Find A Youth Mentor

Hi, I’m Bill! I’m from outside Philadelphia and currently live in Los Angeles. I first noticed small patches of hair loss when I was 12 and have bounced between alopecia areata and alopecia universalis since. Over the years, I tried a number of treatment alternatives, including topical medicine and steroid injections, with little success. I turned to hairpieces and wigs for a few years, and while I think there are plenty of great benefits to these, I eventually found them to be inconvenient for me. I decided to get scalp micro pigmentation work done, and I love the results! While my journey with alopecia has had its ups and downs, I feel comfortable with and confident about my alopecia today. While the road to find acceptance wasn’t always the easiest, I truly believe that I’m a stronger and more resilient individual for it. In terms of more background on me, I graduated from Penn State with a degree in finance and spent a few years working in New York after graduation before moving to Los Angeles for a new job opportunity. In my free time, I enjoy being active and am an avid sports fan (I’m a die-hard fan of all Philadelphia sports teams). Soccer is my favorite sport and I still play and watch today! I also love music, particularly rock. I attend concerts regularly in Los Angeles and have also played guitar since I was 12. I am excited to be part of the mentorship program and have the opportunity to share my alopecia journey and to support you on your journey. I’m looking forward to meeting you!

Hey! I am Radhika Kulkarni. I am 24 years old and I’m from India. I just finished my medical education there and I am planning on coming to the US for Residency Training in Internal Medicine. I have lived in India all my life, and I was diagnosed with alopecia universalis early in childhood. Back then, especially in a country like India, no one had ever heard of it, even the countless doctors to whom we went were perplexed and tried all sorts of alchemy, none of which were successful. I had always been a bold and outgoing child, and my parents were probably the most important reason for this; for they taught me to be strong, fearless and relentless in the face of any challenge. We have been remotely associated with NAAF since 2004- my mother became a support group contact through NAAF for Indians with alopecia. Now I am trying to create a support group for people back home. We all have people at different times and in different aspects of our lives to whom we look up to for guidance and support. Through this youth mentorship program we hope to enable this during the vulnerable periods of children’s lives. I believe that your time is now, this moment is yours, believe it, seize it and purely enjoy it. I want you all to know that no matter what, everything will always be okay, if not great, and the power to ensure that lies within YOU, and I hope to help you realize that!

Hi!! My name is Samantha Myers, I’m 20 years old. I was diagnosed with alopecia when I was in 7th grade. When I got to college in the fall of 2017, my hair rapidly began falling out leaving only about 15% of my natural hair left. My biggest fear use to be people finding out about my disease so I did any and everything to hide it. About 8 months ago I finally told someone for the first time. Instead of a look of terror and shock, they gave me a look of warmth and asked me to talk about it more. Since then, I have found the more I talk about my situation the more I am able to cope with it and make light of it. I spent 6 years in fear of people knowing, only to find when I was able to be the most myself, people loved every piece about me and I was able to love every piece of me. I want to help people realize the strengths in their differences much sooner than I did! Thanks to my alopecia, I have taken a great interest in the medical field and am currently studying to be a Physician Assistant at the University of Missouri. In addition to my studies, I am on the executive board of my sorority, work at the hospital on campus as a nurse technician, and play club volleyball at the university. I’m so excited and really looking forward to getting to meet you as soon as possible and help in anyway I can!!!

Hi everyone! I’m Laura and I’m from Park Ridge, IL which is right outside of Chicago. I currently go to the University of Wisconsin-Madison and am pre-PA majoring in Biology and Global Health. I discovered I had Alopecia when I was 8 years old while I was getting ready for school one morning. A few months later, after trying several different treatments, I was diagnosed with Alopecia Universalis and have had no hair growth ever since. Following the year of my diagnosis I went to my first NAAF conference and went for four more years after that. My journey with Alopecia has definitely not been easy as looking so different from my friends and classmates was extremely hard for me. It really took me a long time to accept myself with Alopecia and accept that this might not ever get better. Keeping busy and doing things that I loved all while leaning on my amazing friends and family was what kept me going. I played volleyball all throughout middle school and high school and was editor of my high school newspaper. Now, in college I’m meeting new people all the time and have found it so much easier to be open about my Alopecia and my journey with it as this wasn’t the case while I was growing up. I love hanging out with my friends, going to football games (Go Badgers), and taking advantage of every opportunity I find. Having Alopecia has completely changed my perspective on life and I would love to share my experiences and give any advice I have to my mentee(s)!

