Conflicted

[Stephichan]

Okay, so here's the deal, last year I was under a lot of stress and lost quite a bit of my circumference to it. Now I'm getting regrowth (yay!) which is fine by me, but makes my hair look a bit ridiculous at times. Also right now, I'm under a lot of stress and once again, my hair is shedding like crazy. I know that soon the stress will (or should) be ending and that my hair will grow back. But I have problems with this:

-losing more thickness while I wait for the stress to go away, and
-even more of a ridiculous 'halo' in a few months.

I really kind of want to avoid all of this (and get rid of the stress of seeing my hair fall out) by cutting it. I know, cutting my hair won't solve my problems, but when my hair sheds like this, it stresses me out, and I don't need more stress. At the same time, I've really been taking care of my hair and I love it. I hate to throw that all away by chopping it off. However, it feels like I'm losing it anyway, so why not let it be under my own terms?

Before someone mentions the two-week rule, I've been debating this back and forth for about a month, whether I should cut (I do love short hair) or let it go. Any insight would be highly appreciated.

[rags]

Okay, so here's the deal, last year I was under a lot of stress and lost quite a bit of my circumference to it. Now I'm getting regrowth (yay!) which is fine by me, but makes my hair look a bit ridiculous at times. Also right now, I'm under a lot of stress and once again, my hair is shedding like crazy. I know that soon the stress will (or should) be ending and that my hair will grow back. But I have problems with this:

-losing more thickness while I wait for the stress to go away, and
-even more of a ridiculous 'halo' in a few months.

I really kind of want to avoid all of this (and get rid of the stress of seeing my hair fall out) by cutting it. I know, cutting my hair won't solve my problems, but when my hair sheds like this, it stresses me out, and I don't need more stress. At the same time, I've really been taking care of my hair and I love it. I hate to throw that all away by chopping it off. However, it feels like I'm losing it anyway, so why not let it be under my own terms?

Before someone mentions the two-week rule, I've been debating this back and forth for about a month, whether I should cut (I do love short hair) or let it go. Any insight would be highly appreciated.

For some unknown reason, it keeps adding this quote, when I didn't hit quote. :confused: Oh well.

I've been through several quite large sheds, and I did chop to above shoulder with the worst one. One thing I can tell you is this - if it's the shedding that bothers you, cutting may not help. I still shed just as much, it was only shorter! So I still stressed about the shedding and I had short hair (which is ok but I don't prefer for myself).

You may prefer short hair. It might make it easier. I just know it didn't for me. (but I chopped because my scalp was showing in large patches, not just because I was worried about the shedding). Good luck with whatever you decide, and I hope you are unstressed and shed-free soon!

[Capybara]

I hope Emichiee doesn't mind me posting this here (feel free to let me know), but I thought this was a really good blog entry on the subject: http://longhairedatheart.blogspot.com/2010/03/even-hemline-without-loosing-length.html


Unless you do want the shorter hair. Whatever will feel best to you, go for it!
HTH! :flower:

[Cleopatra18]

stephichan,dont cut your hair please.It wont do any good.If you want to stop stress related shedding please use a garlic conditioner/oil,it really really helps.Get some garlic cloves and chop/ground them then add it to some olive oil/coconut oil and leave them in the microwave for a while (you can add some conditioner if you want).then after it cools down a bit put it on your hair and maybe use it for two hours-over night,watever suits you best.Ive seen the effect from the first time but if you dont notice much diffrence please dont lose hope and try doing it again.
Also im under very stress right now,but i have been taking biotin for about 2 months and it helped alot with my shedding.i didnt see much faster growth but im sure i lose less hair right now.please dont lose hope,and your hair looks very beautiful btw.

[ChloeDharma]

I often find myself in this situation from shedding periods. My first advice would be to tie your hair up and deal with the stress. If that can't be eliminated, lets face it in real life stress is often inevitable, then learn ways to manage the stress. Get massages, use aromatherapy, take nice baths, exercise etc. Also look at the physiological effects of stress. For example stress increases the need for B vitamins so during those times make sure you eat foods rich in B vits of take a supplement like brewers yeast.
You really need to address the root cause of the shedding first then deal with the hair issue afterwards, but from reading what you say if you cut you will still have a halo until it grows out, just you wont have long hair anymore so i definately wouldn't do anything now. Stressfull or emotional times are classic for regret cuts i find. The two week rule means being certain for two weeks and during that time not having any moments where you think you will probably regret cutting. The fact you are asking this question and seeming not sure says to me that you have not had 2 weeks of certainty about a cut.
Good luck :)

[Stephichan]

Thanks all, for the kind words. I'll let you know what I decide as soon as I do. I've been taking biotin for more than 6 months now, and with the huge shedding episodes I've had during that time, I'm not sure it's helping. Then again, hair is a tricky thing, since it grows so slowly.

One of the things that's been going through my mind is "it's just hair, it'll grow back". So no matter what happens, at least someday I can have the awesome hair I want. I just need to learn how to manage my anxiety problems and the stress in my life.

[jera]

The hair in your siggy looks beautiful. So thick and wavy. I wouldn't cut, but that's just me. :)

[Stephichan]

The hair in your siggy looks beautiful. So thick and wavy. I wouldn't cut, but that's just me. :)

Thank you! I lost a bit of that volume thanks to my sheds, and some of the wave disappeared with henna and with cutting back to collarbone (for some reason, the longer my hair is, the wavier it is, instead of vice-versa).

I've been going back and forth for about a month, because I've always wanted really short (pixie) hair but would get talked out of it by myself or other people. I was under the impression that I needed fringe or layers surrounding my face to look "good". Ironically long hair showed me that I looked fine with no hair in or around my face. So now I'm torn between trying a pixie, which I've never done, or growing long, which I haven't had since the late 90s. I've been wanting long hair off and on for years, but again, would get talked out of it by myself or other people.

Besides, if I do cut it, it's hair. It'll come back and I'll have my siggy hair again :)

[Heavenly Locks]

Devils advocate here :

What's to stop you from stressing out in the future and ending up where you are now, but with shorter hair?

It's hard, I know, to just love the hair you've got right now. If you think you're headed for some significantly less stress years, go for it if you just want to get it over with. On the other hand, if you don't cut, you'll be longer plus thicker then. Just my :twocents: