I think I want to cut it off....

[Hannah83]

I'm so sad about my hair. This spring i shedded so bad, I actually thought I was going bald. It stopped after a while, but I had lost so much hair it feels like it's only half of it left. And it wasn't really thick to begin with.
I have layers, so that enhances the effect of thinness. I haven't cared about it, kept it up and ignored it, but everytime I try to wear it down it upsets me.
I don't want to wait several years for it to return, and by then I will probably loose the hair i have now, so it will still be thin. So I'm considering cutting it up to BSL or at least waist, and maybe be able to wear it down. But I really like my lenght. It breaks my heart that all the time and care I have spent to have long hair is waisted, I don't even hang around LHC anymore. So, I'm asking you almighty hair gurus, do you think I should cut from almost BCL to BSL, or should I keep it, do small trims and wear it up for 300 years?

[jane53]

I'm sorry! Maybe try a less drastic trim first?

[Fractalsofhair]

Maybe get layers so the thinning looks deliberate?

[Medievalmaniac]

First - my condolences, it must be so hard to deal with this. :(

Do you know what caused such a major shed? Is it a medical condition? Is it ongoing, or likely to return? All of these are factors I would take into consideration before making a decision on this issue.

[spidermom]

All I can tell you is what I would do in your place, which is cut back to a length where I felt comfortable with the thickness. But you know yourself better than I do, so really - do what you feel.

[JessTheMess]

I agree with maybe just trimming an inch or so at first. Hair grows, no matter how short you cut it to. I see that you are at hip now. Maybe cutting back to waist will give you a thicker healthier hemline and make you at least feel better about your hair. :grouphug: I'm sorry you are so down about your hair

[eamane]

You have been thinking of this for quite a while now! And I still haven't got to see your hair out for myself, you always have your hair up when we meet.
But if you do want to cut a bit, take just a few inches the first time and see how it looks, wait a while and see how you like it before you take anymore. You know I'll help you with the cutting if you want to!

[countryhopper]

So sorry to hear about the shedding and that you feel unhappy with your hair! :(

If you DO decide to cut, maybe try just a few inches at a time. YOu can take more off very quickly, but it seems to take FOREVER to grow if you've taken off too much.

I agree: Do you think there could be a medical issue involved? If so, it would be worth it to get the doctor's opinion of how to stop the shedding so it doesn't get worse.

[pixi_stix]

I understand exactly where you are coming from. I have suffered severe shedding more than once. Luckily I discovered it was caused by low iron and Vit D levels. Once I started on medication for these problems, my hair stopped shedding and started thickening up a bit. Hope it's something you can solve as easily

[ArcticNights]

Hi Hannah :)

Sorry to hear that you are struggling with this. I am not a hair guru at all, but I want to tell you that my hair have completely stopped to shed during the last two weeks. The reason MUST be that I have started to take some hair vitamins three weeks ago. I actually bought them online from... Sweden..!!! :D Yess :D

The drain in my shower have always been clogged with hairs after my showers, but not for the last two weeks. The change are very appearent :cheese:

[mellie89]

I'm sorry you are dealing with this. :( I think I would cut to waist. That would take care of some of the layers while leaving you with most of your length. If you decide in another few months that it still isn't making you happy, then you can take more length off.

[Idun]

Hi Hannah :)

Sorry to hear that you are struggling with this. I am not a hair guru at all, but I want to tell you that my hair have completely stopped to shed during the last two weeks. The reason MUST be that I have started to take some hair vitamins three weeks ago. I actually bought them online from... Sweden..!!! :D Yess :D

The drain in my shower have always been clogged with hairs after my showers, but not for the last two weeks. The change are very appearent :cheese:

http://yoursmiles.org/ssmile/pozitive/s0805.gif Which vitamins are those ArcticNights?

[Loreley]

I'm sorry.:(
I think I'd cut a few inches and see how it looks then.

[Idun]

I would also cut just a little first to see how it feels. Maybe a slight trim will make you feel better?

[LouLaLa]

I used to have mid back length hair and cut it and now im majorly regretting it. When I have a cut I dont think in inches but how many months work growing it represented. Its taken a year to get myself to BSL.

If I were you Id get my hair trimmed so that it felt unfiorm and thicker at the ends and then see how that felt, id wait a month and if I was still hating the upkeep and felt my hair was unimaginative id consider a bit more of a chop.

Have you considered getting a hair piece? If your hair is fine or not so long that it can be tightly wrapped you could buy one of those half wigs that makes your hair appear shorter. I know the Ken Paves/Jessica Simpson line has one. That way you could see what you would look like with shorter hair as well as the feel of it and decide if a chop is the right thing to do, plus you could go from short to long and back again without the commitment of cutting of your locks if you decide cutting isnt what you wish to do. I wish id done that before my big chop :(

I think QVC sell them or they have their own webiste, it may be the worst advice ever but its worth a look before you fetch the scissors.

LouLaLa xxx

[x0h_bother]

I know the pain of going through shedding and losing thickness. I hope things improve for you whatever you decide. :blossom:

[LaurelSpring]

I have gone through a couple of minor sheds and it was very upsetting. I just looked at your profile pictures and I must say that you have beautiful thick looking hair. Is it possible that the thinness is more apparent to you than to others?

Before I cut anything I would try some other options like castor oil. I have also been known to throw some fake hair into my updos to fill them out. Maybe you could try some temporary things like that while you experiement with something like the castor oil and wait it out.

If you felt like cutting was necessary just take a little bit at a time so you will feel and know where it is appropriate to stop.

