Help recovering from telogen effluvium?

[Vanille]

Hi, all:

There's a lot I could say about how hard last year was, but some of the worst effects showed up after the new year.

If you have hair that is classic length or longer, and have ever had a massive shed (due to stress and/or illness), I'm sure you can relate to this.

Now that the shedding has slowed down, and new growth is starting, there's the prospect of re-growing several feet of hair in order to catch up to the overall volume it was just a few months ago.

And although the natural response is to be hugely angry and sad over this loss, I don't let myself grieve -- because emotional anguish = stress which might cause more shedding!

So, while I'll be working hard to apply all the nutritional and other methods I can find to boost regrowth, I'll also be working to manage stress levels, sleep, etc. etc.

I've been doing a lot of research online, and I've also searched Google for LHC threads that might relate to this, but if anyone can suggest some helpful threads here about any of the various factors that can help with hair regrowth, I'd really appreciate links to them.

Thanks in advance, and here's to better times!

[SandyBottom]

Oh Vanille, I can so relate! Sorry you're (also) dealing with this. Long story short, I got COVID very end of 2022 and started a pretty significant shed 3?4? months later. Handfuls. Tried not to stress over it, eating healthy and now even healthier, better sleep, quit measuring circumference etc. Fast forward to now: I can feel and see a lot of baby/teenage:) hairs on my scalp and was feeling pretty pleased...until I took a 1 year length comparison shot. I felt sick when I saw the difference in thickness staring back. I was so upset I never did post it. That was about 3 weeks ago. The picture on the left was taken end of Feb '23 (so after Covid and before I started to shed). The one on the right was taken just about 3 weeks ago-a year later. I'll post it now, to let you and others know you aren't alone. I know "it's hair, it'll grow back", but it still stung. There are other threads. One is https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=1124&page=50 Best of luck to you
https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=49799&d=1710706097

[Vanille]

@SandyBottom Thank you for sharing your experience.

I am thankful to have otherwise recovered, but still wishing that somehow I had known that this could happen, and thus might have been able to take steps to minimize the loss. It just never occurred to me that a severe illness could be such a shock to my hair.

Up to now, although it was in the "good idea" category, I have not been very motivated to consistently manage my stress. But now, for the sake of my hair (as well as all the other reasons, of course), I"m taking actual steps to minimize stress on a daily and hourly basis.

And I'm also taking better care with nutrition and supplements than I was before.

Perhaps other aspects of my health, as well as my hair, will benefit from these improvements.

Here's wishing you all the best in your hair recovery journey!

[SandyBottom]

:flower:Thank you for that.

[evernia]

hello, i also went through something similar a few months ago... now it stopped at least and i can enjoy such an amount of untameable flyaways and frizz i've never seen before (which means it's growing again, yay). also went through a phase where i regretted every small thing, it's best to let those things be, but let yourself process the emotions naturally and don't bottle your anger or sadness up. one of the more optimistic things i've noticed was that with stress shedding (at least for me), the hair is regrowing instantly so it'll grow in much quicker than you think. and the feelings that some catastrophe has happened will pass and soon you'll be able to take it as it is.

i don't want to send you looking for a holy grail in vain and there is a big YMMV - but i think taking NAC (acetylcysteine, 500mg) as a supplement might have helped me with the stress and secondarily also the shedding - every pharmacy has it. i definitely felt less stressed, the hair of course may have been just a correlation, but it slowed down some time after starting to take it. i originally got it recommended because i can't breathe at night and the doctor said it's one of the safest things to take long term, but check it with your doctor or the pharmacist just in case.

i hope it goes better and wish you strength <3

[Vanille]

...one of the more optimistic things i've noticed was that with stress shedding (at least for me), the hair is regrowing instantly so it'll grow in much quicker than you think. and the feelings that some catastrophe has happened will pass and soon you'll be able to take it as it is.

Thank you for the encouragement. I guess it's time to stop chastising myself for not drinking more protein shakes (and/or any other things that I think "could have" helped to prevent or minimize the loss) while I was sick and during recovery.

Being kinder to myself NOW can only help, right? It can be part of that "stress management" stuff that has now become more important to me.

Thanks also for the NAC recommendation. I actually have that on hand for other occasional uses, but had not heard that it might also be good for hair health (and possible regrowth). I'll definitely look into adding that to my current regimen of supplements.

I hope your health and hair continue to improve for you!

