Hair Hair Hair - Another question
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lollys, I am doing well with it. My se's are minimal .... a little stiffness in my hands and I've had some night sweats and warm episodes. I am finding it harder to lose weight .. I've put on a few pounds which is definitely partly my fault because I am struggling with my diet - not sure how much I can blame the arimidex for but I think it's making it more difficult. Every day I do take supplements like fish oil, hyaluronic acid, glucosamine/chondroitin/msm along with some cherry juice........so far it has been very tolerable .... also exercising helps. Good luck with it. I know some people have trouble with it but with me so far so good. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it stays this way.
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jancie:
Thank you. I've got a good amount of white fuzz, but the dark hair is growing in too. And it seems like some of my dark hair is actually at the root of some of the white - so I guess it will be the white tips that have to go when the time comes ... I don't blame you for not wanting to part with a bit of it. I know I won't want to when the time comes. I figured since my eyelashes and eyebrows were coming back in, that was a good sign that the chemo was moving out of my system. I was hoping to wait 3 months and then try a natural rinse for color just so I could feel better about looking in the mirror. Do I need to wait until 5 or 6 months? I know my wig and I won't be parting company 'til way beyond that ...
hrf:
How are you - thinking good thoughts for you!
Be good to you -
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jancie - ccbaby is right - the ends do need to be cut off in the smallest of trims - I was the most reluctant to do this, but saw that it immediately made the head look less fuzzy. now it's grow time! I have noticed my hair staying softer as it is growing in, but the first hairs that come in, the super soft duck fuzz, that kind of goes away.
littlered - go ahead and try a non-ammonia color - it really does help boost your self esteem and confidence to see the hairs you do have with color on it - I was a basket case about how slow my hair seemed to be growing in and had some issues with my scalp that delayed my growth, so anything I could do to help it along and make it appear that there was something happening really helped - plus it colors all of the little gray and clear hairs so you can see how much you really do have. problem is, it doesn't really stay on that long, they are semi-permanent, so you might be coloring more often until you get to the point where you can get professional color.
jancie - I'll bet you flipped when you first found out your stylist moved away! That is traumatic, but it's great she's coming back to do your hair.
Helen, hope you are doing okay!!!
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Laura and HRF: I am on Arimidex too. Unfortunately I am one to get the joint pain. It is difficult to sleep at night because no matter how I lay, something begins to ache (hip, back, shoulders, collar bone, you name it). I've also had a lot of stiffness in feet, hands, and hips in the morning. Stretching usually helps with that. Doc suggested switching to Femera, but I wanted to to wait this one out and see if anything eases up.He also said he would give me Celebrex, but I think that also comes with a whole bag of SE's!!
Any suggestions on supplements??
Chris
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I start every day with a teaspoon of fish oil. I also take hyaluronic acid, glucosamine/chondroitin/msm, vit D3, calcium, biotin and I take them all with pure cherry juice. I don't know if these are making a difference but I'm not willing to stop taking them. Hope you are able to find relief. My cousin has been taking arimidex for 2 1/2 years ... she finds that swimming regularly helps her with the stiffness.
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Thanks hrf! I am going to try the glucosamine mix..I've heard good things about that. Worth a try!
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Hi Deen ; mine grew back right away ,altho i lost alot of hair ,no one knew except my hair dresser,because I have a lot of hair to begin with ,so in that aspect i guess I was lucly ,But it does grow back. Have you lost alot? New Member ,and am here to help,God Bless <lyn
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Chelev, You look beautiful! Gives me hope.
The hair thing really dropped me to my knees...much harder than the mastectomy. Afterall, my boob had cancer, it had to go. My hair was an innocent bystander! I had my head shaved on day 15 after treatment #1 and I cried for hours and hours and hours. But amazingly enough, I did find the gumption to put on my big girl panties and get over it....I actually wore a scarf to chemo this week instead of a wig. I figure in another week or two I will be wearing scarves to work too<g>. I doubt I will ever be topless other than in bed...but we shall see. I just want January to be here so my chemo is done and I can concentrate on growing hair......boobless and hairless is not right!!! My exchange surgery will be in March...so by June I am counting on hair and foobs!
