Salon owner Rebecca Morgan-Brennan is used to making her clients look and feel good . . . but when it comes to boosting the confidence of people with cancer or medical hair loss, she’s a cut above the rest.
Running Morgan’s Wigs alongside her day job at Morgan’s Hair and Beauty on Prestatyn High Street, her efforts are centred around helping patients with image therapy.
It was the plight of a close friend diagnosed with cancer that inspired the mum to learn more about wigs. Rebecca explained: “A very close friend of mine had breast cancer and I had shaved her hair.
“She was so upset by the lack of help for women in her predicament, from choosing wigs and coping with changes to their image, whilst going through such an awful time and having treatment. I asked the head cancer nurse at Glan Clwyd Hospital how I could help and she mentioned the Trevor Sorbie My New Hair course, which I attended.
“Vital training was given in helping patients deal with hair loss, wearing a wig, giving them confidence and encouragement to try to be as normal as they possibly can be.”
She added: “I learned how to cut wigs, had one-to-one meetings with Macmillan nurses, and learned about what people go through when they are having chemo. I also learned a lot about the mental impact of hair loss.
“Your hair is the same outfit you wear every day so to lose it is truly devastating, sometimes more so than the actual diagnosis.”
Rebecca put her training into practice on a mostly voluntary basis, working with alopecia sufferers to gain experience. I realised that people deserved choices in the wigs they were able to have when their lives were in such turmoil, so I decided to open a salon in Prestatyn that was big enough to offer a dedicated service where they had privacy, combined with the great feeling of visiting a salon.
“We set up a wig bank for people unable to afford the one they want and offer them more choice.
“We have been lucky that so many kind people have donated their used wigs which we wash, restyle and pass on to hair loss suffers free of charge.
“We now have a wig bank in Chester, too.”
Rebecca has since completed three levels of the Trevor Sorbie course and is now the official NHS supplier of wigs for hospital patients across North Wales and West Cheshire.
Her role means she can visit patients in hospital or at home, or they can come to the salons.
Rebecca explained what the process involves.
“A patient is given a voucher for an NHS wig and we start off with a personal consultation, talking about what wigs and hairstyles they like.
“We may have a wig in stock that they like, in which case we can cut it and style it for them and they can take it away.
“Or we can order a selection in for them to try.
“We also give them image advice because ladies can lose their eyebrows and eyelashes and their skin tone changes. People can come into the salon and still feel like they are having the hairdresser experience.
“We also have a private room where they can try on a number of different wigs to see which ones suit them or, if they prefer, I will visit them in hospital or at home.”
Staff at Morgan’s will cut and style wigs for free.
Patients are then encouraged to attend Look Good Feel Better (LGFB) workshops to help them conquer any image and confidence issues.
As regional coordinator for the North Wales branch of the charity, Rebecca runs the free skin care and make up sessions, which take place every six weeks at The Beaches Hotel in Prestatyn, and will soon be available in Bangor.
With therapeutic and psychological benefits, the workshops help people cope with the visible side-effects of cancer and hair loss conditions.
Rebecca, who also supports the charities, My New Hair and the Little Princess Trust, said: “We invite ladies, teenagers – and soon will invite gentlemen – to come along to a LGFB workshops.
“They are given a bag of products donated by the big cosmetic companies and we use those to teach them how to make themselves look better on the outside while they are going through treatment and are probably feeling not so great on the inside.
“They are able to attend up to 12 months after they’ve finished their treatment because some people don’t feel well enough during.
“They can make friends and talk to others who are going through the same thing and learn new techniques to feel better about themselves as well.”
Rebecca said the response to the workshops has been “amazing”.
“The ladies absolutely love it, most of them have never had a make-up lesson before or been shown about skin care.
“A lot of people don’t open up while they are going through treatment and feel alone, so it helps to be able to talk to someone who knows what it’s like. The LGFB service is important because going through cancer or medical hair loss conditions has a big impact on confidence and personality.
“It’s a reminder every time they look in the mirror. But being able to walk around feeling better about yourself on the outside is the best therapy.”
To find out more about the LGFB workshops or wig bank service, visit the salon's website or call 01745 798747.
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