Milli Smith Shares Relatable Instagram Post About Medication Side Effects and Hair Loss
For those living with a chronic illness, starting a new medication can be scary — especially when the prescription comes with a long list of side effects. Instagrammer, Milli Smith, who runs the account @selfloveclubb, knows how difficult it can be to cope with physical changes that develop after starting a new medication.
“This post is damn hard for me to do, this is something I don’t talk about at all and something I’ve been ashamed of for so very long,” Smith wrote. “Hair loss is scary and watching my hair fall out in handfuls after taking a new medication left me devastated; the hair still hasn’t grown back and might not ever.”
Because of her hair loss, Smith has been self-conscious, styling her hair in ways that cover up her missing strands, for years. It wasn’t until she watched another Instagrammer, Dana “Hotpants,” talk about hair loss, that Smith realized her lost locks were nothing to be ashamed of. “[I]t made me realise that hair/no hair /hair loss doesn’t and won’t control my happiness,” Smith wrote, adding:
It doesn’t make me any less worthy of love. It doesn’t make me any less beautiful. It doesn’t make me any less deserving of happiness. So here’s to all my lovelies out there who are losing/have lost hair. YOURE F***ING BEAUTIFUL and NOT ALONE. Don’t be ashamed of who you are, you’re unique and damn bad ass.
Smith isn’t the only person speaking out about how illness and medication can change your appearance. In May, actress Sarah Hyland spoke out against body-shamers in a series of posts on Twitter. Hyland, who lives with kidney dysplasia, says she’s experience a number of physical changes due to her health. “Don’t let other’s comments alter any part of you! Love and positivity is what we need most,” Hyland wrote, adding:
[I]t’s never fun to look in the mirror and see your hard work at the gym fade away or have your legs be the size of one’s arms. But I know that when I get clearance I will be able to get back to the STRONG, lean and fabulous self I know I can be. You all will probably have something to say about that as well but it won’t affect me. I don’t mind when you say that I look pregnant. Or fat. Because I know that my face is swollen from medication that is saving my life. For those on prednisone I know what you’re going through and I commend you sticking git out as I have.
Have you experienced physical changes due to your illness? How did you cope? Let us know in the comments below.
Jordan Davidson is The Mighty's Managing Editor. Follow her on twitter @JA_Davids or email her at jordan@themighty.com.
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