PHOTOS Alopecia sufferer Angelica Galindez goes bald, wins Miss Philippines Earth USA

Angelica Galindez wowed Miss Philippines Earth USA judges this month and ultimately took home a top prize — even though the alopecia sufferer opted ditch her wig for the competition.

“This could be an opportunity to show the world that girls like me could be classically beautiful, too,” Angelica told Parade of the beauty pageant, which was held on Nov. 2 in San Ramon, Calif.

Angelica started going bald when she was 12 years old due to alopecia, a condition where the immune system attacks hair follicles. As she gradually lost all of her hair throughout the next three years, Angelica struggled to cope.

“I wore a hat to school, but boys teased me and ripped it off my head,” she explained, adding that simultaneously going through puberty only complicated matters.

By high school, Angelica was eager to regain control of her life and body image. She started wearing a wig, but also learned how to feel comfortable without it.

“As I grew older, I came to terms with the fact that my hair wasn’t growing back, so I decided to own it,” said Angelica, now 19.

Still, she never expected to be a beauty pageant contestant. But, when a family friend submitted her picture (with a wig on) to the Miss Philippines Earth USA director, Angelica only had one question: Could she go without her wig?

“I had no idea that Angelica was bald until one week before the pageant, when she sent me new photos without a wig,” director Bradford Adkins told Yahoo Shine. “At that point, I had already decided she was perfect for the competition, so her alopecia wasn’t an issue.”

After competing in the areas of national costume, bathing suits and dance, Angelica earned the “water” crown.

Angelica’s new title means she is responsible for promoting environmental awareness for the next year — which will take a little time away from her career as a hair and makeup stylist.

“Ironically, hair is my life,” she told Yahoo. “It’s a little hard because I can’t experiment with my products, but doing hair relaxes me, almost like therapy. And I enjoy working with people who have lost their hair from illness.”

Photos: Facebook