Growing Pains

At 16, Devon Carrow Started to Lose Her Hair—and Her Confidence. But Through Grief She Found Perspective… and a New Path.

- Kelsey Haywoo

It all started when I was 16. had been a long day, so I hopped into a steamy shower—one of my favorite ways to relax—before bed. When I got out, I grabbed my brush and ran it through my hair. Then I raked it all back with my fingers, and that’s when I felt it: a small, smooth patch above the nape of my neck. I was horrified. What was happening?

In a panic, I ran downstairs to my mom, who discovered a bald patch the size of a quarter in my otherwise full, thick, auburn hair. We were shocked, confused; we tried to rationalize it somehow.

Maybe the hair rubbed out on my pillow? Maybe I pulled it out by accident by brushing too roughly? There had to be some sort of reasonable explanation for this, we figured. I calmed down—but decided to schedule an appointment with a dermatologist just to be safe.

When the doctor told me I had alopecia areata, it was the first time I ever heard those words. (Alopecia areata, I learned, is an autoimmune disease that causes hair loss on the scalp, the face and sometimes other areas of the body.)

I sat in her office, in shock, as she searched my head and found another bald patch—this one about the size of a dime. She gave me a treatment plan and prescriptions and sent me on my way. I relaxed a bit. I had an explanation for what was happening and I had a plan that would fix it, I thought. But I had no idea how much worse things were about to get.