[LittleQuill]

Oh Vanille, I can so relate! Sorry you're (also) dealing with this. Long story short, I got COVID very end of 2022 and started a pretty significant shed 3?4? months later. Handfuls. Tried not to stress over it, eating healthy and now even healthier, better sleep, quit measuring circumference etc. Fast forward to now: I can feel and see a lot of baby/teenage:) hairs on my scalp and was feeling pretty pleased...until I took a 1 year length comparison shot. I felt sick when I saw the difference in thickness staring back. I was so upset I never did post it. That was about 3 weeks ago. The picture on the left was taken end of Feb '23 (so after Covid and before I started to shed). The one on the right was taken just about 3 weeks ago-a year later. I'll post it now, to let you and others know you aren't alone. I know "it's hair, it'll grow back", but it still stung. There are other threads. One is https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=1124&page=50 Best of luck to you
https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=49799&d=1710706097

I just wanted to say - thank you for being so brave and posting your 'after' picture, even though it's hard for you to look at. Your hair is still very pretty! :flowers:

To the OP, it sounds like you're taking the right steps, and I'm sorry to both you and SandyBottom that you've gone through something so intense. In additon to paying closer attention to yourself and your health (which is great to hear, by the way!), maybe you can wear your hair up a lot, if not majority of the time? That way, it can grow back out and you're not having to 'look' at it every time there's a reflection. Out of sight out of mind kind of deal. I don't have hair loss, but I did go through a stage last year where I experienced some pretty disheartening amount of breakage that affected the thickness of the hair on the left side of my head, and it broke off well above my ears. Now, most of it is at chin length, and my hair is in a much better state, but my hair's about classic length, and I still see all these short hairs poking out every time I wash, and it makes me a bit sad that it'll take years to reach the rest of my length. To help deal with it, I don't look at my hair as much as I can. I brush and put my hair up without a mirror, and I try not to wear double braids anymore because one is a little thinner than the other now. When I do have to look in the mirror (when brushing my teeth for example), I make sure my hair is up, or hidden within a bonnet. You don't see a difference in my hair, but you can certainly feel it when you grab the affected side as opposed to the other one.

I hope your newfound regime can help you grow your hair back and get you to a better state of health! :grouphug:

[foreveryours]

Oh Vanille, I can so relate! Sorry you're (also) dealing with this. Long story short, I got COVID very end of 2022 and started a pretty significant shed 3?4? months later. Handfuls. Tried not to stress over it, eating healthy and now even healthier, better sleep, quit measuring circumference etc. Fast forward to now: I can feel and see a lot of baby/teenage:) hairs on my scalp and was feeling pretty pleased...until I took a 1 year length comparison shot. I felt sick when I saw the difference in thickness staring back. I was so upset I never did post it. That was about 3 weeks ago. The picture on the left was taken end of Feb '23 (so after Covid and before I started to shed). The one on the right was taken just about 3 weeks ago-a year later. I'll post it now, to let you and others know you aren't alone. I know "it's hair, it'll grow back", but it still stung. There are other threads. One is https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=1124&page=50 Best of luck to you
https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=49799&d=1710706097

:thudpile:

[evernia]

Thank you for the encouragement. I guess it's time to stop chastising myself for not drinking more protein shakes (and/or any other things that I think "could have" helped to prevent or minimize the loss) while I was sick and during recovery.

Being kinder to myself NOW can only help, right? It can be part of that "stress management" stuff that has now become more important to me.

thank you too! i think a good way to approach it is just kind of replying to the thoughts that make you upset as if you were talking to a close friend who was telling you that. there's no use trying to stop thoughts or make them stop by force, kindness and patience with yourself is the way to go.

regarding the protein shakes thing, TE as a reaction to illness is usually immune based so you can't really know how much that would have helped... it sounds like realistically there was not much you could've done and your body did a good job dealing with the illness

[evernia]

the way our society views women's beauty makes it harder to come to terms with things like hair loss and age and basically anything that leaves a mark. like in nature ve view the things that are imperfect, dramatic or tell a story as beautiful, and what's perfect is usually kind of boring... but to be conventionally beautiful as a woman you have to try to be perfect and like a plastic or porcelain doll it seems. and i feel it could be so much better if we could let our apperance tell a story and be like a tree struck by lightning or an old river instead of a barbie aisle

[Chasemi]

The good news is the hair usually grows back after 3 months, as long as the stressor has been relieved. With or without any special product the haircare industry may try to sell you, studies find that the hair grows back on its own. Waiting is hard ): I hope the growth finds you soon

[SandyBottom]

Thank you all so much, especially @Vanille, the OP! This is a great thread and it's a nice place to find support among friends who understand. We'll be okay.

[embee]

I had a Big Hair Loss about three years (?) ago and hair is growing back. Now my ponytail is almost normal circumference (which was not much to start with) and the thickness is moving down. My bun still looks pretty feeble and small, but I can wear my normal hairsticks again, not just the very short one I had for half-ups. Good food, plenty of rest, and taking care of the hair is all I did, and lots of time... a few years so far.