Love the comment about glad going through the hairless stage in summer...I feel just the opposite. I am so grateful to be going through this in winter...easier to cover up and not be so uncomfortable. I cannot imagine wearing a wig in the heat and humidity. I have the advantage of warm scarves and hats for the winter...in the summer, you can only take off so much<g>. Heck, it doesn't matter what time of year this happens, IT SUCKS! But this too shall pass...LOL
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Renee Jean, you go, girl!!! Yes, if I had been doing chemo during the winter, it would be easier to keep the wigs on longer, nice insulation for a cold head! But, yeah, it was so flippin' hot with the wigs on - and I had bought 5 really beautiful wigs from long hair (the way it was prior to chemo) to short, and rotated them daily, and was having fun wearing them, just started really sweltering in the heat.
And yes, it does pass . . . and it does grow back. Helen, we are sendng the hairy fairy to live at your house until your hair comes back all the way!!
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Thanks, Chelev. I will treat that hairy fairy like a queen so that she makes the hair grow. While I now have fuzz all over, my scalp shows through and I also have that male pattern look where there is more around the sides but the top is empty. I just want it to thicken up so my scalp doesn't show. I was expecting more hair by 4 months PFC .....like many of you, I have no patience. ...so the hairy fairy and I are going to be BFF
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ReneeJean - Hi, and welcome! I am 12 weeks pfc and my hair is coming in slowly. I also found losing the hair very hard and I had had a bilateral mastectomy. I felt that it was just the last straw! I wore headscarves most of the time as it was too hot for a wig. But I came out the other side and now it is coming back slowly.
We are with you all the way - come here to vent any time you need or want to! Hang in there : )
Helen - how are you doing? Pls send the hairy fairy my way when you are done...
Hugs to all for a good weekend,
Judy x
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Good deal, Helen! Have you thought about trying women's rogain on the male-pattern spots? that's what I did to fill it in and it seemed to help.
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Hi Everyone just wanted to share what i did last nite. I went to the first annual candle lighting in Perry Square Park in Erie Pa, My doctor surgeon, was the one who put it on her whole staff are so into helping all of us sisters they treat you like part of there family they all did this for us. the city of Erie turns the park fountain pink for the month of october it was emotional, beautiful hard to discribe. we light the candles and the city light up the fountain in pink it was beautiful. It was also my one year anniversary of finding the tumor Oct 22 was when my nitemare started. one year later here i am celebrating life with other sisters and watching each othe thru this journey. I was surprised how many people are there for you when you need it , it was awesome I Will be at the second annual without fail. Sharon
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ReneeJean- You are so right about wearing wigs during a hot and humid Texas summer. I started chemo in late May and lost my hair in mid June. It has been long, hot and miserable this summer wearing the wig. I never wear it at home. I go topless at home, but anytime I leave the house I wear the wig. I am 2 weeks PFC and have some growth. Mine started growing back some on the Taxol. Not much, but some. Now I look like an old man. A ring of hair from ear to ear and the rest sticks straight up on top of my head and spots of total baldness. Not my best look!
I hope it's easier for you being a little cooler outside. And I also agree that losing my hair was way worse than losing my boob. I lost all love for my boob when it tried to kill me. Mary
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TexasRose - I wore my wigs outside of my home all of the time until the heat got to me so then I started wearing hats instead. Last year it was March when I lost my hair. I did great with the wigs until June and then had to ditch them. I am hoping the weather will turn colder here real quick so I can get some more use out of them. At least with my wigs on, I look normal!
I went to my wig shop yesterday just to chat with the kind ladies there and decided to try some styles that were short to see what direction I want to start growing my hair until it gets long again. I guess I wanted to see what it would be like to have a short style. I didn't like any of them! I so want my long hair back but I know it will take YEARS to get to that point.
