Teen model Tiahna Faraci’s runway dreams have been thrown into disarray after a battle with alopecia

A teenage girl who dreamed of becoming a model has revealed the horror she faced when her long locks began to fall out due to a mysterious illness.

Tiahna Faraci was just 15 years old when she noticed a nickel-sized bald spot on the front of her scalp.

Within a few months, bald spots had spread across her head and large lumps were constantly falling out.

“Later on the track, it was all over the sheets, on your pillow,” she told The Project.

“I shed myself like a dog.”

Tiahna Faraci (pictured) was just 15 when she noticed a nickel-sized bald spot on the front of her scalp

Within a few months, all of Tiahna’s (pictured) hair began to fall out

Her mother Rosanna Faraci, an accomplished model and photographer who is a single mother of two daughters, could only watch in agony.

“It was a really dark time,” Rosanna said.

“She (Tiahna) just shut down. She didn’t think she was lovable and that really broke my heart because without hair you’re still very lovable.”

Tiahna has been diagnosed with alopecia, an autoimmune condition that causes the body to attack its own hair follicles.

At first it appeared to be limited to Tiahna’s head, but soon spread to the rest of her body, even falling out her eyebrows and eyelashes.

“I didn’t even want to leave the house,” she said.

“I thought I was like the ugliest thing on earth. You really learn how low your self-esteem can plummet.”

Rosanna spent thousands on treatments for her daughter, but to no avail.

At one point, Tiahna was receiving about 100 cortisone injections on her scalp every month.

“It was agony and she cried every morning and night. Her spirit is just broken,’ Rosanna said.

In December, Tiahna finally made the decision to shave her hair and found it to be a liberating experience.

“It was very empowering,” Tiahna said.

“I knew then that I would get through this.

“I just had a huge smile on my face. I was happy. When I looked in the mirror I thought, ‘Oh, I don’t look so bad with a shaved head’.

In March, Tiahna even debuted her new look on the runway for the Melbourne Fashion Festival.

Tiahna is pictured on the runway at the Melbourne Fashion Festival

Tiahna has been diagnosed with alopecia, an autoimmune condition that causes the body to attack its own hair follicles

Tiahna finally made the decision to shave off what was left of her hair and found it to be a liberating experience (pictured are Rosanna and Tiahna)

“I was very nervous at first, but when you walk the runway you get a lot of adrenaline,” Tiahna said.

“I felt really famous.”

Proud Mama Rosanna watched.

“Just seeing what she went through last year and seeing her smile again was all,” she said.

Tiahna now alternates between looking bald or wearing a wig co-sourced by children’s charity Variety Australia.

“I just like to wear a wig so people aren’t looking at me all the time,” Tiahna said.

She still hopes to get her hair back and is trying medication to make it happen.

“Alopecia is an ebb and flow,” she said.

“As a young girl, I want my hair back.

“Pull it up in a bun without worrying about putting on a wig.

“I’m still learning to love myself again.”