Shedding :(

[MariamPhilauri]

Last three or four days my hair is shedding much more than normal :( not sure it's just seasonal or stress related. My mum tells me I'm paranoid, I'm very worried :(
My hair is thick, down to my shoulders, with short layeres (which i hate)
Maybe it's stress, last months I was worrying about my hair shedding was excessive,and it's really excessive now :D
Anyone has similar experience with stress related hair loss? Will it stop when i reduce my stress levels and will it regrow?
Help, it's really scary and depressing :(

[Nadine <3]

I went though a scary shed a few months ago. I went to the dr and all my blood work came back fine. It was either seasonal of stress, I'm not sure what one. It went on for a good month of just loosing massive amounts of hair every time I washed, brushed or just touched my hair. Now I have little baby hairs sprouting all over my head. I would suggest seeing your doctor if you haven't already.

[Budgie]

I think it's normal to have shedding phases sometimes. Mine does that every 1-2 months.

[jeanniet]

How much are you actually shedding? Normal is up to about 100 hairs a day. Have you always paid attention to your shedding, or just started recently? Sometimes when you start to grow your hair long, you notice things you hadn't before, and the shedding can seem like a lot when it's really in the normal range. And finally, increased shedding due to stress or other factors doesn't usually start right away--there's a lag time of a few months. So if you went through a very stressful period a few months ago, you could be seeing increased shedding from that now. On the other hand, even extreme stress doesn't automatically mean increased shedding. Just pay some attention and try not to worry about it too much unless it goes on for several months and is clearly outside the normal range.

[MariamPhilauri]

Thanks for answers!!
Today I lost about 150 strands, I think. When I gently pulled my hair there were about 5 strands and I was panicked :\
I was really really stressed for past 2 years and maybe it is the reason.
I must reduce stress and be happy, it is killing me slowly :D
P.S. sorry for my bad english :D

[jeanniet]

Your English is just fine! Losing 5 strands when you run your fingers through your hair really doesn't add up to 150 over the course of a day. I can easily get that many randomly, but it's not all the time because I don't have my hands in my hair all the time. Worrying too much isn't good for your health, and worrying about your hair is just part of that.

[MariamPhilauri]

I'm feeling much better ^_^
Maybe I'm paranoid, I will stop paying attention at shedding hairs:D
If it is stress-related it will stop and I'll have regrowth, so there's nothing to worry.
Thank you very much!! This forum is very supportive:o

[Hele]

i believe i saw your picture in another thread, i could be wrong but your hair looks really thick and coarse like mine. I've been having a massive shed for about two weeks now, seriously, i have much more than the standard 100 hairs a day coming out at the moment. And my hair is every bit as thick as normal, i just posted a couple new pictures in another thread and my hair looks the same as always. I used to freak out over how much hair i lose at times but it seems to be normal for me, perhaps it is for you too? My point is that it is probably nothing to worry about.

[MariamPhilauri]

i believe i saw your picture in another thread, i could be wrong but your hair looks really thick and coarse like mine. I've been having a massive shed for about two weeks now, seriously, i have much more than the standard 100 hairs a day coming out at the moment. And my hair is every bit as thick as normal, i just posted a couple new pictures in another thread and my hair looks the same as always. I used to freak out over how much hair i lose at times but it seems to be normal for me, perhaps it is for you too? My point is that it is probably nothing to worry about.

Thanks for response, yes my hair is quite thick. My ends are thinned out, it is thicker when it's non-layered.
So I guess it's normal, I feel calm now. This night I'll sleep peacefully and won't thinking about how I would look without hair :D

[Wosie]

I've been shedding more than normal since the beginning of March... :( Maybe it's some kind of spring shed? At least I hope so, for all us shedders' sake! :pray:

[Hele]

If it makes anybody feel better I can post a picture tonight when I get home from work of just how much hair I normally shed, I took it for all the "am I going bald" threads I see on here! :D

[ravenheather]

I want to see it.

