Real life stories
Patricia Buckland, 59
"I remember being out with my mother when I was in my early teens and looking at the back of her hair and was mortified to see she had a bald patch.
Time went on and I eventually married and went on to have a family of my own. In my early fifties, I was distressed to notice that my hair was thinning at the front and that I had the dreaded bald patch - just as my mothers had! This began the bane of my life forever trying to arrange my hair with clips and all sorts to cover the back."
Watch Patricia talk about her experience with Viviscal
“Doctors were never able to tell me why my hair was thinning. I never felt stressed and I have always eaten well and exercised regularly, so it was really confusing when my hair started thinning at 13 years old. The thinning hair
consisted of large patches on the side and back of my head, so it was extremely noticeable and very upsetting.
“I got ointments from the doctor but nothing seemed to work. Within only three months of taking Viviscal my hair was growing back, I was so relieved!
“I think it is really important that people talk about thinning hair with friends and family and that advice is made readily available.
“It has made a huge difference to my hair and it will remain a part of my daily routine for the foreseeable future.”
Hannah Farrow, 18, West Sussex
Cancer survivor Orlagh Winters has revealed how she is determined to use her experience to help others.
Brave Orlagh, 36, was diagnosed with breast cancer in February 2010 - just eight months after she tied the knot with hubby George Savage.
But the bubbly Galway native, who is the face of Viviscal hair products, told how she has managed to stay positive throughout the experience.
And she explained how she hopes opening up about her battle - and confidence knocking thinning hair - will help others going through the same thing.
Speaking about her diagnosis, Orlagh said: "I ran into a friend of mine who was on her way from a funeral of a woman who had died from breast cancer.
"I'd had a niggling pain in my left breast for a while and I had done nothing about it. So I went for a breast check but nothing showed up so they sent me for an ultrasound. I knew something wasn't right when two doctors and a nurse were called.
"They then sent me for a core biopsy, which was very painful, and it turned out I had a grade three tumour.
"It had been there for over a year so I had had it on my wedding day in July."
Orlagh went through a painful lumpectomy before beginning hormone therapy and gruelling chemotherapy.
But Orlagh revealed how the most difficult thing for her was losing her hair.
She explained: "When I started chemotherapy, I knew I was going to lose my hair. I had shoulder-length hair and I cut it into a bob.
"The first treatment was fine, I had a lot of pain and all the things you expect with chemotherapy like nausea and vomiting.
"But I had my second treatment on a Monday and by the Wednesday my hair was falling out in lumps.
"My husband is a publican and I rang him. I was in a panic. He told me I should take it into my own hands so the next day I went and I got my head shaved.
"I lived through the baldness but it was no plain sailing. I had put on a lot of weight because of the steroids so I felt like I looked like an alien.
"The biggest deal for me was not the cancer, but the thinning hair."
Brave Orlagh is following in the footsteps of pop princess Kylie Minogue, who was praised for being so open about her fight with breast cancer.
The 42-year-old Aussie beauty was diagnosed with the disease in May 2005 and famously lost her tresses from chemotherapy, likening the treatment to "experiencing a nuclear bomb".
She also successfully won her cancer battle and was acknowledged for the impact she had made by publicly discussing her cancer diagnosis and treatment.
In May 2008, the French Cultural Minister Christine Albanel said: "Doctors now even go as far as saying there is a 'Kylie effect' that encourages young women to have regular checks."
Meanwhile Orlagh - who was speaking to promote Hair Aware Week - told how a friend recommended that she take Viviscal natural supplements to help her regrow her locks.
She admitted: "I was nervous about taking anything that could interfere with my treatment but they were absolutely fine. I had told my oncologist that no matter what happened I would definitely be going to the Galway races.
"I could see the results in under a month and my hair started to grow back. My confidence started to come back and, with some friends, we launched a Pink Ball to raise money for breast cancer.
"In hospital two weeks later everyone was looking at how quickly my hair was growing back. I was on the same treatment as everyone else, the only difference was Viviscal.
"When you lose your hair, it knocks your confidence. But three months later I had a full head of hair."
And she told how she appeared on TV3's Ireland AM to speak about her battle and was inundated by emails and phone calls from other people suffering from devastating thinning hair. She said: "It was great to be able to give those people advice and tell them what had worked for me."
Orlagh suffered from a setback recently when cancer cells were found in her back, hip and thigh. However a scan in February came back clear and she is now focusing on the future with her husband.
While Orlagh's ovaries were frozen after her diagnosis, the couple are now looking at other options.
She said: "They couldn't freeze my embryos so the chances of me having a child are diminishing but we are looking at other options.
"We're looking at foreign adoption or surrogacy as possibilities. I think a positive attitude is the most important thing.
"I know I'm never far away from breast cancer but I hope I can help other people by putting it out there.
"Two and a half thousand women are diagnosed in Ireland every year. It shouldn't be a taboo subject. It helps others to talk about it."
Viviscal is available from leading pharmacies and health stores nationwide or direct from Lifes2good on 1890 601 801 or visit www.viviscal.ie.
By Aoife Bannon, The Sun.
By Aoife Bannon, The Sun.
