I hardly shed

[jojo]

Well I read a lot of threads regarding people who shed alarming amounts yet I am the opposite I hardly ever she'd anything! I shed more in september and march but even then only about 60 odd hairs a day, obviously to those of you shed lots this probably sounds the ideal problem to have but what does it mean not to hardly shed, is this an actual problem?

I probably shed about 10 hairs if that a day, if I wash my hair and I have a white bath, there's not one hair in it when I've finished, unlike my daughter who sheds hair by the bucketful! And i very rarely find hairs in combs or brushes, i clean my BBB of hairs monthly and the amount is very little.

Prior to joining here I used heat, dyed on a monthly basis and shed lots then.

I keep hearing it's "normal" to shed 100 hairs a day so does that make me abnormal?

I am not bragging btw of shedding hardly anything, just curious as to why this is.

Anybody else the same as me or am I just an oddity!:eyebrows:

[pepperminttea]

Just a thought; how fine are your hairs and how good is your eyesight? Very fine hairs are easy to miss sometimes, even with a white tub. An enviable 'problem' though!

[shutterpillar]

The thing about "normal" is that normal seems to be different for everyone. Your body might just have a longer hair growth cycle than most other people. My normal is to shed around 100 hairs during every shower. Your normal is to shed a few hairs (or none at all). As long as your hair is growing out healthy and your scalp is healthy, I don't think anyone should be too concerned about how much (or little) they shed.

Though I do envy you! ;)

[Silverbrumby]

Great question. It came up before and the only thing I can think of is this. Most gals here with really long hair I've noticed don't seem to shed much. My bff has long hair and only sheds a 1/4 of what I do or even less. She is at tailbone

You have a long terminal length and are retaining more hair for longer?

I have a short terminal based on old photos and memories I have of growing my hair when younger. It's tapering at BSL so I can't ever see it getting really long.

[Kiwiwi]

I started shedding a lot more 2 months ago, it's again a bit less now, but still a lot more than usual.
Before that I would not shed much AT ALL, too. Like you're saying.
I think 10 to 20 hairs a day? Even when it was a wash day.

[battles]

I shed very few hairs also, unless I try to switch around my wash method. CO usually makes me shed very heavily.

[lmfbs]

I got through phases where I shed barely anything, then others where I do mega sheds. I figure it's normal for you, it's normal!

[Allychan]

Yep, I'm not a shedder either. 20-50 a day maybe

[Silverbrumby]

I'd love to find out if most of the women at TBL and beyond are heavy shedders?

[Vampyria]

You are so lucky! :) In my experience 100 hairs every day is not all that normal. At least not for me since I don't have super thick hair anyway. I don't really count how much I shed, but I think it's been just a bit less than 100 hairs every day for a couple of months and I've already lost some thickness. I think it would be normal, if that just happened lets say on wash day, not every single day.

[vindo]

I'd love to find out if most of the women at TBL and beyond are heavy shedders?

Only sometimes :lol:

When it comes to growing hair long how much you are shedding is only one factor though. It also depends on how long your Anagen (growing phase) is. It can range from 3-7 yrs for most.

Jojo
100 hairs a day is not normal. This number has been found to be false. The new number is 60. Up to 60 hairs a day is normal, anything beyond "can" be increased shedding.

I also tested this with longhairs on my forum. They were asked to comb out their hair well after a wash and bun it for a whole day without taking it down or combing it out, and at the end of the day to take it down and carefully comb out shed hair.
I have counted 10-20 before, but have not counted lately. In the morning when I take my bun down I usually lose around 3-5 hairs.

[Loviatar]

Jojo, since I switched to shampoo bars I shed maybe 10-20 hairs a day. And my hair is black, so I notice them easily.

[Iolanthe13]

My shedding has decreased significantly since henna, catnip rinses, and a no-sulfate, low-cone routine. I'm visiting my parents and used some sulfate shampoo today, and had more shed hairs. Obviously different things work for different people, but for me a gentler routine has reduced both breakage and shedding.