[triumphator!]

Definitely trim in baby steps at first. You might want to trim up to where to damage is, though. Do you think that your hair loss is due to hormones, like menopause, pregnancy, birth control, etc? Because those are easily fixed and the hair loss with stop!

[LouLaLa]

Ive heard MSM is meant to prevent hair shedding too, it did for me so I can testify first hand that it does work.

Hope that helps :)

Good luck hair can be a nightmare but it can be so beautiful its worth it in the end.

xxx

[Deborah]

I vote for trimming to waist. That may be enough to give you a much nicer, thicker hemline. If you have it at waist for a while, and still don't like it, only then might it be a good idea to trim a couple more inches off. :flower:

[ButterCream]

Hi Hannah :)

Sorry to hear that you are struggling with this. I am not a hair guru at all, but I want to tell you that my hair have completely stopped to shed during the last two weeks. The reason MUST be that I have started to take some hair vitamins three weeks ago. I actually bought them online from... Sweden..!!! :D Yess :D

The drain in my shower have always been clogged with hairs after my showers, but not for the last two weeks. The change are very appearent :cheese:

I would ALSO like to know what those were!!:D
Taking trips to sweden occasionally, so would like to know:D:D

[jasper]

I admire your hair and your updos. Your article about the cowrie shell bun is where I first learned I could do something with my hair other than the one bun I knew.

So if you decide to cut, I suggest you keep enough length for your updos and hair toys.

[klcqtee]

I think you may trim an inch or so now, then wait until the time of year you wear your hair down. I don't know about you, but I only wear my hair down during the cooler months, so the way my hair looks during the summer isn't a big deal, because it's too warm to wear down. Also, I'd say don't cut above waist all at once. Chop to waist, wait a month or two. If it's still bothering you, then cut to just below BSL. Then wait a few months, if you STILL need to cut, I'd maintain at whatever length you feel most comfortable at. If you're more comfortable at wasit than BSL, grow back to waist (I'd cut about 1/4" off per month, to gain length but still thicken your hemline), then maintain from there.

Good luck! Don't give up hope, if long hair is what you want!

[Jessica Trapp]

No advice... just a big hug! Sorry you are having to deal.

jes

[Hannah83]

Thank all of you for your lovely comments, I'm almost speeckless here. :blossom:
I realized now how much I have missed all the caring and helping people at LHC.
It's not a medical thing, I was very stressed around that time, and I think the shedding started because of that. Or maybe it was that mixed with the fact that the hairs was old enough to go anyway.
I did not literally loose half of it, but it feels like it to me. I'll post a before shed/after shed to show you what it looks like. My shortest layers is around BSL now, so the part from BSL to hip is the thinnest part. Maybe I'll just wear it up and do small trims and wait for it to grow back. I don't shed like that now, I lost it all at the same time. Two times in the shower, the hair just fell of into my hands. :(

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=3163&pictureid=75678

[ArcticNights]

I would ALSO like to know what those were!!:D
Taking trips to sweden occasionally, so would like to know:D:D


They are called "Silica Forte +". I bought them from a swedish online store, and they came really fast in my mailbox. :)

[little_acorn]

I think the thinning doesn't look as bad as your description - honestly :flower:. Why not trim to hip initially, which I think will really thicken up your hemline.

[Henrietta]

Spring shedding is depressing. But the more we care, and look and measure the thickness and think about the hair, the more thin it feels. Try to not to think about this issue as hard as you can. You still have tons of hair.
Layers... I have them too and, yes, they make our hair looking thin probably. Try to grow them out. Instead of one big cut, try little trims. Half an inch every month or so. You will still have your lovely length, but without layers, with thick ends, the whole hair will look and feel differently.
I went furious last Saturday. I cut about an inch at once. Or more. I have thicker ends now, my hair lays on my body in different way and I don't think it's thin anymore. I believe that the way our hair looks like, thin or thick, depends on ends. If we have layers, it looks thin. Straight cut makes our hair looks thick. When people look at your hair from the back, they see just the first layer, it's flat. You see it too. But when they see the ends, not layered but one big bunch of ends- the whole hair looks thick.
That's just my experience. It helped me a lot. Maybe try this, instead oc drastical cut. Try to have thick ends. You can always cut to BSL, but before doing it you still have a chance to try anything elsa that might help.

[ArcticNights]

I think your hair are looking much better than the image I got in my head from your description of it. :p

I agree that your ends could benefit from a mini-trim :)

[ArcticNights]

I think your hair are looking much better than the image I got in my head from your description of it. :p

I agree that your ends could benefit from a mini-trim :)

[ButterCream]

They are called "Silica Forte +". I bought them from a swedish online store, and they came really fast in my mailbox. :)

Thanks so much!:D:)

[AZDesertRose]

It's not a medical thing, I was very stressed around that time, and I think the shedding started because of that. Or maybe it was that mixed with the fact that the hairs was old enough to go anyway.
I did not literally loose half of it, but it feels like it to me. I'll post a before shed/after shed to show you what it looks like. My shortest layers is around BSL now, so the part from BSL to hip is the thinnest part. Maybe I'll just wear it up and do small trims and wait for it to grow back. I don't shed like that now, I lost it all at the same time. Two times in the shower, the hair just fell of into my hands. :(


I can see that yes, it's thinner than it was, but you still have lovely hair. Stress can do some nasty things to your body; I hope life is treating you a little better now. Do with your hair what will make you happy with it. At the end of the day, it's your hair and you're the person you need to please. *hugs*