Hope hope hope I don't have another massive shed after the illness I had last fall and winter, although the shedding in my hairbrush is worse than it was last year this time. :(

[nicolezoie]

I can speak to this as well. Between COVID, loads of life stress, and learning that one of the chemicals in Nexus Therappe was causing substantial thinning, my floor+ hair thinned. Alot. My signature says ii-iii but at its thinnest, it was probably under ii. It's been in recovery mode for a couple years now, and the new thickness starts to drop off somewhere between bra and waist length. I notice it most when I braid. But, it is growing, it is beginning to look overall thicker, and.. I just try to not think about it too much.

[Vanille]

I just wanted to say - thank you for being so brave and posting your 'after' picture, even though it's hard for you to look at. Your hair is still very pretty! :flowers: :

I wanted to say the same, but wasn't sure if @SandyBottom was still reading this thread to see it.

That brings me to a question: How do we "ping" someone on this forum? With other forums that use BBCode, you just put the "@" symbol in front of their member name and that works, but this one does not seem to do that.

Thank you to everyone who responded to this thread. I really appreciate the encouragement and helpful suggestions!

[SandyBottom]

:waving:I'm here! That's really sweet of you, thanks! I hope people continue to come here and share what they're going/or have gone through. I like to sift through suggestions, not just here, but in general. Some I'm probably doing or have tried, some might not be for me, and others I might not have thought of. I've subscribed to this thread and will continue to check in.

[Vanille]

A few related things that have come up recently, in case anyone wants to share their thoughts:

1) Has anyone managed to shed excess weight while still keeping ALL their hair? Understandably I'm super concerned about ANYthing that might possibly cause more shedding. I'm hoping that it can still work safely if I take it gradually and really amp up the protein and supplements.

2) Aargh, I thought the extra shedding was over, and then I combed out WAY too much hair last night (while VERY carefully using my usual wide-tooth comb) after shampooing.

My two thoughts are that A) maybe I need to dial back to a super mild, fragrance free shampoo now? and B) maybe something I've been eating recently is messing with dermal health (I have developed eczema in the past if I eat almond products too often, and I've been having more lately).

3) In view of the above, does anyone get a sense that the hair follicles are more "easily triggered" (more prone to going back into a resting/shedding state) after an episode of TE? I'm wondering if I need to be more careful (at least for a while) than I needed to be in the past, in order to keep the hair I have and successfully re-grow what was lost.

4) I was kind of surprised that there weren't more suggestions about supplements for hair growth, but that is a pretty complex topic. Does this forum have one or more threads on the topic of nutrition for hair growth?

Thanks if anyone has thoughts and/or personal experience to share on any of the above!

[evernia]

hello and hope you're well! regarding your point 2) i've found that the loss didn't stop gradually but in waves, so after a wash day i think it can be expected... and with regards to the nutrition, i tried more things than i'd like to admit (biotin, silica, collagen, fish oil, prescription iron, zinc and various minerals and vitamins) and from those only MSM seemed to make my hair and nails grow slighly but measurably faster, there's a thread about it here, but it didn't affect my shedding at all and neither did the others in this case (apart from the NAC).

though it's kind of tricky with supplements for hair growth, it's not really that important for medical research, so you have to depend on people with anecdotal experience, who sometimes seem to recommend extremely high doses that can hurt you, especially if your system is out of balance - i've seen some youtube lady recommend her viewers take 4 teaspoons / 20 grams of MSM a day and that's just plain dangerous, normal dose is 500-1000 mg. none of them will work for everyone and there's a lot snake oil being sold, so the best advice is still probably only taking what you're deficient in.

if you search "supplements" there's a few... exhaustive threads such as this one (https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=8927), but a big part of of it is misinformation (suggesting that aloe vera is a nutrient when it's just a laxative, the RDAs are wrong etc) and the person is literally taking 20 tablets a day which is a road to liver damage, so use your best critical thinking skills and check such information with other sources like examine.com

[SandyBottom]

I remember my shed seemed to start and stop pretty suddenly. It was weird. As far as nutrition, I don't take a lot of supplements, just a multivitamin and I started taking D3 after I got sick and first heard about Covid shed. I prefer to just eat a wide variety of healthy foods and sort of rotate them a little. One interesting discovery...I decided to try fenugreek and apparently it has helped a pain I get in my shoulder at night! This pain was something that would wake me up 2-3 times a night and now it almost never does. So that has definitely helped my quality of sleep.

