Cancer-Stricken Woman Walks Down Aisle As Bald Bride At Her Own Wedding

Many brides are obsessed with their hair before walking down aisle on their wedding day, but for Shannon O’Hara, being a bald bride was a symbol of pride. The 28-year-old from Redding, Connecticut was diagnosed with lymphoma, a cancer that attacks the immune system.

Andrea Jacobson from The Observatory photographed Shannon’s wedding. She tells Huffington Post:

“Shannon had both the best attitude and the biggest challenges I’ve ever seen a bride have on her wedding day.”

The Mighty has an in-depth article on Shannon’s wedding day and her experience as a bald bride. She shares that she always dreamed of wearing her mother’s lace wedding veil that would elegantly fall on her hair. When she got the call about her cancer diagnosis, she was shocked. O’Hara says:

“It was such a shocking phone call. The whole evening is basically a blur.”

At first Shannon looked for wigs. As summer arrived, she wore scarves, baseball caps, and eventually went bald running errands. Her seamstress came up with the perfect solution for Shannon to wear her mother’s lace wedding veil; she created a beautiful lace cap and attached the veil to it. It turned out amazing.

The bald bride looked lavish in her gown and veil. Shannon felt beautiful. She shares:

“In the middle of the reception, being surrounded by family and friends, I decided to take off my lace cap and just be a beautiful, bald bride and celebrate with everyone. I didn’t feel any different, in fact, I felt just as beautiful, possibly even more!”

Andrea Jacobson said she was prepared for O’Hara to stop and take rest breaks during their photo sessions and at the reception, but the bride never needed one. She was energetic and well the whole time, feeding off the positive energy around her on her wedding day with family and friends.

Shannon O’Hara has been in remission since November 2013.

This beautiful bald bride wants others to be inspired by her and enjoy looking at her wedding photos.

“People don’t necessarily need to be sick with cancer to be inspired by my story. I hope that people will see the silver lining in every day. I hope that anyone who is going through a struggle can look at my photos and read my story and know that in time, everything will work out the way that it is supposed to.”

[Images via Andrea Jacobson/The Observatory]