Nancy Petrella.
by Kym Liddick Byrnes photography by Kelly Heck
Nancy Petrella gives new meaning to a good hair day.
On Monday, she might be sporting a short bob or long curls. On Tuesday, she can be a flashy red, a platinum blonde or even a woman with warm chestnut locks.
Every day is a good hair day for Petrella even though her hair is not her own.
Petrella is a wig consultant at the Wig Shoppe at the Carroll Hospital Center. She brings hope to cancer patients who are expecting to, or have already, lost their hair as a result of treatment. Her own experiences have prepared her for job.
A decade ago, in her early 50’s, Petrella lost all of her hair. She said it fell out “fast and furious.” Diagnosed with Alopecia, her hair has never grown back.
“I understand how it feels to feel odd,” Petrella said. “To look in the mirror and not know yourself anymore. I know as a woman how important it is to be able to feel beautiful in your own way, whatever it is. I wake up every day and am excited to be able to help someone through the chaos.”
Petrella’s eyebrows are tattooed on and she hasn’t had to shave her legs for a decade. Instead of hiding, feeling ashamed of the judgement and loss of identity that comes with not having hair, she has chosen to become a beacon for others who are facing the challenge of losing their hair.
“Psychologically it’s devastating,” Petrella said. “But you work through it or you don’t. There’s a lot of women that just don’t work through it, they don’t leave the house, and they become hermits because they can’t deal with what people will think.”
Petrella said it took some time to accept the reality of not having her own hair, but that her personality and zest for life compelled her to seize the opportunity in it.
“I have more wigs than Dolly Parton,” Petrella laughed. “I’ve been known to do some really funky things, just to have fun with it. I have fun with the wigs but I’m not trying to hide, I share my story and often take my wig off during consultations with clients.”
It’s not just her personal hair loss experience that has prepared her to work with women navigating the emotional turmoil and physical stress that comes with a cancer diagnosis and accompanying hair loss. Petrella has also watched her grandmother, mother and sister battle cancer and her husband currently has leukemia. Coupled with her time in nursing school, Petrella recognizes that she has the people skills, medical understanding and compassion to aid her clients in their journey.
Taneytown resident Donna Zeigler was diagnosed with cancer this spring. She had surgery and is undergoing follow up chemotherapy and radiation, which doctors told her may result in her losing her hair.
She scheduled a consultation with Petrella.
“When I first met her, I was immediately comfortable,” Zeigler said. “She told me to keep my sense of humor about things and reminded me that I wouldn’t be bald forever. She encouraged me to have fun with it. She just made a difficult situation better.”
Petrella said that she tries to help her clients find perspective. She said they often come to her overwhelmed, devastated and scared but often leave having laughed and with a better understanding of the many options available to deal with the hair loss portion of their journey.
“A lot of women say they took the diagnosis of cancer better than learning they would lose their hair,” Petrella said in disbelief. “I tell them, ‘This is temporary. You will get this wig; we’ll get you looking good and then you’ll go through treatment and your hair will be back.’”
“That’s how I look at it: I’m normal, I’m healthy, I can work with it, I can have fun with it,” Petrella said. “I’m high energy. I love to laugh. I don’t take a lot in life very seriously. If it had to happen, it’s good that it happened to me. I want people to see that we can get through these things.”
Petrella works with clients who are losing hair for all types of reasons and she emphasized that not only does she help women find a variety of custom-made wigs, she also offers make-up tips and suggests other head coverings like scarves and hats. She is also interested in starting an Alopecia support group at the hospital to offer a support system for those dealing with hair loss.
“It just feels like a calling for me,” Petrella said. “A lot [of clients] come in crying and leave laughing and no one ever leaves without hugging me. There’s not a job I’ve worked before where I’ve had this feeling.”
To contact Nancy Petrella about wigs or a support group, call 443-340-8016 or email npetrella@closecall.com.