Your question #3 about follicles possibly being more easily triggered was very interesting! You might be onto something. I have been growing .5" monthly very consistently since joining here and then suddenly, since the beginning of this year, almost nothing. My diet and sleep has improved, stress and activity levels have remained the same. I'm hoping that there will come a day SOON when everything I'm doing now will just kick in and there will be a big growth spurt.

[Vanille]

Yikes, I've been meaning to reply to this thread for days now, but it seems that daily stuff kept getting precedence.

@evernia It seems we are of like mind regarding supplements, i.e. DO THE RESEARCH and don't just take the word of "some person on the internet" for what to use and how to use it.

My process goes something like this: 1) I hear of some potential benefits of a certain supplement. 2) While researching more about the potential benefits, I do my best to find out exactly HOW it works (i.e. what is the physiological mechanism), and what (if any) downsides or risks there might be in using it.

3) If it seems the benefits are substantial, the mechanism by which it works isn't likely to cause problems, and there are no real risks to taking an effective dose, then I'll find out "how and how much" to take it (What dosage? With food or on an empty stomach? Is there any conflict with other supplements if taken together?). 4) And then there's the search for a reputable supplier who uses pure ingredients and methods to create the supplement.

This is of course initially time-consuming, however it has resulted in a number of "wins" nutritionally (i.e. noticeable benefits from taking the chosen supplements) and has also helped me avoid some serious risks.

Re: MSM: A few years ago I had a couple sessions of taking it consistently for several weeks in a row, for some general health reason(s) that I don't remember now. What I do remember is the obvious new hair growth that surprised me each time. It's nice to find out that I won't need to take as much as I was taking then to get good results. ;)

@SandyBottom For various reasons, it might make sense if the body was a bit "trigger-happy" after a major health challenge, and thus was ready to dial back on hair growth more quickly (and with less provocation) than it was before.

I'm probably going to take some extra care with choice of shampoo, etc. for the time being... which means going back to making a diluted solution of the fragrance free "baby wash" that I used years ago.

I'm about due for another shampoo, and frankly I'm feeling nervous about it. Here's hoping it goes better this time!

[Ylva]

3) In view of the above, does anyone get a sense that the hair follicles are more "easily triggered" (more prone to going back into a resting/shedding state) after an episode of TE? I'm wondering if I need to be more careful (at least for a while) than I needed to be in the past, in order to keep the hair I have and successfully re-grow what was lost.

No. I was warned about this back when I had my TE in late 2019, but did not experience that to be the case. I think it's mostly because after the emotional shock of TE bout, we tend to become so hyper sensitive to shedding that we take note of even the slightest increase in shedding, which is nothing but normal fluctuation.

[Arciela]

I dealt with this due to being put on medications that I didn't need (way too many) and after taking them for 2-3 years, a ton of my hair fell out. I weaned off the meds and am completely off them now. Hair was falling out in chunks.

My hair got quite thin and a couple months ago I cut it from classic to APL. Best thing I ever did. I've a ton of baby hairs now, so it's growing back. I'm enjoying the length, and I seem to be approaching BSL fast.

[Vanille]

I've a ton of baby hairs now, so it's growing back. I'm enjoying the length, and I seem to be approaching BSL fast.
It's great to hear that it's growing back! Here's hoping everything is better from this point forward.

[Vintagerapunzel]

I went through postpartum shedding last year that was very upsetting. I went 9 months with almost no shedding to running my hands down the length with many loose hairs. Hair absolutely everywhere. It has slowed down a year postpartum. I can't remember what my normal shedding amount was though. But it is encouraging enough to see new baby hairs all over. It is temporary.

[foreveryours]

I went through postpartum shedding last year that was very upsetting. I went 9 months with almost no shedding to running my hands down the length with many loose hairs. Hair absolutely everywhere. It has slowed down a year postpartum. I can't remember what my normal shedding amount was though. But it is encouraging enough to see new baby hairs all over. It is temporary.

I smiled when I read this.l

So soon? That shedding is temporary and affects not just you is encouraging, but such shedding has a quite early start with the one-year old, no? TE isn't supposed to be contagious, or is it?

I know what you meant. A sense of humor is necessary :laugh:

[embee]

Ha ha! Clever, foreveryours. :)

However... I've known babies to lose their birth hair completely and grow in something rather different in color and texture. Not my kids, but a friend's kid. Strange. Baby was born with almost shoulder length dark hair, then lost it all, grew back in much lighter. So long ago I don't recall how old the child was when the birth hair all fell out.

[Vintagerapunzel]

Lol... Interestingly enough, my baby was born with a whole head of hair and he still has it. His longest length is about to his armpits.