Hair Shedding 3-4x more than Usual ;-(

[louzen]

Hi all

Apologies for posting this, you must see loads of these kind of 'shedding' of posts daily. It's just more for me to vent and release some stress. I have been treating my hair gently for about 3 years now and along with that and eating healthily, my hair had regained some nice thickness. I detangle every night, so I know how much I shed and over the 3 year period, I would shed about 10 hairs (max) every night, most nights 5 (I realise I would shed more throughout day without knowing).

Now, out of the blue I'm shedding about 3x that. I'm shedding about 30 hairs whenever I detangle. I'm noticing more throughout the day as well. I'm not doing anything different. I'm healthy (blood work done a while back and all is good) and not stressed (well I wasn't before this happened)

The only things I can think of that is different is I lost a bit of weight, but it was gradual and simply a consequence of eating healthier. I'm 119 pounds (54 kilos) and 5ft 3in. My hair has also gone from APL past BSL in the past year.

This has been going on for about 3 weeks now and I'm really getting anxious and stressed out about it to the point of nearly crying whenever I detangle my hair. I know I shouldn't, and there are bigger problems I could have but I've got fine hair and I haven't got a lot to spare and I only just regained thickness so it seems I'm going back to square one. It even feels thinner, but don't know if that's paranoia right now.

Any words of help would be greatly appreciated. I'm thinking of taking some MSM to see if that will help calm it down. I'm also going to try oiling it tonight with Jojoba.

Thanks again for listening. Apologies if I'm over-reacting. You can tell me if I am, I don't mind!

[gthlvrmx]

I get big hair sheds too it worries me but I just shrug it off and think "it will grow back" XD Is there anything new you did to your hair? Do you have buildup? My scalp is sensitive so sometimes when I try something new, i shed a lot. Maybe it's a seasonal thing! I read some people lose more hair due to the seasons changing.

[cathair]

You weight might be a factor, but hopefully not if you are eating healthily. Before you panic, are you wearing your hair up more than you were before? I have started wearing mine up 24/7 pretty much. I am sure it looks like I am shedding more because when I detangle loads comes out. But I am pretty sure it is actually because it never has to opportunity to fall out on the floor like when I was wearing it down more frequently.

Also, even if it is an increase, 30 hairs shed when detangling really wouldn't worry me at all. It is on the very low end of normal :)

[Madora]

No worries about your shed rate! Normal is 80 to 100 every day, though it varies with individuals.

[louzen]

I get big hair sheds too it worries me but I just shrug it off and think "it will grow back" XD Is there anything new you did to your hair? Do you have buildup? My scalp is sensitive so sometimes when I try something new, i shed a lot. Maybe it's a seasonal thing! I read some people lose more hair due to the seasons changing.

Nope, nothing new. I have been CO washing for about 2 years now with the same conditioner. I have a sensitive scalp so have to use an unscented organic conditioner. Yes, I thought it could be seasonal too.

[lapushka]

First of all, 't is the season of shedding more. In the fall and spring, usually we shed more, most of us do, well a lot of us in any case. So if it doesn't pass in a month or two, I'd worry.

[louzen]

You weight might be a factor, but hopefully not if you are eating healthily. Before you panic, are you wearing your hair up more than you were before? I have started wearing mine up 24/7 pretty much. I am sure it looks like I am shedding more because when I detangle loads comes out. But I am pretty sure it is actually because it never has to opportunity to fall out on the floor like when I was wearing it down more frequently.

Also, even if it is an increase, 30 hairs shed when detangling really wouldn't worry me at all. It is on the very low end of normal :)

I thought weight might be a factor too, but I make sure I get as many nutrients as possible with fruit, veg and superfood every day. I haven't changed my hairstyles at all. When I'm at home I wear it as I always do with a low ponytail and still have higher than usual shedding. Thanks for your words of reassurance - I just got freaked out as I went from hardly seeing any strands to seeing 30 (I counted!) and it looks a lot.

