For many of us, hair is just a part of our morning routine. But for those living with alopecia, it can mean the difference between hiding and being seen.
For Milwaukee stylist Jennifer Brown, it’s more than just hair—it’s healing.
“I’m four generations into the barber and cosmetology industry,” said Brown, owner of JenGer Doll Medical Wigs & Accessories. “I grew up in a salon because my mother was a stylist. It’s really in my blood.”
At her salon in Milwaukee’s Bronzeville neighborhood, Brown specializes in medical wigs—custom creations designed for women experiencing hair loss due to alopecia, chemotherapy, or other medical conditions.
But her work goes far beyond the cosmetic.
“People can cause or speed up alopecia by having tight hairdos,” Brown explained. “But a lot of people aren’t aware that alopecia can come through stress, work, or life transitions.”
Watch: A Milwaukee stylist is restoring confidence, one strand at a time
Healing through hair
Brown sees clients from all walks of life—each with a deeply personal story behind their hair loss.
One of them is Renee Turnage, who remembers the day she first noticed her hair falling out.
“I was combing my hair one day and I had one fist of hair, and then another,” Turnage recalled. “My daughter recommended Jennifer. She’s been treating me, and I’ve been loving the results ever since.”
For Brown, those results aren’t just measured in inches of hair—but in renewed confidence.
From Milwaukee to Washington, D.C.
After three years in her Bronzeville salon, Brown’s advocacy for women with hair loss is expanding beyond Wisconsin. Earlier this year, she met Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley while in Washington, D.C.
Pressley, who has openly shared her own struggle with alopecia, has introduced a bill requiring Medicare to cover wigs for people experiencing medical hair loss.
Inspired by that meeting, Brown is now preparing to introduce similar legislation in Madison.
“We want to bring awareness and enlightenment to alopecia and hair loss conditions,” she said.
A shared struggle
The impact of hair loss extends far beyond the mirror. Actress Brandi Reed, the Manager of Education at Skylight Music Theatre, knows that feeling all too well.
“I experienced alopecia after having my child,” Reed said. “It was devastating, because I didn’t know what was going on with my body.” While doctors searched for answers, her condition worsened.
“There was severe damage being done to the hair that I had left,” she said. “That was hard—just feeling a lot of shame.” Today, Reed credits her stylist—and her daughter—for helping her reclaim her confidence.
“She told me that if I tell my story, it could inspire someone else,” Reed said. Her message to others going through the same journey is simple but powerful:
“First of all, eradicate the shame. It’s not your fault that these were the cards you were dealt,” she said. “You are not your hair.”
Redefining beauty
Reed, also a breast cancer survivor who underwent a double mastectomy, reflects on how her experiences have reshaped her understanding of womanhood and beauty.
“It’s not my fault, and I can be just as beautiful with or without any of that stuff,” she said. “Now, that doesn’t mean I don’t want it—that’s me being real. But I can get through life just like I am, and I like it.”
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