Hello, I’m Bella! I’m 19 years old and I’m from Southern California. I attend college in Northern California, specifically as a second-year student at the University of California, Davis. Back home in sunny SoCal, I live with my parents, my twin brother and my poodle-pup named Annabelle. Whenever I can, I love to hike, practice yoga, go to the beach, and attend art galleries and museums. One of my main goals in life is to travel for as long as I’m able to, not necessarily attempt to visit every country, but to connect culturally and make meaningful visits to new places in a deliberate manner. I was diagnosed with alopecia areata during the summer of 2017 after being diagnosed with other health problems, which seemed to cause my AA. Even though my condition isn’t severe nor is it genetic, the emotional trauma of going through this physical disease was tremendously tough. Being a mentor, I want to be able to connect with other battlers of alopecia areata and create potential discussion for a fellow victim in need of a safe space and someone to confide in. I’m very excited to start this program under NAFF and I hope to find another mentee I can learn from and experience a new friendship with. There’s so much to appreciate and to give back in our world, and having hair or not isn’t a criteria of true beauty. What’s beautiful is the struggle in hardships and overcoming obstacles that you wouldn’t think was possible. Having this condition is difficult, rare, and physically arduous, but acceptance and radiating love back out into our environment and to others is the ultimate cure.

My name is Kevin Bernstein, and I’m originally from Seattle, WA (I now live in San Francisco). I was diagnosed with Alopecia when I was 8 years-old shortly after having an Emergency Hernia surgery. Shortly thereafter, from fourth to twelfth grade, I struggled to accept the fact that I looked different then my peers, and went forward with wearing a hat every single day when I stepped in public. I even quit basketball in sixth grade because I was told that I couldn’t wear a hat anymore when I played! By my senior year of high school, I realized that Alopecia was controlling me, and that I was not controlling it. I had attempted several different forms of treatment (several prescribed pills, topical steroids, injections, Chinese Medicine, etc.) but none were working very well. Ultimately, I slowly began to accept the way I looked, which dramatically increased my happiness and well-being. After high school, I attended, and graduated, from the University of Southern California (Fight On). I enjoyed my time in college, and never realized until recently that many of my friends didn’t even know what I looked like with hair! After graduation, I moved to San Francisco where I now work at Visa as part of a two-year leadership/cross-discipline business rotational program. Things I do for fun... playing/watching sports (played tennis and lacrosse most of my life), reading about technology, trying new/foreign foods, traveling whenever I can, big Seattle Seahawks fan, mentoring/helping those who may be less fortunate than me, watching all types of movies, hikes/exercise/walking. I hope, and look forward to developing a relationship with a mentee(s)!

Hi my name is Rachael! I’m originally from Boston but am currently in North Carolina for my masters in public health at UNC. I was first diagnosed with alopecia when I was in ninth grade. During that time, I lost about a third of my hair. Since then, I’ve experienced seasons of regrowth and loss as I went from high school to college and now grad school. As a current public health student, I hope to be an advocate to bring more awareness to alopecia in our current healthcare system. It’s been quite the rollercoaster of a journey, but I’m excited to share my experiences with others in this community and learn from them too! In my free time, I enjoy baking, crafting, learning new languages and playing the guitar!

Hi all, my name is Kate Zipperer, and I’m a medical student living in Galveston, Texas. I’m originally from the Austin area, and studied biology at UT. I love to exercise, go to the beach, and travel. Snow-skiing is my favorite! I’m applying to dermatology residency next year, and I look forward to spending my life treating alopecia and connecting with my patients over this common bond. My alopecia story began when I was in the first grade, and was diagnosed with alopecia areata around the same time as my mother. As a child I was ashamed of this part of my life and kept it a secret. Once I started discussing it with others, it lost its power over me and I felt more free to be myself. I hope that I can be a friend to be there for others who are struggling with this condition. I currently mentor and tutor my fellow medical students as well as undergraduate students who are pre-med, and I look forward to connecting with my future mentees over this disease which has been so formative for me and many others.

Hi! My name is Laura and I am 17 years old. I live right outside of Philadelphia, PA and I am a junior in high school. I really enjoy playing volleyball, going to the beach, and traveling! During the summers, I volunteer at a hospital as I am planning on studying biology in college. I was diagnosed with alopecia areata when I was five years old, but it quickly progressed to universalis after all my hair fell out during the summer before first grade. My experience with alopecia was difficult at first, but being a part of the NAAF community has helped me embrace my alopecia! One thing I really look forward to every year is going to the NAAF conference. It is a lot fun and I have made so many friends who I keep in touch with throughout the year. I really look forward to getting to know you and helping you in any way that I can!

“Hi everyone! My name is Julissa. I am 23 years old and I am from Newark, New Jersey. I was diagnosed with alopecia universalis at 1 years old. I’ve experienced hair loss throughout my childhood. As a child, I depended on wigs to be my safe haven. After years of inner conflict, I was finally able to embrace who I am and not hesitate to share my beautiful story with the world. I aim to encourage others to feel free in their own skin. I remember as a child how difficult my journey and sometimes it still is. However, with my experiences I know I can have the opportunity to impact and be a part of someone else’s journey. Hair does not determine your worth or who you are as a person, only you determine that.”