[Silverbrumby]

I caved in and cut four inches after massive shedding. I had see through wisps down to BSL and now I'm back to APL. I'm sorry. It's a hard. I'm glad I did it but it's hard. I feel sad

[HumanBean]

If you've lost 15 lbs...even slowly..that can trigger a shed.

[ExpectoPatronum]

Sometimes losing weight can cause shedding. However, I don't think that's the case here.

Is it possible you're just now developing a sensitivity to something you're using? It happens to me often and it sucks. :(

It could also be seasonal.

However, 30 hairs during a detangling is pretty normal for a lot of folks. If it worries you, I'd go and get bloodwork done again. Check vitamin levels and hormones. I know you said you had it done a while ago, but something might have changed since then. It wouldn't hurt to get things checked!

If oiling your hair, I'd avoid oiling the scalp. That can trigger shedding for some people.

[MJ1972]

Louzen, did your recent weight loss involve cutting carbohydrates from your diet? If so, consider the possibility that this may be a factor. A few years ago, a friend of my Mum's went through a period of severe hair loss while on a diet. Her GP asked her if she was eating any potatoes, and when she said no, he told her to put potatoes back on the menu. She did, and the shedding stopped not long afterwards. Might be worth a try...

Don't panic, though -- your hair loss is well within normal bounds, and may be seasonal, as others have suggested.

[louzen]

Thank you so much for all your replies so far! In the past year I've lost 4 kilos (8.8 pounds), I wonder if that's too much and it shocked the body. I've always been slim build though.

MJ1972 - I did cut out wheat from my diet 2 months ago. So I don't eat any bread/wheat flour/pasta, I'm essentially gluten-free now. I do have plenty of rice and potatoes though!

[lapushka]

MJ1972 - I did cut out wheat from my diet 2 months ago. So I don't eat any bread/wheat flour/pasta, I'm essentially gluten-free now. I do have plenty of rice and potatoes though!

I think cutting out things from your diet is *never* a good idea as far as your hair goes, but if you have to do it for health reasons, make sure you substitute well, or take a multivitamin.

[louzen]

I think cutting out things from your diet is *never* a good idea as far as your hair goes, but if you have to do it for health reasons, make sure you substitute well, or take a multivitamin.

Yep agree. I've always juiced fresh fruit and vegetables and also consume a superfood which has nearly every nutrient/mineral known to man! So I doubt I'm missing any vitamins that I would otherwise only have gotten from wheat. Unless I'm non-gluten intolerant!!!

If this carries on, I'll go back to wheat and let you know the outcome :-)

[Jac]

Yep agree. I've always juiced fresh fruit and vegetables and also consume a superfood which has nearly every nutrient/mineral known to man! So I doubt I'm missing any vitamins that I would otherwise only have gotten from wheat. Unless I'm non-gluten intolerant!!!

If this carries on, I'll go back to wheat and let you know the outcome :-)

I know that in the US a lot of our wheat products (bread, cold cereal, etc) have iron in them (I think it's added?), and iron is connected to hair growth/loss. Not sure if that's the same in the UK, but if you were eating more iron than you are now, that might be why you are losing more hair than you're used to? Be careful though, you don't want to just go supplementing iron without consulting your doctor, it's one of those tricky minerals that you definitely don't want to have too much of!

I'm no expert on this, though. :X It's probably best to talk to your doctor about it if it's worrying you, especially if you're making big changes to your diet.

[louzen]

duplicate -----

[louzen]

I know that in the US a lot of our wheat products (bread, cold cereal, etc) have iron in them (I think it's added?), and iron is connected to hair growth/loss. Not sure if that's the same in the UK, but if you were eating more iron than you are now, that might be why you are losing more hair than you're used to? Be careful though, you don't want to just go supplementing iron without consulting your doctor, it's one of those tricky minerals that you definitely don't want to have too much of!

I'm no expert on this, though. :X It's probably best to talk to your doctor about it if it's worrying you, especially if you're making big changes to your diet.