[gonzobird]

Meee tooooo. I shed maybe ten hairs a day.... 15 or 20 in a wash day. I feel like thats just normal for me.

[Silverbrumby]

Only sometimes :lol:

When it comes to growing hair long how much you are shedding is only one factor though. It also depends on how long your Anagen (growing phase) is. It can range from 3-7 yrs for most.

Jojo
100 hairs a day is not normal. This number has been found to be false. The new number is 60. Up to 60 hairs a day is normal, anything beyond "can" be increased shedding.

I also tested this with longhairs on my forum. They were asked to comb out their hair well after a wash and bun it for a whole day without taking it down or combing it out, and at the end of the day to take it down and carefully comb out shed hair.
I have counted 10-20 before, but have not counted lately. In the morning when I take my bun down I usually lose around 3-5 hairs.

Thank you for update on more normal shed counts. I comb out between 30 to 60 in the moring plus shedding throughout the day. I wish I had taken notice in my younger days to see if its higher.

[dwell_in_safety]

I only shed a few strands a day on average, too. If my shed rate ever increases, I'll probably go down in thickness a bit.

[Tia2010]

I'm not much of a shedder... Maybe 10 hairs a day.

Thinking back on it I have never shed a lot of hair. I did have a shedding period a few years ago, but when I stopped using Pantene the shedding instantly stopped.

[spidermom]

I don't seem to shed much, but when I vacuum or clean the bathroom drain - holey moley! I'm surprised there's a hair left on my head! I guess I just don't pay much attention.

[LaFlor]

I don't seem to shed much, but when I vacuum or clean the bathroom drain - holey moley! I'm surprised there's a hair left on my head! I guess I just don't pay much attention.

This! I don't notice that I shed until I try to clean the drain :shudder:

[Shepherdess]

I'm not sure how much I shed a day, but I have noticed that since I started using apple cider vinegar I have been shedding significantly less than before. I started having trouble with an itchy scalp and heavy shedding after I stopped using certain shampoos, so I am glad that apple cider vinegar is working for me. :) I haven't kept track in a while, so I will have to see how much I'm shedding. I'm sure that everyone's normal is different. :)

[IvanaGil]

I'm mid-butt, with F/M hair and I also hardly shed at all. In the shower I lose maybe 5-7 hairs and I know because I collect them on the shower wall lol. Throughout the day maybe another 20 at most, and that's if I'm constantly brushing or wearing my hair down. I have 20/20 vision so I'd don't think I'd miss the hairs if I am consciously looking for them.

[jacqueline101]

I think everyone is different and they shed differently.

[bunzfan]

I used to shed a huge amount as a teen with long hair but now i hardly shed that much at all, well not compared to some.

[Avital88]

I had this too,2 years of maybe 30 hair a day,even a few months of almost nothing,then last march i started shedding over 200 hairs a day for 10 wks ,lost half my hair.. :( and now again 30 a day..do you ever get a bigger shed? If that never happens you are lucky indeed..

[FrannyG]

A couple of years ago, I had what I now know was a pre-menopausal shed. I went through menopause last year. Now, I don't shed much at all. I brush once a day, before replacing my summer updo. Sometimes it looks like a lot of hair in my brush, but it might be only 5 hairs. My brush is dark and my hair is light. It always looks like more than it is.

Given your shed rate, Jojo, I should think that you will have a very long terminal length, which is quite exciting! :blossom:

[Louise148]

I have short 4 inch layers all over (i'm growing out a pixie :() and hardly see any shedding. i comb my hair while the conditioner is on it and I see about 3-5 hairs in the comb afterwards and just a couple more when I comb it after rinsing.

Although I cannot say whether this will change throughout the year or whether it wil change as the length increases as this is the first time I have paid detailed attention to my hair. But at the moment I do not seem to shed very much at all but over the last couple of moths I have started to see more new hairs sprouting. I'll have a halo soon...YAY!

[pink.sara]

Is this an actual problem?

