A FLAMENCO dancer from Brecon has made a video of the moment she chose to shave off all the hair on her head after getting the news that she has alopecia.

Josie Sinnadurai, who travels the world performing the flamboyant Spanish dance, said she was initially very shocked when her hair started to fall out in early December.

After several false diagnoses, she was eventually told she had developed the most severe form of the autoimmune hair-loss condition, which means all of her hair will fall out – including her body hair.

The news she had alopecia universalis was broken to her on Sunday, February 17. But within days she had bounced back from that emotional blow to make a video of her having her head shaved.

Before her hair began to fall out in “big clumps”, Josie had a long mane of dark hair which ran down her back and was an essential part of the Latin look she strove to achieve to accompany her performances.

Josie, whose dancing talent has been her passport for a globetrotting career as a performer, said she decided to make the video because she didn’t want to let her condition become the defining part of her life.

She said: “When I initially started to lose my hair it was obviously a huge shock, especially as at first it wasn’t clear what the problem was. I’d never before experienced having my hair fall out like this and it was a while before I had a definite diagnosis – so I have constantly had to readjust to it. It began when I noticed hair on my pillow when I got out of bed in the mornings.

“Then one day in the shower and brushing my hair afterwards, huge handfuls were coming out.

“This was just before my 25th birthday in December. Since then I’ve been through several phases of thinking it was something else. At one stage I thought it might be telogen effluvium, which is a reactive alopecia that happens for a reason.

“Alopecia universalis is an autoimmune condition, which occurs when the body attacks its own cells. There’s no known cause, it could be stress or genetic but no one knows for sure.”

In the video Josie has made, she speaks to the camera at the beginning while wearing a woolly hat over her hair. Other images come on to the screen showing the stages of her hair loss and how her hair used to look before she acquired her condition.

A male friend then appears with an electric shaver and makes a quick and tidy job of shaving her head.

Josie can see the results in a mirror and looks a bit startled before her trademark smile soon reappears. At the end of the video are some photos of Josie’s now bald head taken from different angles, including some striking shots of her head decorated with a henna tattoo.

Josie says the idea of making the video was in order to embrace her condition and show other people who might one day experience alopecia that there is nothing to fear from it.

Josie is now reconciled to her diagnosis although she says it took her about five days to come to terms with it.

Her video, which she has put on YouTube, is called “My Alopecia Story - The Day I Shaved My Head”.

Josie, who is currently in Jerez in Spain, said she was naturally concerned about how the condition would affect her career. She has already done a few street performances since shaving off her hair but has worn a headscarf. She says that when she gets back on to performing on stage she will probably wear a wig so being bald doesn’t distract people from the performance.

Josie says the response to her video has been amazingly uplifting. She said: “My friends and family have seen it and have been really supportive. I’ve also had a great response from other people with alopecia. I’ve shared the video with Alopecia UK and Facebook groups. One woman got in touch from the Philippines.

“She has a less extreme form of alopecia, known as alopecia areata, and she said she had shown my video to her family to help explain her condition to them and she said she had found it ‘inspirational’. I want to raise awareness and understanding of alopecia.

“Healthwise I feel absolutely fine. I don’t have any other symptoms and I’m not going to let it take over my life. I may try out some treatments and it’s still possible my hair may grow back one day.”

Josie added: “It took me a little while to adjust, but I’ve decided to just get on with it. Everyone likes to be comfortable with their appearance, so having alopecia is a bit weird and I know sometimes I’m going to get stared at. but I’m a performer so I’m used to that.”

Josie, who was born in London but grew up in Brecon after her family moved here when she was six years old, has carved out a niche for herself as a Welsh flamenco dancer. In January 2017 she gained a role in a Hollywood movie as a flamenco dancer in Lost in London and last year she performed in Spain, Israel, the UK and spent some time touring in Canada.

This year she expects to go back to Canada while in April she will be back in mid Wales, appearing at Tomatitos in Hay-on-Wye and the Clarence Inn in Brecon. In June she could be back again appearing at Theatr Brycheiniog or the Muse.

In December, she is appearing in ballet in The Nutcracker at Theatr Brycheiniog. Her mother Katy, Sinnadurai, is the ballet’s choreographer and is the person from whom she gained her love of dancing and performance.

Josie says many of her friends in Brecon may be worried about her when they see the video and the drastic change in her appearance. But her message to them is a simple one. “Listen, what I’d say to my friends in Brecon and to everyone else who knows me is this, ‘I don’t feel sorry for myself – so they don’t have to either!’ ”