Thanks for your input. In the UK our bread isn't fortified with vitamins (unless you specifically buy one that says fortified which I never did). Also, I take fresh nettle herb capsules every day which should give me a bit of iron. Plus I eat spinach, chicken, meat, beans, seeds.

I will have blood work done if it carries on. I will definitely update this thread. I'm hoping it's probably just seasonal and I don't need to worry too much about it (I'm working on the not worrying bit!)

[truepeacenik]

Also, some people shed from CO washing.
I do, so I use it only occasionally now. But my scalp can handle oiling. As long as it's a scalp beneficial oil, so I'll often have castor to the scalp, and more hair friendly oils on the length.

Are you sire it's shed, and not breakage?

[louzen]

Also, some people shed from CO washing.
I do, so I use it only occasionally now. But my scalp can handle oiling. As long as it's a scalp beneficial oil, so I'll often have castor to the scalp, and more hair friendly oils on the length.

Are you sire it's shed, and not breakage?

Yep, I've heard CO washing can cause some people to shed. I've been CO washing for 2 years now without a hiccup but I might have become sensitive to it all of a sudden. I think a previous poster did mention that as well. It's a good point. Unfortunately my scalp is sensitive and shampoo (even mild/organic/eczema friendly) all dries out my scalp and makes it sore and dry hence the reason I went to CO washing which made my scalp very happy. Worth a shot though as a trial to see what happens.

Definitely shed hair. It's all very long (longer hair than my usual shed). It's actually full-length hair that is being shed. I detangle very gently.

I have jojoba oil now on my head as we speak :-) I'm going to wash it out tonight and see if that made any difference.

[Mya]

I don't think CO washing is directly causing you to shed since you have been using it successfully for a while, but some dirt may have built up on your scalp during the last two years and make you shed more. You may want to give shampoo a try.

[louzen]

Ok, oiling didn't help. Just detangled now and counted 40. Very shocking when for the past 3 months my shed rate when detangling was about 5 every day and this is the first time in 3 years (since I've been taking notice) that I've shed more than 20 (and the 20 was a rare occurrence). Maybe this is why it's happening? Perhaps it was so low for too long and the hairs that should've shed earlier are all shedding together now? Anyway, I've taken MSM right now so will report back tomorrow on that.

I'm going to wash my hair now. I think I'll mix shampoo with conditioner to not give my scalp a shock due to its sensitivity and see how I go.

Thanks again for everyone's suggestions. I hope this thread helps someone else too!

[mamaherrera]

Don't worry. That's how I was. I got used to no shedding while pregnant, I KNEW I had to start shedding again afterwards, but even so, after pregnancy I slowly started to shed more, 30 a day, 50 a day, and it was killing my nerves. You go from seeing nothing, and even 30 looks like a lot. Not at 8 months postpartum, I have days when I shed 200 (but that's over 3 days of no wash), and even 100 a day. and my husband always says "but up to 100 is normal" We've got to stay calm. At least you only shed long ones, I get stressed over the short, skinny ones, and thick ones that shed short because I want them to grow, but we've GOT To remember, everyon'es different. I've always had short "sideburns and temples and even my sides" (the ones that should go back to the pony but they NEVER have for me. I mean, my whole ENTIRE side, up to my ears, only grow max 7-9 inches, but I've got to stop wanting what others have and remember that is just how my hair works. And not stress. Cuz I've been stressing too. I finally discovered that some of my skinny short ones, come from behind my ears. . .. who would have thought that someone like me with M/C hair has these baby hairs hidden behind the ears!! 30 is nothing!

[lapushka]

Ok, oiling didn't help. Just detangled now and counted 40. Very shocking when for the past 3 months my shed rate when detangling was about 5 every day and this is the first time in 3 years (since I've been taking notice) that I've shed more than 20 (and the 20 was a rare occurrence). Maybe this is why it's happening? Perhaps it was so low for too long and the hairs that should've shed earlier are all shedding together now? Anyway, I've taken MSM right now so will report back tomorrow on that.

Good theory. 40 is pretty low still, it's not even 50, and it can be twice that to still be normal!

