Telogen effluvium Breakage vs Shed?

[Redshirt]

After my hair dresser confirmed my suspicions that I've lost over half the thickness of my hair (hadn't been for over a year), my doctor said I am suffering from TE. I've googled/searched quite a bit on here and other sites, so I think I understand the condition and treatments that can be done. It has been a month since I've seen the doc (who wasn't too concerned and pretty much shrugged it off) and I have noticed in the last 2 weeks I have quite a bit of breakage. My hair is just past BSL and the breakage is right around my chin area and maybe an inch below.When reading about TE I haven't found much on breakage just shed. I am shedding quite a lot still, so does that mean I am on the end of the cycle? I know it can take years. I have significant thinning on the sides and crown and a diameter measure is right at 2". (to give you an idea of what my hair is like)

Is breakage normal? Any idea of the cause?

I'm washing it every 3-5 days. Brushing only when dry and once a day (finger combing when I can get away with it) Only putting it up in a loose ponytail maybe 1 time a week with the 'ouchless' bands. No dye in the last 4 weeks. No heat at all and letting it air dry.

LOL after re-reading all that it sounds as if I am handling a rare jewel!

Should I cut it to help with the breakage?

I wasn't sure if I should start a thread or put this in the support thread. Thanks for any helps and tips!!

[Artista]

Most everything I've learned about hairloss, not the normal thing that everyone goes through, was on herhairlosshelp.com. A gal there named Bailey was battling it among others. The board looks dead because the owner, a gal who is very knowlegable about hair loss, had to take a break away from the internet so not all members got the word that she's back. You can go there, if you haven't already, and check out the info there. That's the only forum I found where more accurate info is found and the membership is low enough to where you don't have folks who don't know much about it chiming in on advice. You can post a question there, it will get answered, even though it looks like no one is there.

As for breakage, your hair is brittle. Can't say if it's TE or just being really dry. Sounds like you are doing the right things. I have AGA and my hair is brittle as the diameter of each strand also is thinning. Deep conditioning would help. What kind or brand is a hit and miss unfortunately for each person. I've read plenty of raves and ran out and got the product to find it didn't do much for me. But it is a good place to start. I'd say go to forums like what I listed that are hair loss ones for women to ask questions. Just like when I have a question about my guinea pig, I'll go to the guinea pig forum rather than a general pet forum type of thing.

If you can see the breakage and it bothers you then go ahead and trim it. Whether you keep it or not won't matter with TE. I think it's a matter of how it makes your feel. Just like with my type of hairloss, longer hair doesn't work well anymore when the top is then and the ends are much thicker. It looks off. So I have shoulder length hair in long layers to help conceal the difference. It doesn't matter thinning wise how long I keep my hair, but for how I feel I look it does.

Good luck! :)