Hannah said getting the wig was ‘like a dream’ (Picture: Kennedy Media)
While the dating mantra ‘if he wanted to, he would’ has become a little bit controversial, one man proved it might actually be true by spending four years growing his hair so that his girlfriend with alopecia could wear it as a wig.
Hannah Hosking, an American content creator from Watford, Michigan, was diagnosed with alopecia when she was seven, but her hair loss accelerated in 2019, claiming her eyebrows and eyelashes along with her locks.
‘I started looking sick, so then I just shaved it all off,’ she said.
Not long after, she met her boyfriend Cody Ennis, 31, an engineer, who ‘loved’ Hannah’s bald head, not least because it meant her hair didn’t tickle him when they cuddled.
But, one day, he popped the question – no, not that question – “if I were to grow my hair out for you, how long would you want it?”.
Hannah began shaving her hair in 2019 when alopecia claimed her brows and lashes (Picture: Kennedy News and Media)
‘When I met Cody he had a short, cute haircut that looked very “9-5 job”,’ said Hannah.
‘I don’t know exactly what made him want to grow his hair out for me. He just looked at me one day and [asked].
‘I jokingly said “I want 30 inches” because I love long hair.
‘He said “ok great I’m going to grow my hair out for you”.
‘I said it was going to take three or four years and he said “ok”.’
Hannah was diagnosed with alopecia when she was seven (Picture: Kennedy News and Media)
Cody was serious about growing out his locks (Picture: Kennedy News and Media)
Cody took the challenge seriously, buying and using fancy shampoos and conditioners, following online tutorials, sporting protective hairstyles like braids and even sleeping in a satin bonnet to avoid dryness, frizz and breakage.
‘As soon as it started getting near his chin he was like “I need to take serious care of this”,’ Hannah said.
‘He reached out to my niece who’s a cosmetologist and asked how to take care of it so it was healthy when it was time to cut it.’
It took nearly four years for Cody to grow his hair out (Picture: Kennedy News and Media)
Cody had very short hair when the pair first met(Picture: Kennedy News and Media)
Finally, last October, Cody had grown his hair to an impressive 29-inches – all that was left to do was cut it.
Hannah said: ‘I started to put his hair into sections to cut it but then we both got nervous that I was going to cut it wrong so asked my cousin who is a barber to do it.
‘We wrapped each individual section we cut off in paper towels, bagged them up and sent them on their way.’
Cody grew his hair to 29 inches before cutting it (Picture: Kennedy News and Media)
Hannah was too scared to cut the hair herself (Picture: Kennedy News and Media)
They sent his hair to a suitable wigmaker, Florida Fancies, and waited for two-and-a-half months.
When Hannah received the $899 (£705) lace-front wig just last week, she was delighted.
Hannah said the wig is now her prized possession (Picture: Kennedy News and Media)
‘When the wig arrived I was so excited, I cried,’ she said.
‘It won’t be an everyday wig for me because I want it to last as long as possible.
‘Receiving this three-and-a-half-year gift in the making was overwhelming.
‘It feels surreal, it feels like a movie. I can’t believe he dedicated so long of his life and his time into doing this for me.
‘It makes me feel very comforted and safe to know I have someone in my life who is willing to go this extra mile and go above and beyond.
‘I’m excited to wash it and then see his natural curls come in as it’s similar to the curl pattern I had before I lost my hair.
‘It’s my prized possession. Cody said he wants me to wear it on our wedding day.’
Hannah surprised Cody by waking him up with the wig on (Picture: Kennedy News and Media)
She decided to surprise Cody, who was asleep when the wig arrived, by putting it on to wake him up.
‘When I first looked at myself in the mirror I felt loved and so much love for him,’ she said.
Cody joked: ‘I figured if I grew my hair out for her she couldn’t break up with me.’
So, yes — if he wanted to, he really would.
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What’s the saying? If he wanted to, he would?