[vendethiel]

This probably doesn't help, but I've been experiencing much the same thing. I had to cut gluten from my diet, lost some weight, had blood work done (it came back fine), and have been shedding a lot more than usual. Probably 3 times more. When I brushed before I had probably 5-10 hairs and now I have 15-30, same with when I wash more 2-3 times more shed hair than in the past. I hope it is just a combination of the weight loss and the season, but I just want you to know, you're not alone. *Hugs*

[louzen]

Thanks everyone for helping me gain perspective! I have started to calm down a bit now. I'll report back if I try anything that seems to lessen it (I'm in experimental mode at the moment) :grouphug:

[Wosie]

:grouphug: I'm also losing more hair than I usually do, so I understand your concerns. By the way, do you mean that you lose ~30 hairs every time you detangle your hair (more than once a day?). Or do you lose ~30 daily?

I'm relieved to hear that you're feeling calmer now, hope you'll feel calmer and calmer from here on out. :)

If this makes you feel better - when combing my hair in the shower two days ago I lost around 150 hairs (and that was just the hair that was lying in the drain, not the detangling just before the hair wash + in the morning)... >_<

[Mimha]

Hello louzen.

I am happy to read that you have cooled down a little bit :) As mentioned by many people here, your hair loss is far from being disastrous. Not only it can be a seasonal thing, but as you have changed your diet, your hair may have to adjust a little bit also. I personally don't think that low carbohydrates can play a role. On the contrary : I have had to reduce drastically all income of carbohydrates and starch, and consequently lost almost almost 10 kg weight and my hair has never be so healthy and shiny ! (I also have to take complements due to poor intestinal assimilation, so it helps also). Another thing may be due to hormonal balance, depending on your age. In case of persistent hair loss, you may investigate this possibility too.

I think also that counting your hair every day can be stressful. Hair do not react immediately to stressful events, diet changes or hormonal rate variations. Maybe it would be good to temperate your figures on a longer period, for example to have an average on a week, and compare week by week. But it's just an idea : I have never tried to count my hair, lol. I am too afraid to get in a panic :D. All what I can tell you is that I lose MANY MORE hair than you, and my loss varies a lot from one season to another. In my case, I have noticed that the lack of rest and sleep has a really bad influence.

Hoping to have reassured you a little bit :)

[mamaherrera]

Like I said, I've been staying consistent at about 70-75 per day, what I see. I at one point was about 50, so it's a bit high, but I'm not gonna stress. LIke one person said, it's still in normal range. Maybe my hair is growing more now, so I have to shed more now, maybe it's season, maybe it's stress. But one good way to measure is with ponytail circumference. If it's staying the same, why worry, obviously your body is managing the extra hairs. I, for three years, shed 150 daily. I had an issue, but the biggest thing: My ponytail never went down in size. Was my body able to handle that amount of shedding, I guess so!

[McFearless]

After cutting wheat from your diet 2 months ago, did you make up for the loss of calories with other foods?

[louzen]

--duplicate

[louzen]

Hi all!

Sorry for the late reply - I had been trying out some experiments and waiting to see the results which I'll tell you about. I keep reading through all your posts and want to say to all of you how much you've made me feel better which I'm really grateful for. I'll comment on some of your posts:

Wosie - I brush my hair in the morning, then put my hair up every day. I then put it down in the evening to detangle. I count the shed hairs every evening. When I brush in the morning, I don't see a lot of shed hairs in the brush so I only count the shed in the evening since my hair is up all day.

Mimha - You're completely right, counting shed hairs is stressful! I shouldn't do it really but can't help myself I've been doing it so long! That's a good point about comparing week by week. I've noticed that some days I shed more than others.

mamaherrera - That's a really good point you make about hair growing more, so shed increases. I think I had a growth spurt in summer and I see new regrowth so maybe it's that (and seasonal). I haven't noticed my hair getting thinner yet, it feels the same thickness.

McFearless - I'm not sure if I've made up for the lost calories but I have a lot of good fats now like avocado and seeds.

