Big shed or loss of hair.

[XeniaR]

I went a few days without washing my hair. Unfortunately I didn't finger comb it daily like I should and I ended up with a big mess on the back of my hair.

I took the time to finger comb it out while it was still dry and I had a ton of hair all over the place.. all down my shirt, on the couch, etc.

I am so upset that I could either be shedding that much or that I could have had that much breakage.

I had stopped doing vinegar rinses a few washes before this all happened because of comments here that it is very drying.

Is this likely breakage? Or is this a time of year to expect shedding? The hairs were almost all long, not short like just the ends broke.

What should I do to prevent more of this?

(I will of course be finger combing daily and continue to gently braid before going to bed.)

[Gumball]

You can take into consideration that people can lose an average of 50-100 hairs a day in normal shed. Multiply that by a few days without doing anything that can loosen up the shed hair and let it fall and you've got yourself a lot of hair that finally has a chance to escape when you let it.

If you lose a ton of hair per day and it's above average for a prolonged period of time then that's when I might feel a twinge of worry. Otherwise just make sure diet and health are alright as well as the external maintenance you do is gentle and I wouldn't worry too much.

[Moiraine]

I'm so sorry that you are having problems with your hair but then I am a comb and brush user everyday (wide tooth comb and Denman brush) I lose a certain amount of hair everyday and after washing but the way I see it, when you don't brush or comb daily and do it after a week or so (some here just finger-comb like you described) it looks like a lot of hair came out when really it would be your normal daily loss times the days you didn't get the fallen hairs out. This is just my opinion, everyone here has their own set routine that works for them. But we lose hairs everyday, as when a new hair is "born" so to speak. it pushes out the old hair.

Maybe you could give your hair a "good clearing" and everyday comb it thru and make sure the dead hairs are brushed out and see if at the end of the week it seems like you have a "big shed". Most likely you will find that, in normal circumstances, every day's shed is about the same. You did mention there were no short hairs, so it sounds like you have no breakage,

Good luck and I hope I helped a little

[ChloeDharma]

It's amazing how much hair can be shed in a few days. If i were you i'd not worry, just comb/brush each day to make sure that hair doesn't gather again and see if it goes back to normal.

A couple of questions though, how long have you been using vinegar rinses? And did you actually find them drying on your hair? If not then why stop using them?
Some people may find them drying, i find my hair stays much more glossy when i use them so if they had previously worked for you then there's no reason to stop using them. Different things work for different people.

[Aditi]

Hey even i am going through the same problem. But now i am relaxed by the suggestions given over here.

[Elenna]

What is a normal amount of hair for you to lose each day? And try to go back to what works for you. If you can't sometimes your scalp &/or hair routine has to change though.

[suicides_eve]

is your hair getting longer, i was freaking out about my shedding problems it seemed like so much and so dark i was so scared,then i got to thinking , my hair wasn't nearly as long as it was the last time i was in the big shed, the length gave the illusion there was more then actually was there.. just a thought

[Anje]

Vinegar rinses are beneficial to so many scalps and lengths here, I'm surprised you'd heard enough to make you stop using them. If you dilute the vinegar sufficiently (I'd say at least 1/8 vinegar in the solution, or weaker), it shouldn't be very drying, and if it is, a small squirt of conditioner in the vinegar solution seems to counteract the effects.

As others have said, you need to remember that you probably had several days' worth of shed all at once, and that can be a bit shocking if you're not in the habit of leaving your hair untouched for a few days, especially if your hair is significantly longer than it used to be, since the shed looks like a lot more hair.

Finally, one day of heavy shedding probably isn't much of a concern. You should pay attention if you keep shedding heavily for a week or longer, but I wouldn't freak out over a single day.

[XeniaR]

Hey even i am going through the same problem. But now i am relaxed by the suggestions given over here.

Me too. Thank you everyone.

BTW, the comment about asking myself if the vinegar rinse was drying was a good one to make. I was having static problems and someone suggested it was because of my vinegar rinses.

Truth be told, my hair loves a vinegar rinse. Tangles fall right out when I use it and I don't really notice the hair getting dryer.

I usually condition my hair first, let it sit, rinse it out, then use the vinegar rinse (about a shot glass to 16 oz) It is white vinegar because I noticed that apple cider was adding color to my blond highlights. I always rinse out the vinegar too so it can't be too drying it would seem. I am going back to it my next wash.

Thanks for all the comments. I think it freaked me out partically because I let it get so tangled. Lesson learned! Back to nightly braiding for me.

BTW, I have used a finger nail file to file down the large tooth comb and there is still a bit of a ridge. So, I decided to finger comb when wet, then brush when dry. Down the road, I plan to get a better comb.