I'M TURNING 40!

Motivational speaker Mckenna Reitz knows exactly what defines her (and what doesn't).

- Christa Lee

After developing alopecia Universalis, an autoimmune condition that results in the loss of all hair, in late 2015, Mckenna had trouble looking at herself in the mirror. "I was always known for my long, thick hair, but I never identified with it until it was gone," she says. She tried to conceal her condition at first, but felt motivated to show her two daughters how she handled adversity: "I wanted to prove to them that we were strong enough to get through anything, especially since alopecia can be genetic," she says. In addition to working full-time as a high school teacher, she speaks about her journey at events across t