My experiments:

Change in diet:

Over the past month I've been tweaking my diet and the supplements that I normally take. I stopped taking my superfood (which contains algae, spinach, wheatgrass, etc), I introduced MSM powder, I stopped taking my nettle herbs, increased/decreased some supplement doses, stopped eating eggs and some other minor things. I can say that nothing I did diet-wise made a difference!! I haven't reintroduced wheat though which I might do next week.

Cut my hair:

This was interesting. The shed hairs were gathering at the bottom of my hair and causing really bad tangling. My hair strands are very fine anyway and tangle easily but it was getting totally unmanageable. So I had about 3 inches cut off. Then for a WHOLE week my shedding significantly reduced to my normal pre-shed levels (I didn't do anything else differently this week and kept my hair up all day and let it down to detangle like I do every evening). Then after a week, the shed rate slowly creeped back up unfortunately.

I've got 2 other things I'm going to try - tomorrow I'm going to shampoo my hair for the first time in about 2 years (I CO wash) and see how that goes. Then next week I'm going to reintroduce wheat.

[mamaherrera]

Not to share bad news, but I just measured my ponytail and it went down half a centimeter. I hope it's just from the postpartum shedding (which wasn't terrible) but maybe it was all the "extra" hair I gained during my "no-shed" pregnancy and it put me back to my normal measurement.

[irishlady]

I sympathise. I am currently going through a huge shed myself. I am maintaining it at APL for a while and just wear it up and forget about it for now. Hope it improves for you soon!

[louzen]

I forgot to add that I started taking Vitamin D. I did actually start to see an improvement in shedding when I took them but then it gradually came back. I stopped it since I have a Vitamin D test I bought online to test my levels and didn't want the supplements interfering - I want to see what my Vitamin D levels are naturally. I'm going to send the test off next week and report back on my results!

[louzen]

Hi all

Sorry to resurrect this thread, just had a BIG cry and just would like to vent here.

So my increased shedding has been carrying on. It's been 3 months now. It averages to about 30 a day now. However, I shed 70 this evening so I'm a bit beside myself. Going from 5-10 a day to 70 is very scary. I'm getting upset because my hair strands are very fine and density-wise I don't have much. I also suffered thinning when I was on the pill my pre-LHC days. I had finally got to a place where my hair had thickened up nicely (since coming off the pill nearly 2 years ago and eating really healthy) and I no longer felt anxious looking at my hair in the mirror any more and fear this is taking me right back to square one!!!!! I'm now panicked/anxious each time I detangle. Some thoughts/notes:

1. My Vitamin D test results came back as what the NHS consider 'adequate'. My level was 62.6 nmol/L (25 ng/ml). I took a Vit D supplement for a couple of days and didn't see an improvement. Admittedly, I should take it for longer as I can't expect to see results so quickly!
2. I started taking MSM. Didn't see immediate change but think I had too much than my body could handle (1 teaspoon) and suffered from a bad migraine, so I stopped it. I'm taking it again starting from now though and will work up the dose more slowly.
3. I stopped Yasmin contraceptive pill nearly 2 years ago. I was wondering whether this is the post-pill shed that a lot of women suffer from. I discounted that thought since it seems such a long time ago now that I stopped (and I never suffered a shed since stopping it, up until now)
4. I use Fertility Awareness Method to avoid pregnancy and I chart my temperatures every day. Due to this, I know when I ovulate. In my charts, I have been putting down every day I experience a larger than normal shed and there is a pattern emerging in the last 3 months! For about a week during my high fertility period and ovulation, the shedding stops and nearly goes down to normal levels. Now I know during this time, estrogen is at its highest. Once I ovulate, sure enough about 3 days afterwards the shedding returns.
5. For the past 4 months I have had half an avocado in my smoothie. I have just read (although I'm not sure how true this is), that avocados can block estrogen. I've stopped them for the moment to see if I see any difference. (re: note above about hair shedding less during high fertility)

Thanks for listening, as always :flowers:

Sorry for over-reacting!!!