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Girls... Something to remember is, when your hair does start growing back, that hair is the chemo chemical hair and it needs to be trimmed off initially so that your normal hair can grow in healthy. Then I would think that having at least a couple of inches of length to start with would be good. That way your stylist can have enough hair to hold on to to cut the ends only. I am not sure why bangs don't grow as fast. I have noticed when I look at pics of ladies here, that their bangs seem shorter than the rest. Usually, under normal circumstances, women's bangs seem to grow the fastest. I don't know if this would help, but you could try massaging your scalp daily to help stimulate new hair growth, it is worth a shot to try it. This is what I posted a few months ago to Jancie about getting your hair trimmed..hope this helps.... I am 16 weeks PFC and my hair is a little over an inch long now and I have trimmed it myself a couple of times. It is coming in pretty thick and straight so far. I have colored it a couple of times mainly to cover up the gray. I am going to ditch my wig very soon because it is actually uncomfortable with the amount of real hair underneath. It itches even more. Take care...0
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hrf - glad to see that I'm not the only one who seems to have more hair growing on the sides than on top. I still have 10 more taxols to go - have missed the last 2 weeks due to low white blood count. Hair has seemed to grow fast the last week or so - don't know what will happen as I continue the taxol.
Pam
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Renee Jean and the rest of the sistas:
The day I had to shave my head was without a doubt one of the most emotional days of my life. My hair was long (about 3-4 inches past shoulders) and blonde (fake of course). I cried for the longest time, and even now can tear up just thinking about that awful day.
Okay now for my "hair" news... I am still doing chemo, (I do once a week, every Monday) and have only two left (so exciting, I practically pee myself thinking about it)
So two days ago I could swear I felt nubs under my arms. I looked under there this morning and OMG I actually have hairs.. that I need to shave !!!!! Just a few under each arm, but honestly, you would think I just won the lottery. Can't wait to get in that ol' shower and actually use my razor again. Who would have ever thought we could actually get excited about arm pit hair ???!! 
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Hi Journey-Girl...I wondered about that...I have needed to shave three times (legs and underarms) since starting chemo (going for number four, Taxotere/Carboplatin/Herceptin on 10/29). I lost a lot of hair, but actually regret cutting it down to 1/4 inch. It was falling out in clumps and I was convinced it would all be gone, so, we shaved it off with a guard. Since cutting it off (also a most horrible day for me), the hairs that remained (about 30%) have continued to grow. I don't understand it? I have not heard from anyone that they lost all their hair...I always had a lot of hair, but it is fine. It seems the finest hairs have remained...I have not lost any hair on my arms (which are also fine and blonde). It seems the fine, lighter hairs have hung around. My hair is definitely more dense on top, too...it's the sides that are sparse and you can see my scalp when looking. But, I don't have enough to go without a headcover. But, this is NOTHING like the full head of hair I used to have. Most definitely. I cannot wait to be done with chemo and already have week 20 from PFC marked on my calendar as my "hopeful" time to have something normal sprouting on my head. Like you, I practically pee myself thinking that I am 1/2 way done (three to go...next one on 10/29, then 11/17 and finally 12/10...ceteris paribus!!). I am prepared to lose my eyebrows and eyelashes sometime in December, as it seems everyone loses theirs a couple/three weeks post the final chemo?
I am sure all of you had some hair on your head through chemo, right? Did you all get slow growth on your legs and underarms? I won't get into the sparse private region!!! LOL
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Dear sanaisa:
I lost everything. I had virtually nothing on my head. Lost all body hair - which was great going to the beach this summer (the only positive of the SEs). My eyelashes and eyebrows went at the end. But by 4 weeks out I needed to shave my legs - and I need to do it several times a week now (yesterday was week 7). Eyebrows and lashes kicked in last week - weird having a 5 o'clock shadow over each eye. I am going to update my pic to reflect week 7...
Hopefully you will be fortunate, and have a good amount left. I wish you the best of luck.
