A great way to cover up hair loss is to have a wig, hair piece or hair replacement. This is quite an in-depth subject and we have a section specially dedicated to the A-Z of this subject. But first let us take you through a brief overview of wigs and alternative hair replacements so that you can consider it as one of your options:
Encouraging reasons to wear a wig or hairpiece
Let’s take a look at some of the positive reasons to wear a wig or hairpiece:
• Look good and feel better – There is nothing vain in caring about your appearance and style. Our hair is just one of the ways we express our individuality and image and for most people styling it is part of their daily routine. When our image is altered by hair loss, a wig or hairpiece helps you to continue with a look that feels comfortable and familiar. Most people who wear one agree that when they look good it helps them to feel better.
• New you make over – Do blondes, brunettes or redheads have more fun? Now is your chance to be as daring as you wish. Whilst you can often replicate your normal hairstyle, you can also have fun with trying different looks and styles.
• Flexibility – You can have several different styles, customise them to suit your face shape, wear them with accessories, try them on in advance and decide when and where you wish to wear them.
• Confidence - Covering your head with a wig or hairpiece can be a great confidence booster and help you to feel less self conscious about the change in your image.
• Extra time in bed – You can pop a wig onto a stand over night and hey, presto, it is there ready in the morning. Most synthetic wigs are easy to take care of, only need washing occasionally and are left to dry naturally, returning to their style with very little effort needed from you. No need to get up half an hour early to wash and style your hair!
• Take control – If you are upset by hair loss then wearing a wig or hairpiece helps you to take control of the situation. You decide what style, make, colour and texture wig you wish to wear. Wigs and hairpieces have advanced tremendously in the past few years and the choice available is bigger than ever.
Did you know…
• The most widely recommended type of wig for cancer treatment wearers is a synthetic wig .This is because they are easy to take care of, cost effective, NHS funded (with prescription), and look and feel every bit as real as real hair they are available in hundreds of styles, textures and colours• Wigs and hairpieces are a fantastic modern day accessories (not just for hair loss wearers). There are hundreds of styles, textures and shades available
• There is no such thing as an NHS wig…the NHS do not make wigs - they out source the supply to various wig shops. You are most likely to be given a prescription (letter) to a local wig supplier. You normally have to pay around £60.00 towards costs (we cover this is great detail in section Wigs and hair replacements)
• Wigs normally refer to a full hair style to cover hair loss whereas hairpieces are tend to be a section of hair added into your own hair to enhance your hair or cover areas of hair loss. Hair replacements refers to new techniques that have been developed to create hair systems that function in the same way as real hair, such as weaves, extensions and specialist hair loss techniques (washing, styling, showering etc)
• Permanent hair loss is uncommon but for anyone affected there are amazing hair replacement systems and wigs that look, feel and perform as real. You can shower, swim and style them as real hair.
• Nowadays most wigs look and feel so real you just can’t tell. Thousands of wigs are sold every month…chances are someone you know is wearing one and you just can’t tell.
• If you wear a wig every day for 6 months they may naturally go frizzy, this is due to a natural build up of static so you may need a new one - you have not been ripped off buy the quality of your wig from your supplier - this happens because of the static.
• Wearing a wig gives you style options means…you can match your previous style or be as daring as you wish.
10 of the most common misunderstandings and fears about wigs and hairpieces
1.“I heard that NHS wigs look false and are low quality”This is not true because the NHS simply do not make wigs. They outsource this to various companies who supply to the NHS and other customers including professional salons, fashion industry, film and TV, occasional social wearers and medical need customers such as yourself. If you qualify for a prescription the NHS provide help towards the full or partial cost of wigs, usually in the form of a voucher prescription that is exchanged with a wig supplier.
The term “NHS wig” has earned itself a bad name, but I think this is because unfortunately you don’t hear about all of the fantastic looking wigs. You just hear about the not so good ones. Let me be clear, there are plenty of good suppliers and masses of choice. Once you know a little bit more about wig choices this will make a huge difference to achieving a stylish wig.
“I’m so glad that I now understand the NHS doesn’t actually make wigs. I wasn’t even going to use my voucher because I thought ‘I don’t want one of those cheap NHS wigs’! It’s these little snippets of information that make all the difference” Jean 55, teacher from Glasgow.
2.“Does a real hair wig always look more real?”
If I start by telling you that 90% of wigs that I recommend to cancer patients are synthetic and not real hair, then I guess that answers the question. When I first meet people they often say “I don’t mind what it cost, I want a real hair wig” and this is, because they think it will look more real. But the simple truth is that a good quality synthetic wig is often easier to manage, has a wider range available and is more cost effective. The most important thing about any wig is that it is customised to suit you and that you know how to wear it well.
“My wig was just £97.00 and is synthetic hair…it’s long and wavy and was cut to suit my face and my glasses. When it first came out of the box I didn’t see how it could possibly look real but then once I was shown how to add some product in, it looked fantastic” Margaret 49, nurse, Hertfordshire.
3.“Is it true that wigs make your head sweat?”
Our heads naturally sweat but it is something that we don’t always notice because the normally the air and our hair absorb it. But when you wear a wig, a bit like wearing a hat, the heat and sweat from your head is normally increased slightly and there is a simple way to help deal with this. You just wear a “wig cap” (which looks like the foot piece of a pair or tights) under your wig and it will help absorb sweat and hold your wig in place.
“I didn’t realise that the wig cap would help absorb the sweat. I had thought it was something you used if your head itched, so when I found out it made a big difference” Tessa 39, Mum to four kids.
4.“How does a wig stay on your head – is it true that you have to tape a wig to your head or it will fall off?”
