Anonymous

In years to come, the family won’t care what Mrs Jones’ looked like on the day of her grandson’s christening, but that she was able to attend. Pack the wig in a bag in case she changes her mind, call her daughter and prepare her for Mrs Jones’s appearance but don’t deny her the chance to attend a family event of personal high importance. To treat Mrs Jones’ with dignity means to respect her wishes, today her wishes have changed and she doesn’t want to wear the wig, unfortunately this may not fit in quite with her daughter’s wishes but hopefully she will appreciate the hard work Sarah has put into getting Mrs Jones’ to the event.

I remember when my mother was bald during chemotherapy. She had a fantastic wig, but it was hot and itchy. She wore it because at 11 years old I found my mum being bald upsetting and a reminder of her being ill. She always wore a wig when she was around me and as I reflect on that 16 years later I feel guilty that she was often uncomfortable just to keep her daughter happy. Fortunately my mum recovered and her hair grew back. She has been able to live her life, attend family events, make memories and watch her children grow. When I think back about my mum having cancer, I don’t think about her being bald, I think how strong she was both physically and mentally to fight it. I believe life is too precious to consider being bald a reason not to attend family events. Who is to say Mrs Jones’ had not also come to this decision herself. I believe dignity is person centered and is not set in stone. To refuse Mrs Jones’ chance to see her family is the opposite of treating her with dignity, she is not defined by her appearance and no one’s dignity should be defined in a similar way.