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Hello everyone, Looks like there at few posting who are still doing chemo and have hair coming. I have my last chemo monday and have alot of hair but you can not see it. Most of it is white. The nubs of dark hair are coming in now. As I have been told I have the sexy Don Johnson look. Questions, when do the white hair change color or do they ever. After chemo when can I take biotin? My eyebrows and lashes are just fallingout now like it has been stated on the thread. Just a few left. Have a great hair day Dianne
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Diane - I am 5 months PFC. My hair came in white but changed color within 4 weeks to a mousy brown. I started taking biotin 4 weeks before I finished chemo after talking to my oncologist who said biotin would not interfere with Taxol. I think you should go on the advice of your oncologist as each one seems to have a different opinion. I am taking 10,000 mcg of biotin nightly. Those are the pills that I NEVER forget to take
CCBaby - can't wait for my hair cut appointment on November 2nd!!! I have followed your advice very closely. I would be in that chair this week if my hairdresser was in town but I will just have a little bit more for her to work with. She did say that she could "frost" my hair using a frosting cap or she might even be able to use foil but I don't think I have enough for her to do that.
Quick question - because I have only ever highlighted my hair 3x in the past with red highlites - I can't remember if they do that when your hair is dry or they wash it first. I don't want to put any mousse in my hair that day if she is going to do the dying when it is dry. I figured I could save her a step and wash it at home before I go but then again if she has to wash it first, I like being pampered. It always seems to feel better when someone else washes your hair.
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Jancie...Most stylists do not wash the hair first (only if there is a bunch of hairspray in there) Haircolor takes better on 'dirty' hair. If she is going to pull your hair through a cap, then it needs to be dry. And, yes, the best and most relaxing part is when you get your hair washed. Good luck!0
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Hello hair thread. i am 3 hours PFC. Hooray. Tell me when does this stuff really grow. I have some growth now and it is really slow. Doc says nothing helps!!!! Have been using nioxon knock off from sally's beauty supply for a few days. Any other suggestions????? Only ones that have workrd for you ladies. i think docs only like what they can give you. STart tamox ifin in a month. Hugs Dianne
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Biotin seems to be the supplement of choice (although my onc said I couldn't start it until 3 weeks PFC)... also, use the nioxin follicle booster. And, congrats on being PFC!!!
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I don't post very often but my doc said that zinc and magnesium are the hair's fertilizer... I have been taking them and my hair is about 3/4 in. long... I finished chemo, (4 a/c and 4 tx) on Setember 8. Hope this helps stef!
CONGRATS ON FINISHING CHEMO!!!! Doing the "happy dance" for you!!! 0 -
Stef58 - Welcome and congrats on being pfc!!! I am 12 weeks pfc and my hair is coming in slowly. I have not used any products at all on my head. Good luck!
Judy x
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Congrats on being PFC Dianne!!! I am 3 weeks PFC and am starting to see a lot of growth. I'm using the Nioxin follicle booster I read about here and also Biotin. I don't know if they are helping or not, but I'm willing to give them a shot! And I stand in front of my mirror a lot yelling, "Grow already!!" I don't know if that helps either, but it makes me feel better.
Hi Arnie! Nice to run into you away from the housework thread!! How much zinc and magnesium are you taking?
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Arnie,
Ok, I'm jealous...we finished on the exact same day, and I don't have anywhere near 3/4 inch of hair! I'm going to buy Biotin tomorrow!
Janet
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Chris - I take Femara and I'm not thrilled with it. My last chemo was January 19. I began Femara in April. My hair has grown extremely slow. I do not have chemo curls. My hair is about 2 inches long. I have about a dozen hot flashes a day/night. I have numbness in my left hand/wrist and both feet. Lyrica helps that. I have pain in both lower legs, hips, knees, ankles, feet, etc. I have a foot drop on the left. I fall all the time. Ive gained 15 lbs. I hate it. My onc nurse asked me today if I had talked to the onc about switching to Arimedex, but after reading your posts, it doesn't sound any better.
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