WINCHESTER, Va. (AP) - Because she takes a chemo pill a day for her lung cancer, Jeanette Hillyard has skin breakouts, brittle nails and hair that is now coarse and kinky.
It was this latter problem that Hillyard, 67, and cosmetologist T. Hoover were trying to solve on a Monday in August.
“I have not in all my years seen hair grow in like that,” said Hoover, who works at South End Barbershop and Colonial Wig Room at 1018 Kinzel Drive.
After suggesting different hair products, hot-oil treatments and a monthly trim - all of which Hillyard said she has done and “nothing changes it” - Hoover digs deep into her bag of hairstyling tricks.
“You might go as far as to use mayonnaise,” she says next. “But don’t use too much because you’ll have to use a lot of shampoo to get it out.”
Hillyard is a non-smoker who was diagnosed about two years ago with stage four lung cancer that is now in remission. She seems to contemplate Hoover’s idea. Whether she’ll go home and do it is another thing, but that’s what the Look Good Feel Better Class is all about: giving tips and suggestions to women with cancer on how to overcome the beauty roadblocks the disease has thrown at them.
“The main goal is to make our ladies feel better and look better,” Hoover said. “To emphasize their features and leave here knowing they have a new transformation.”
Look Good Feel Better Class
The Look Good Feel Better Class is offered by the American Cancer Society every month from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the conference room at the Valley Health Cancer Center.
Aimee Nuwer, senior community development manager with the American Cancer Society, said local Relay for Life funding supports the program.
“This program is such a good place for women with cancer to have a little fun for a couple of hours and make new friends who are going through what they’re going through,” she said.
The free workshop provides professional guidance and instruction on beauty, skin care, cosmetics, nail care, hair loss alternatives and styling tips to address the appearance side effects of cancer treatment. The class is open to female cancer patients who are currently receiving treatment. On Aug. 7, two women attended the program: Hillyard and Susie Ellis.
Each participant in the class gets a free make-up bag with everything from eyeliner to nail polish. Brands include Clinique, Bobbi Brown, Estee Lauder and Neutrogena - all which stores have donated for the cause.
Hoover helps the participants apply their makeup, starting with cream and concealer and ending with mascara and tips on wigs. She’s a straight shooter - she tells the women that’s too much rouge or too little, or to blot their lips because their lipstick is too dark. She advises soft strokes for drawing in eyebrows and washing your wig every four weeks in the summer due to sweat.
“I’ve been in wigs a long time, and I know the transformation you can have,” Hoover said. “I’ve dealt with a whole lot of cancer patients and always enjoyed it. This is just another step in that.”
The not-so-pretty side effects of cancer
Susie Ellis will tell you about her dry skin - “Skin is just dry, dry, dry,” she laments. She bemoans the acne that pops up post-treatment, her thin eyebrows that drive her insane and what she calls her pitiful nails.
And then there’s the times she looks in the mirror and is taken aback by her bald head.
“I’m still getting used to seeing myself with no hair,” she said. “It takes away a little bit of confidence. I counteract it with holding my head high, and you know that old saying, ’Never let them see you sweat.’”
At 64 years old, Ellis wears a colorful scarf to hide her lack of hair. She just finished treatment for breast cancer but will undergo infusions soon. This is the second time she has been diagnosed with cancer; the first time was in 2010. She attended the class to get beauty tips she might not know about.
“Your self-esteem goes down when you feel like you’re not looking your best,” she said.
But Ellis is not complaining. She’s sharing. And that’s one of the benefits of the class. Women can tell their stories without fear of judgment - no matter how unpleasant those stories might be.
When the topic of brittle nails comes up, Hoover recalls a woman whose nails all turned black and fell off. Hillyard said some of her toenails have faced the same fate. Her teeth have also cracked, leading her to get five new crowns. Ellis talks about chemo brain and forgetting stuff, while Hillyard shares how cancer treatment affected her ability to read without glasses. She also has to wear gloves sometimes because her fingers are so sensitive.
“You might have neuropathy,” Hoover chimes in.
And then there’s the really odd side effects - when Hillyard was taking her first medicine, her eyebrows turned black and her eyelashes grew so long she had to cut them.
“It was the strangest thing,” she said.
An application of humor
Part of the appeal of the class is laughter.
Ellis has named her tumor Earl, or Evil Earl, after the Dixie Chicks’ song “Goodbye Earl” about an abusive husband.
She said she tries to stay optimistic.
“Your choice is to wallow or be productive,” she said. “The best is to be productive, but every person has a right to wallow.”
Hillyard recalls the time her wig flew off as the doors at Costco opened with a big gust of air. She just knew it was all captured on camera, she said.
“What are you going to do?” she said. “You gotta laugh.”
Going forward, both admit they’re tired, but the class is just one step in taking back their life from cancer. It’s a journey that anyone with the disease can tell you is not an easy one.
“I miss my physical vitality the most,” Ellis said. “There’s a lot I can’t do right now. It will come back, but it’s frustrating.”
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