[Nadine <3]

I wanna see it too ^_^

[vindo]

I'm not a fan of the seasonal shed theory personally, because scientifically your hair does not shed because the seasons change. I imagine something more complex, like fluctuating Vitamin D. levels.

If you don't have any health issues a shed can also be caused by a deficiency easily. Lets say you were really stressed, and ate less good because of it, that could easily do it. Even on a healthy diet with lots of variety it can happen that one gets deficient. Imagine eating lots of junk food, bread heavy and all (one sided).

Stress can cause hair loss when your body feels so stressed that your cortisol levels are thrown off balance. This can also affect your hormones overall.

If you are really worried, get a few blood tests done, just to be sure nothing that needs fixing is wrong. Whenever I lose hair I do this right away, to catch what is causing it in time. Also, in case there is something wrong I can do something right away.
One time I waited really long to get checked out and my hair got very thin. The fix was easy in the end and I wish I would have seen an Endocrinologist sooner.

[meteor]

The problem with alopecia is that it's a blanket symptom for many diseases... It could be genetic, it could be symptomatic of some deficiency (e.g. iron), low thyroid function, hormonal imbalance, etc, etc. So you need to talk to your doctor about this.
You need to do complete blood count, test hormone levels, serum iron / ferritin, thyroid levels (THS, but especially free T4 and free T3).

The one test that you can do at home, I guess, is the so called "pull test": lightly pull a small amount of hair (about 100 strands) to determine if there is excessive loss. If more that 3 hairs come out, then one may be suffering from excess hair loss. Normal range is one to three hairs per pull.
Just make sure you are not influencing the results by not combing or washing your hair prior to the test. This can create a false positive. This test is administered by doctors but if you can't wait till your appointment and really worry, you could try it yourself.

[Hele]

I wanna see it too ^_^

ha ha, only on LHC!

**WARNING** shed hair pictures ahead, there's just no way to make loose hair look nice! :D I shed A LOT, guests who see one of my hairballs in the bathroom waste basket usually have the "oh my god, are you okay?!" response.

here's a normal wash shed for me, it includes pre-wash combing, the actual wash, and the after combing...It doesn't include the pile of hair that comes out when i comb, re-bun, or run a hand through my hair throughout the rest of the day. I actually tried counting the hairs but i wore out by the time i got to 60 something and there were still plenty more to go.

http://i851.photobucket.com/albums/ab76/heletwo/hairball2_zps78d65132.jpg (http://s851.photobucket.com/user/heletwo/media/hairball2_zps78d65132.jpg.html)

and here's my heavy shed hairball that i photographed today, it does not include all the hair that i combed out before and after washing, this is JUST from washing it...


http://i851.photobucket.com/albums/ab76/heletwo/hairball_zps5e488dc4.jpg (http://s851.photobucket.com/user/heletwo/media/hairball_zps5e488dc4.jpg.html)

i also should mention that i wash my hair near daily and i lose amounts like this every single time. However i'm still not bald (though i'm not always sure how), this is my hair in a bun as of friday afternoon.

http://i851.photobucket.com/albums/ab76/heletwo/day18_zps73efd591.jpg (http://s851.photobucket.com/user/heletwo/media/day18_zps73efd591.jpg.html)

[Wosie]

Hele, I'm pretty sure I'd have hairballs the size of yours if my hair was as long as yours. *^_^* Your hair is about twice as long as mine. :hmm:

Well, I guess I know why I shed... It's just hard to come to terms with it. I scratch my head. Very hard. Probably about three times as hard as most people scratch their head. I do it vigorously, because it feels great on my itchy scalp. Nothing I have tried has worked (different shampoos, ointments and whatnot). So I guess in my case it's mechanical shedding. When I don't scratch my head I think I have normal shedding... It's just that a day seldom passes without me scratching (I don't think that's ever happened), so it's hard to tell.

