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She’s The First Bald Sports Illustrated Model And She’s Using Her Platform To Normalize Alopecia And Baldness In Women


In July of 2019, Christie Valdiserri walked the runway for Sports Illustrated in Miami Swim Week. After she made it down the runway, she ripped her wig off in front of a crowd of thousands and revealed her baldness.

“It was the most liberating moment of my life,” Valdiserri said. “I thought, I’m taking power back. I am controlling what beauty means to me, and I’m showing it to the world.”

Valdiserri went on to become Sports Illustrated’s first bald model. She was one of six chosen to be in their 2020 centerfold. 

After years of self-doubt and shame since being diagnosed with alopecia in 2016, it was an empowering moment. The Mayo Clinic defines alopecia as hair loss that can affect just your scalp or entire body, and it can be temporary or permanent. In addition, it can be hereditary and can occur because of hormonal changes, medical conditions, or as a normal part of aging. 

Valdiserri has no family members with the condition, so when her hair started falling out only a month after graduating college, she dismissed it as stress. But then, her hair kept falling out — in chunks— while she was sleeping, in the shower, and throughout the day. 

It was alarming for the then 21-year-old, who had recently moved to New York City to pursue a career as a dancer. After her diagnosis, she worked to stop the hair loss and cover it up. She underwent steroid injections, which helped a bit, used hairpieces, and learned how to part her hair in ways that would cover the bald patches. 

“It was so frustrating, so overwhelming, and so upsetting,” Valdiserri said. “In the entertainment industry, especially as a dancer, literally 99% of it is what you look like, and I’m losing my look while I’m literally starting my career.”

“When you’re losing your hair as a woman at whatever age, you have so much shame because the world and the beauty standards make you feel like you need to have hair to be beautiful.”

Valdiserri booked her dream job as a dancer on a cruise ship shortly after her diagnosis. She told her new employers about the alopecia and believed they were okay with the situation — she says they even offered to buy her a wig. 

But six weeks after she started, she was abruptly fired and given no reason other than “she stood out and pulled too much attention.” 

“I was so excited when I got that job. I was so grateful because I was living my dream,” she said. “I was on cloud nine, and then boom, it was taken from me. I felt discriminated against and hit rock bottom quickly.”

The morning after she was fired, Valdiserri was sent home and lived with her parents in the Philadelphia area for a few months recovering from the traumatizing experience that left her completely bald. She was depressed, humiliated, and unsure about what was next in her life. A far cry for Valdiserri who grew up as a ballet dancer, and who up until this point lived what she calls a happy and “normal” life.

Eventually, Valdiserri concluded that the only way forward was a fresh start; she wanted to live somewhere no one knew her story. She also wanted to be in a city where she could continue to pursue dance. And for some reason, Los Angeles, California, was calling her name. 

On August 22, 2017, she put on her blonde wig and moved across the country.

“I hid for a year under this blonde wig; I was so scared,” Valdiserri said. “I would go to hot yoga where it was 100 degrees in the room, and I kept on my wig because I was so afraid.”

“And then it got to the point that people would make comments like, ‘Oh, is that a wig?’ Or ‘Oh, are you wearing extensions?’ or ‘What’s your natural hair color?’ And every time somebody would comment, I would break down, and I would either go to the bathroom and hide and cry or come home and shut my door and cry.”

“I was like I cannot let people’s comments and curiosity and things that they say to me affect me like this. I can’t live like this anymore.”

So Valdiserri made a dance video where she took her wig off and explained her condition and posted it on social media. She also hosted an event for her friends where she took her wig off in front of them. Finally, she was released from the weight of her secret, and in the following months, her hair started growing back. At one point, she says, she even thought her alopecia days were behind her. 

Then, out of the blue, her hair fell out again. But this time, it also impacted her eyebrows and body hair. She spent 12 days in her room, crying.

The emotional toll was even more significant this time around for Valdiserri, who said she was waiting for her hair to grow back to take photos to submit to be a Sports Illustrated swimsuit model. 

“And then my hair fell out again, and I was like, what am I going to do? Let this continue to dictate my happiness, or I’m going to take my power back and make this something beautiful?” she said.

Valdiserri decided to take photos she’d submit to Sports Illustrated — bald — with no expectations. Little did she know, she would not only be chosen to walk in their runway show in Miami, but they would also use her photos in the magazine.

“It was a life-changing moment for me,” she said.

She shot for the magazine in February 2020, and then the Covid-19 pandemic shut the world down. Valdiserri started teaching dance classes online and noticed numerous bald young girls were signing up for her classes. She realized there was no space for bald women and girls to come together and made it her mission to create that community. 

 Valdiserri created Baldtourage – a community with over 2000 women and girls who work to redefine baldness as bold and beautiful. The group has monthly meetups, wine nights for the adults, and support sessions. It’s now even worldwide with members living in America, Italy, and England.

“My hope is for everyone that has hair loss to feel beautiful and worthy, and for them to have the confidence and power to embrace it and not carry shame with them,” she said. “Everyone deserves to feel like they’re enough and they’re beautiful.”



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