Adjusting to a new appearance can be very challenging. Depending on the extent of your hair-loss this might involve employing a number of techniques to cover up the patches, or deciding that you're happy not covering it up and concentrating instead on dealing with reactions from family and friends as well as strangers.

There is no simple solution to dealing with awkward of difficult situations.  Different people will find different situations difficult; and different people will find different ways of coping with them. The important thing is that you have a way of coping with situations with which you are comfortable. This can take time to find and may need a bit of practice. Everybody makes mistakes in difficult situations; don’t give yourself a hard time if you feel you didn’t handle a situation very well.

If, for example, someone asks you why you don’t have any hair, you could try:

Explaining

'I have alopecia, it's a condition which makes your hair fall out.'

Reassuring

'You've noticed my alopecia; don't worry, you can't catch it!'

Changing the subject

'It’s just how I am, did you hear about that story in the news?'

Making a joke

'It's just the way I look. It makes me easier to spot in photos!'

In response to 'What's wrong with you?', you could try:

• 'Nothing'
• 'Please don’t ask me to explain'
• 'Why do you want to know?'
• 'That’s not an appropriate question'.

In response to staring, you could try: 

• 'Please stop staring'
• 'Can I help you?'
• 'Your staring isn't helpful'
• or stare right back with a smile!

These are quite direct, but completely acceptable responses. When the question was blunt – the answers were too.