Model describes horror of suffering from alopecia areata

For a woman who made her living from her looks, it was the cruellest blow.
Former hair model and aspiring actress Georgia Van Cuylenburg has told of her horror as she started losing her long blonde locks.

The 24-year-old, who hails from Melbourne, Australia but now lives in Los Angeles, discovered that, like five million others in the U.S., she was suffering from alopecia areata.

Causing sudden and often unpredictable hair loss – from the scalp and body –  it has no known cause or cure.
Now, for the first time, Miss Van Cuylenburg has described her struggle with the condition on ABC’s 20/20.
She told the show: ‘My hair defined my beauty in that it was my calling card.’

She reveals how growing up in Melbourne she was an overachiever who strove for perfection, with roles in the school choir, band and swim team.

She had the looks to match, with ‘this thick, amazing hair… natural blonde highlights’.
Still, she was plagued by insecurities and developed anorexia, with her weight plummeting to just 75lbs.

By 18, after intensive treatment, she had made a full recovery and was well on her way to achieving her dream of becoming an actress.

Living in LA, she had appeared in adverts, had a part in a children’s show and was doing regular voiceover work.
But getting ready for an audition one morning, huge clumps of her hair started coming out in the shower.

She was determined to carry on as normal – and attended the audition that afternoon – but soon she realised she was going bald.

Hiding her hair loss under a wig, she began her search for a cure.
When the treatments didn’t work, Miss Van Cuylenburg decided to shave her head. The experience, she said, brought a feeling of ‘total freedom’ and she began to accept her condition.

It was at this point, ironically, that her hair began to return.
Fed up with her mood being dependent on the cycles of her alopecia, she started to reach out to others with the same condition. She began working with children and found strength in being honest about her hair loss – often going out without her wig.