It's just that... I've been trying to scratch less since I joined LHC, and I do. I used to scratch for very long periods of time, now I try my best to regulate it. But I still lose way more hair now when I scratch than I did before (at least it seems that way to me... 'hopefully' it's just because my hair is longer now and the hairballs are bigger). Maybe because my scalp is very sensitive and still used to daily scratching like I used to? I don't know, but it's depressing. Sorry for offtopic; maybe I should create a new thread for my problems, but I'm shy. :*/

I also had an extremely distressful time for a long period of time in the end of 2013. I guess this might've worsened the shedding.

[Hele]

i would love to see the hairball produced by somebody with knee length hair! **hint hint** Maybe somebody should start a shed hair photo thread?

i have problems with itchy scalp as well, especially when it's hot out. My hair is so thick sweat gets trapped under it and never dries (it's extremely hot and busy where i work). The only thing that helps my itchies is apple cider vinegar, i have an allergic response to commercial products. I use it as a rinse when i wash, and i also apply it directly to the itchy areas as needed. If i've done any scratching it might sting a tiny bit when i first apply it but it gets rid of the itchiness. I've been using it for years now, i don't know if it would work for anybody else though. I've also never had any problems with lingering vinegar smell, it seems to evaporate away.

[Boudicca]

I've been using Nizoral 4 days a week, and have noticed a definite reduction in shedding. I was never a crazy big shedder - but I can honestly say that I only lose about 5 hairs in the shower, and my hair is thigh length. I would lose maybe 15 before. I know it doesn't seem like much - but I wonder if a two-thirds reduction would carry through to someone who sheds more?

[lapushka]

here's a normal wash shed for me, it includes pre-wash combing, the actual wash, and the after combing...It doesn't include the pile of hair that comes out when i comb, re-bun, or run a hand through my hair throughout the rest of the day. I actually tried counting the hairs but i wore out by the time i got to 60 something and there were still plenty more to go.

http://i851.photobucket.com/albums/ab76/heletwo/hairball2_zps78d65132.jpg (http://s851.photobucket.com/user/heletwo/media/hairball2_zps78d65132.jpg.html)

and here's my heavy shed hairball that i photographed today, it does not include all the hair that i combed out before and after washing, this is JUST from washing it...


http://i851.photobucket.com/albums/ab76/heletwo/hairball_zps5e488dc4.jpg (http://s851.photobucket.com/user/heletwo/media/hairball_zps5e488dc4.jpg.html)

i also should mention that i wash my hair near daily and i lose amounts like this every single time. However i'm still not bald (though i'm not always sure how), this is my hair in a bun as of friday afternoon.

http://i851.photobucket.com/albums/ab76/heletwo/day18_zps73efd591.jpg (http://s851.photobucket.com/user/heletwo/media/day18_zps73efd591.jpg.html)


I lose about twice as much for a wash - and it's still nothing to worry about. My hair is combed pre-wash and post-wash, and then there's the hair that comes out during the washing process (caught in the drain thingy).

Nothing to worry about if you lose that much, and even a bit more.

I'm with jeanniet on having a more relaxed attitude towards shedding.

[jeanniet]

When my hair was hip length I'd lose about that or more. Now it's shoulder, but I still have a decent-sized shed with shampoo, less with CO. I've always shed a lot, so it's normal for me. I do think that sometimes there's cause for concern, but also that shedding is normal and everyone does it.

[MariamPhilauri]

Thanks for responses!
Sometimes my shed is more, sometimes-less. Today I lost maaaaany strands while washing, it's abnormal :\
I think it is because of stress :\
Anyone had similar experience? Will hair loss stop and hair regain its thickness after stress is gone?

[jeanniet]

What do you mean by "many"? Do you know what your normal shed is like? It's kind of difficult to give you answers because some people freak out if they see an extra 5 hairs, and others aren't worried about an extra 50. Stress doesn't necessarily mean a shed, but it can. Once the stress is gone, there will be less shedding, but it takes several months to see an improvement.