A 10-year-old girl who was born with a rare genetic condition is embracing her fuzzy hair. Shilah Madison Calvert-Yin is from Melbourne, Australia, and has had fuzzy hair since she was a baby. In the past, she was upset with how different her hair looked compared to her peers, especially since other kids used to tease her. She even went so far as to cut it off out of frustration. Fortunately, the 10-year-old is now learning to love her locks.
Shilah’s condition is known as uncombable hair syndrome, meaning that her hair shafts are heart-shaped and missing the protein needed to straighten it. This results in the girl’s hair looking extremely fluffy and frizzy, and it cannot be combed flat. The condition typically occurs during childhood and usually improves over time.
Shilah and her 39-year-old mother Celeste set up an Instagram account to show Shilah enjoying typical activities that any girl her age would enjoy doing, such as swimming, playing with her dog, and having fun with friends. More importantly, the pictures show Shilah’s hair and just how much the young girl is embracing her condition. The account has since reached more than 17,000 followers.
The 10-year-old has dealt with trying to feel confident with her hair and has had a few other health problems because of her condition. However, Shilah and Celeste hope that by sharing Shilah’s story and talking about her uncombable hair condition, more people will also learn to embrace the characteristics that make us different. Since then, many people have reached out to the family and thanked them for raising awareness about Shilah’s condition.
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According to MedlinePlus, uncombable hair syndrome is characterized by light-colored, dry, frizzy hair that can’t be combed flat and goes in multiple directions. This condition develops in childhood and usually improves over time. It also can cause weakened enamel, porous bones, and brittle fingernails, according to the Daily Mail.
Celeste first noticed something was different with her daughter’s hair when she was only three months old. Years later, Shilah’s dentist was concerned about how weak her teeth were and was actually the one who first told the family about the condition before Shilah went on to be properly diagnosed at the age of 7. Celeste explained, “I was shocked, teary and excited at the same time – finally there was an answer to all those years of questions!”
Shilah’s hair became dry and more fragile as she got older. She used to cut her hair out of frustration and was hurt by what kids called her at school. “I get teased a lot and called ‘fluffhead’ at school – it’s not nice,” she said.
Celeste added, “Early on it was quite nasty because kids wanted to run up and touch her and pull her hair.” The mom also said that a stranger once pointed out the resemblance between Shilah’s hair and Doc Brown from “Back to the Future” – something that the family now considers an “in-house joke.”
Shilah and Celeste now work to raise awareness about the condition through Instagram while also helping Shilah feel more comfortable with her fuzzy hair. Celeste even said that many people have reached out to her and Shilah to explain that they didn’t even know about uncombable hair syndrome, according to the Daily Mail.
What do you think about this family’s efforts to raise awareness about uncombable hair syndrome? Did you know about the condition? Let us know, and feel free to pass this along to your loved ones, too.