I clean my BBB of hairs monthly and the amount is very little.

Prior to joining here I used heat, dyed on a monthly basis and shed lots then.

Anybody else the same as me or am I just an oddity!:eyebrows:


I dont think it's a problem so much if it's normal to you, but I do think you're kind of lucky! :D

I have to clean my denman out after every use, it's just habit now it's longer again.

Plus now that I've dyed it Flamingo pink (it's not even red anymore it changes that often!) if one of them fall onto a white surface and get remotely damp... like the nice white painted windowsills around the house they leave a bright pink line!! Little swines.

Also my co-workers have found pink 2 foot long hairs on their nice white desks on occasion :o

Enjoy the fact they wont be busy cutting off the circulation to a toe in the middle of the night either ;)

[Mayflower]

Same here. I hardly shed. I estimate maybe 5 to 10 hairs when I wash it, and a few throughout the day. Most 'shed' hairs are actually pulled out by my brushing not gentle enough sometimes. I do clean out my brush after every use, because dark hairs on a pink tangle teezer don't look too appealing to me, but it's hard to actually come up with a number of hairs because they are so long now.

The terminal length-theorie might be correct. I'm past waist now with no taper at all (no natural taper -just a few layers), so maybe that's the reason I hardly shed.

I did go through a massive shed some years ago (puberty + birth control pill) and it was scary. I hope I never have to go through it again because if I would have the "normal" shed of 40-60 hairs a day, I might lose quite some thickness.

[Ligeia_13]

Aw, man...I used to shed like 5 hairs in the shower once a week and maybe a few inbetween. Now that I've moved though, I'm shedding at least 10 times as much :(

[Amber_Maiden]

I wish I only shed 10 hairs a day!

[moralita]

I've been wondering about this, too. I only started to shed when I entered my twenties, about three months after my twentieth birthday. This was also about ten months after beginning treatment for hypothyroidism. I had borderline-hypo levels since I was fifteen, though. But even during the year when my thyroid function quickly dropped, I can't recall shedding any more than I had before. My hair had thinned a little bit in the front, but that happened gradually, and was quick to reverse once I began thyroid replacement pills. Thank goodness.

Right now I'm aware that my hair is in the process of getting thicker, although it sheds far more often than it used to-- about 10 on a lucky day, 20-30 on average. The past year has been pretty stressful so I shed more than usual, but despite that my hair looks thicker than it ever did before. It also seems to be transitioning to F/M-- I have lots of M hairs growing in near my neck, in the lowermost layer of my hair. I'm not sure when this started happening. One day I woke up and a bunch of M hairs had begun to replace the F hairs in that area, and for the last couple weeks they've grown in extremely fast. Hair can be quite mysterious, it seems.

And it's worth noting that before LHC I dyed my hair monthly and used heat whenever I felt like it, and my hair still didn't shed at all.

[evieisocoolike]

I usually shed probably 5 hairs (at most), a day. But I've been shedding a lot lately, maybe because it's summer (20 hairs)? I'm not sure. :shrug:

[Phalaenopsis]

I used to hardly shed too. Almost never a hair to be found. I liked it ^^

[Silverbrumby]

A couple of years ago, I had what I now know was a pre-menopausal shed. I went through menopause last year. Now, I don't shed much at all. I brush once a day, before replacing my summer updo. Sometimes it looks like a lot of hair in my brush, but it might be only 5 hairs. My brush is dark and my hair is light. It always looks like more than it is.

Given your shed rate, Jojo, I should think that you will have a very long terminal length, which is quite exciting! :blossom:

I hope that is what's going on for me but I still think I have a shorter terminal and shorter life cycle on my hair than most of you hence the high shed rate.

[heidi w.]

Just your genes and hormones. Be thankful. Not an issue really. This case can be in the range of normal. One day it might change, so just be aware of that. The time to worry is when your hair starts suddenly shedding a lot or falling out in clumps. If that occurs, see a doctor immediately.

