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Todd Hartley: Cheryl writes in and says, “What can I do to boost my self-confidence when
going through chemo?” It seems like this panel is the perfect person to answer that
question for Cheryl. Who would like to talk about that?
Darryle Pollack: Well I think it’s funny. Jean referred to this before, kind of a lighter
weight things, like the way you look and shall or not, I have to say I was really preoccupied
with my hair, with losing my hair. And by the way, does come back. I have already grown
them out. I have already grown it out and donated a couple of times. But I spent a lot
of time. I hate to say I was obsessed with investigating what I could do for myself but
I was also really obsessed about this. I identified I lost a breast and my hair and I didn’t
have the reconstruction then. I never had it and that really preoccupied me.
One thing you can do and it was incredibly valuable to me, was that the American Cancer
Society has workshops that are called ‘look good, feel better’ and they teach you little
tricks and boy, because you lose, you are going to lose. It depends how much chemo you
have but I lost every piece of eyebrow, every eyelash, everything, and I had to learn how
to put on. For me, it was important and there’s nothing wrong if you think that’s important.
I did and so I had learned little tricks like I wore a wig and I learned things like wear
larger accessories because then the wig is less noticeable. I mean they are little things
but they really, really helped me and so they have these workshops all over the country.
I wholeheartedly recommend them and they’ll help you find wigs. They help their all kind
of tricks and there are little things that every now and then I’ll find something – you
know a pair of earnings that’s this big and I remember buying it because I thought
‘well, if you wear the earrings and they are this big, maybe nobody will notice I am
wearing a wig’.
Jay K. Harness, MD: Would you admit that wigs have gotten even better through the years
Darryle? I mean I look at some of my ladies now and I look and I lean forward and I say
“Are you wearing a wig?” I mean I can’t tell. So even the quality of the wigs, thanks
to donors like you, have gotten better over the years, huh?
Darryle Pollack: Absolutely, absolutely. I mean I used to say I can spot a wig from a
mile away because I was so obsessed with wigs but actually they are way better – way better
today and you know…
Todd Hartley: Darryle, it’s interesting you bring that up because I am wig clueless.
I never notice and I am around breast cancer patients all the time…
Mia Curtiss: And we love you for that…
Todd Hartley: Yeah, they generally tell me before I have recognized.