A young woman who suffers from alopecia hopes to raise awareness of the condition by holding a fun day.

Laura Turner was 16 when her hair started falling out due to stress.

She said: “I was getting really bad panic attacks and I had to leave school early and I got home schooled.

“I actually found out [about the hair loss] on April Fool’s Day. My mum said I had a bald patch.

“She told me three times and when I looked in the mirror I did the loudest scream in the world.

“I was obsessed with my hair. I used to dye it all the time and when it fell out it destroyed me pretty much.

“It still brings me down quite a lot. It feels like my feminine side has been taken away.”

Now 21 she said she still battles with low confidence but is more accepting of her alopecia and now wears her nickname, Wiggy, with pride, insisting it’s better to laugh about it.

She said: “I met my partner [Jamie McDonald] and I started being able to leave the house.

“I’m coming to terms with it now. I didn’t deal with it too well in the beginning. It’s taken me a long time.

“I was called Wiggy-Lou all the time and it just stuck. It’s my stage name now.”

Singing is one way Miss Turner has been trying to build self-esteem and she is hoping to start an Amy Winehouse, Cher and Lady Gaga tribute act.

She has been getting help to overcome her nerves and now hopes to find a job through an NHS introduction to work scheme.

Miss Turner, of Newcomen Road, Sheerness, sometimes speaks to young people recently diagnosed with alopecia on online message boards and said: “I tell them just keep strong. It’s tough at first but you will get used to it and there is always that hope of it growing back, but it is very rare.”

She is now planning a fundraiser at Sheppey Sports and Social Club, off Queenborough Road, Halfway, called Wiggy’s Funday, in aid of Alopecia UK.

It will be held on Sunday, August 23, from 1pm to 6pm, with stalls, an ice-cream van, face-painting, bouncy castle and boot fair for £10 a pitch which will go to the charity.

Live music will be provided by Action Man, J Status, Ginga C, M Dot R, DJ Harry Williams and a Pink Floyd tribute.

Entry is £2 for adults, £1 for children or £5 for a family of five.