Meanwhile, just enjoy your hair.
heidi w.

[auburntressed]

I used to "shed" a ton more than I do now. I put she'd in quotes there, because I now suspect that most of my shed hairs were breakage from using a paddle brush.

I've been using a wide tooth comb from hairsense for a while now, and very rarely do hairs come out during regular grooming. Most of my shed hairs come out during washing now, and they get caught in my drain catcher. I couldn't even guess how many they are normally, because I am NOT pulling apart wads of drain hair. Yuck! But I can tell that it is less, overall, than what used to get caught in the drain in my pre-LHC days.

I also chalk that up to more gentle handling. I have always been very gentle with my hair during washing, but I did a few minor tweaks since joining that I suppose are helping.

Now hopefully I'll start seeing the evidence in a thickening of my taper soon... Hopefully. :)

[ratgirldjh]

I hardly shed either. If I find 5 hairs in my brush or after washing I freak.

Once a couple of years ago I used an SLS shampoo and lost 30 hairs after washing. I never used it again.

My friend sheds so much that she has to comb her long thick hair over a trash can.

Makes me wonder if shedding makes your hair grow thicker? Maybe you need to shed to get more hairs to grow? Her hair is way thicker than mine and I would think mine would be thicker since it never sheds.

:confused:

[FrannyG]

I hope that is what's going on for me but I still think I have a shorter terminal and shorter life cycle on my hair than most of you hence the high shed rate.

You might be surprised. My ends used to be see-through at my current length, and I recently was a few inches longer than this, with still relatively thick ends. I only cut because I wanted to get rid of what still showed from my pre-menopausal shed, especially on the sides.

[jojo]

Well I tried to reply to you all but it won't let me have so many words:)

Thank you for all replying. I don't really notice hairs in the tub, I used to when my hair was long before. My hair has thickened or am I kidding myself? I used to straighten daily and blow dry, now doing this flattens hair, so it will look thinner. People forget how natural state hair looks and assume it has thickened up when really you are just used to seeing flattened hair! I used to lose lots due to heat and paddle brushed, the really bad ones!
I notice quite a few of those who don't lose lots are fine to medium hair, interesting! Is fine hair more likely to retain in the follicle for longer due to it being lighter maybe?? And courser, wirey hair heavier so it falls out more??
Who knows? Nice thought I could have a long terminal that makes me smile :D . My family all have short hair, which is on a whole a lot thicker, darker and curler than mine ( I don't look like the milk man btw lol) and the only relative I know who had very long hair was my aunts jean, I remember my mum saying that my auntieused To sit on the floor with her legs straight and put her hair between her toes to comb it! She was only 5 foot 3 but he way! But she is the only person in my family to have had very long hair! Hope I've got aunts jeans well genes :D
Nice to know I'm not the only one, it's to a problem as such , hoping for it to last! I suppose I'm lucky too, to have my thyroid prob never affect my hair * touches wood* even after having my babies, my hair never went through the shed, though it grew quicker and curler, but never shredded!
Thanks for all your replies.

[CurlyCap]

You're not odd.

I only shed about 5 hairs in the co-wash, and maybe a few more if I style. When I was little, I never understood WHY people's bathroom floors had so much hair on them. It would take me years to have that much hair on the floor, and so it scared me.

People are different. I hardly shed, but I get fairy knots and REALLY dry hair.

Other people shed all the time. :D

[jojo]

^^ and another fine to medium haired longie! Wonder if the weight of the hair is a contributing factor? I'm beginning to wonder. Both my girls have thick cause ( I can never get that word right sorry) thick volumous hair and shed lots, as does my mum another curly, thick stranded, thick head does make me wonder!

Eta I don't mean my mum is a THICK head, but a thick headed hair head :D

[barely.there]

I don't shed much either. maybe 5 hairs a day. might shed more after baby is born, but i kind of doubt it, considering i never shed much in the first place.

FYI I have thin hair. so even though I dont shed much, I still dont have that much hair to begin with!