloyd and a variety of hairdos inspired by the Little Mix girls. She loves dancing and singing and helping others. According to Metro, she said the following.

“I inspire other children because I show them you can’t be afraid of having no hair, because it’s you. I tell them ‘this is you and you’re different and you can be confident with or without any hair.'”

When Katelyn was first diagnosed, her parents didn’t find a supportive community, so they set up a charity for alopecia awareness and for sufferers called BeBold. A video link about Katelyn can be found here. The mission statement of BeBold is stated as follows.

“At BeBold we have a clear vision of the part we want to play in helping to build confidence and self esteem in children and adults who suffer from alopecia. We want to connect people and organisations and help them create their own strategies to manage the condition, along the way we want to provide as many positive experiences as we can. Always at the forefront of our minds is how we can make a difference, using our skills we have we want to help empower others.”

BeBold helps to build confidence and self-esteem in children and adults who suffer from alopecia. Katelyn and her twin brother Hayden help out at conferences and camps. She has such an upbeat attitude and perspective in life, and she encourages children and adults to embrace the condition and turn it into something positive. Katelyn is quite a role model for children to follow their own piper and not to give in to despair. Katelyn said the following, according to Barcroft TV.

“The charity came to be because we never knew anybody with Alopecia, my parents set the charity up and it’s just got bigger and bigger….I like the yellow wig because it shows that I can be different from everyone else, it’s inspired by Paloma Faith because she doesn’t follow the crowd. I like changing my hair daily because if I get bored of one colour or style I can change it. People stare quite a lot but I don’t get bothered by it because I’m different, I can inspire people to wear wigs and look pretty without any hair.”

Although not specifically used to treat alopecia, turmeric can be beneficial for the hair in many ways. Use of turmeric with other ingredients can promote hair growth, prevent hair loss, and can treat scalp conditions, according to an article in the Inquisitr.

[Photo Courtesy: Barcroft Media, Video: Courtesy YouTube]