Wigs and hairpieces can be held in place with a tape commonly referred to as “Toupee tape” but the majority of wigs are held in place by small adjustable elasticised belt straps (a bit like a bra strap) that are inside the wig. These can easily be tightened to make the wig sit snugly and securely. The other way wigs or hairpieces can be held in place is with a thin glue, but because most cancer patients experience temporary hair loss, the type of wig most recommended will be secured with a belt strap. I would also recommend a wig cap, mentioned in the previous question, as that helps to hold a wig securely so that it does not move around on your head.
“It’s those little things that you forget once you leave the wig shop, like tightening the belts inside the wig to make it fit tightly. Those tips gave me the confidence to know that my wig would stay in place.” Bonnie 41, who happily drives around in her convertible with her wig on and a head scarf!
5.“Do you need to spend a lot of money to get a good wig?”
The majority of the wigs I recommend are under £150.00, and once customised they look fantastic. You do not need to spend a massive amount of money to get a good wig and as a cancer patient you will be exempt from paying VAT but must fill out a VAT exemption form when purchasing your wig. You should also consider other costs related to your wig such as products and accessories.
“My husband and I had agreed that we would find the money to get a wig that looked real. I couldn’t believe that the price covered the wig itself, , having it fitted and customised, the wig stand, products and brushes so that altogether it came to just under £250.00. I thought that was amazing, and that’s about what I would have spent on my hair in 6 months any way! It was a pleasant surprise as we had expected to pay around the thousand pound mark.” Lynn 67, grandmother to two girls
6.“Is it true that a hairdryer will melt a wig?”
The basic rule of thumb is that you should not use direct heat on a synthetic wig but can generally use direct heat on real hair wigs. On synthetic hair direct heat such as straightening irons, hot rollers, hotbrush, tongs and hairdryers will melt the hair. Sometimes if the guidelines allow, you can use a hairdryer on a low heat setting (or cool button) to waft air through a synthetic wig but unless you are absolutely sure it is ok, avoid this. Synthetic hair wigs can be washed, then left to dry naturally and will return to their styled state without the need for additional work on your part. A real hair wig will need the same amount of attention as your own natural hair so generally needs to be blow dried or set into a style and you can normally use most direct heated appliances on them. For all wig types, always check the manufacturer’s advice label about how to treat them.
“Yes that was me! I threw the advice label from my wig away. I decided to try and give my wig a new look and used my straightening irons on the fringe – needles to say they got stuck and melted the front! Well at least I can share that with you!” Elizabeth, 36, fashion clothes buyer, Leeds.
7.“Will a good wig will last for ever?”
In my experience, many people are fine with just one wig for a period of up to a year, but if you are wearing a wig every day for six months or more then most manufacturers advise that you may need two wigs. The reason for this is partly that when worn every day most wigs will become a bit saggy, a bit like a pair of bikini bottoms or swimming trunks that are regularly worn. Wigs can also become frizzy at the ends because they collect static, it’s called friction build-up.
So generally, most manufacturers recommend you have your wig checked after six months to see if it needs to be replaced. However, I have found many people, especially those with shorter wigs, are fine with just one for up to a year and some people keep their wigs for a lot longer.
“I had a real hair wig, and I had no idea that it would frizz up and it made the style look dry. I had to laugh to myself because even wigs get bad hair days!” Judith 37, from a little village called Aston.
8.“Can wearing a wig slow down the regrowth of new hair?”
There is no evidence to suggest that wearing a wig will prevent new hair from growing and some people wear them 24 hours a day, even in bed. Personally, I would suggest that you allow periods without your wig to allow air to circulate and you can do this at night with a cotton hat or cap on instead. It is sensible to take some time and care to ensure that your scalp remains healthy.
“When my hair grew back it was strange, because at first it came through really quickly, then it seemed to slow down a bit. I blamed it on my wig, but was relieved to find out it’s just normal that it takes a while. After nine months I had a short textured style and a few blonde highlights, and getting the colour back was great” . Sandra 59, who two years after recovery still keeps her hair short because she likes it!
9. “If my hair is long before I lose it I can cut it into a pony tail and have a wig made?”
Generally speaking, the collection of human hair to be made into wigs is a very specialized area and there are currently only around 12 people in the UK who specialise in this. If your hair is more than shoulder length, long, in very good condition, and you have plenty of it, then you may like to ask if your hair could be made into a wig. But most of the time the answer will be ‘no’ and even if it is a ‘yes’ then it would take at least 10 weeks to make and be very expensive.
“Sometimes it’s just good to know what can or can’t be done. I spent ages thinking about having my own hair made into a wig because a friend said she was sure that’s what people did! In the end I went for a really nice graduated bob style, nothing like my own hair at all but a bit of fun” Tina 41, PR, London.
10. “Will people be able to tell I am wearing a wig?”
If you chose a wig that is similar to your style prior to hair loss and learn how to wear it, many people have told me that no one ever knew they were wearing a wig. But naturally if you allow hair loss to be exposed, or go for a new style, then those people with whom you interact are likely to notice your new look. As over half a million wigs are sold every year in the UK, it is likely that someone you know must be wearing a wig and you have no idea! Whatever option you decide on, there are ways to distract from your hair loss and emphasise on other areas of your image and style.
“I’ve never thought of myself as a stylish man or a follower of fashion but losing my hair made me feel really self conscious. I had a wig fitted that looked like my own hair, it is even grey, and not one of my colleagues knew that I was unwell or had any hair loss. After treatment my hair grew back and no one was any the wiser, this suited me and meant I could keep my life private.” Lionel, 62, legal firm office manager.
Why not take a look in our section Wigs and Hair Replacements for the A-Z of this subject