Mom Of Toddler With “Uncombable Hair Syndrome” Says She Would Not Wish To Change A Thing

“Uncombable Hair Syndrome” is a rare condition where a person’s hair isn’t possible to smoothen out with a comb. The hair though is soft, however, it sticks straight out of the head and has this frizzy look. And combing it takes a lot of care because the hair with this condition is extremely fragile.

That’s exactly the rare condition that this baby has…

Locklan Samples is a 16-month-old baby boy who was diagnosed with the syndrome. And now, his mother Katelyn wants to raise awareness of the condition, especially among those who are not familiar or even aware that such a condition exists.

Locklan or “Lock” is just one of 100 known cases that were diagnosed with “Uncombable Hair Syndrome.” Yes, his hair may be fragile but other than that, he doesn’t have any other symptoms that could make his parents worry for his health.

Unlike other kids born with the condition, Lock did not show any known symptoms. In fact, he was born with completely jet black baby hair. However, things changed when he turned 6 months old because this is when his hair started to be replaced with “peach fuzz,” as his parents call it.

Talking with PEOPLE, Katelyn said, “We were like, huh, what is this? We knew it was different but didn’t know exactly how. And then it kept growing and growing.”

And by the time Lock was 9 months old, his hair had lightened even more to a white-blond shade, just like the hair of his 3-year-old sibling, Shep. Locks’ hair though is noticeably different in texture so even if they are of the same shade, the two do not look alike. With Locks’ hair, it is thick and is growing vertically from the top of his head.

Katelyn explained, “People were definitely noticing it.”

Those that meet Lock aren’t the only ones who have noticed his unique hair. Even social media users have taken notice as well.

In fact, it was only then that Lock’s mother learned about “uncombable hair syndrome” when a total stranger messaged Katelyn on Instagram and explained the condition to her. She said that at first, she was scared. “I was like, oh my God, what is this? Is something wrong with my baby? I went into tailspins on Google.”

She wanted an expert opinion regarding her son’s condition so she called Locks’ pediatrician. That though did not give her any answers as she was then referred to a specialist.

The doctor told her that she’d only seen “uncombable hair syndrome” once in her 19 years of career of being a doctor. Katelyn said that the doctors didn’t think it was uncombable hair syndrome because of how rare it is. But they took samples and a pathologist looked at it under a special microscope and confirmed that indeed Lock has Uncombable Hair Syndrome.

Katelyn said, “You’re just going about your day thinking everything’s fine and that your kid might have curly hair, which does run in the family. And then to hear that there’s a rare syndrome associated with your kid — it was crazy.”

She adds, “I hardly have to wash it, unless he’s literally playing in the dirt, because it doesn’t get greasy. It’s incredibly soft, and people want to touch it all the time. I hardly brush it, because it’s very fragile. I just try to be very gentle with it and not mess with it unless I have to.”

Even though Lock has a unique hair condition, he has grown and developed in the same way as other kids his age. This young child’s condition seems to only make his hair fall out and that is not something that his parents are worried about.