Hair Hair Hair - Another question
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I'm beginning to wonder if my hair will ever get back to it's former glory. My last chemo was Jan 2012...15 months ago. It used to be fine textured, thick and shiny. Now it is medium textured and rather stiff, still thick, and dull. I tried a demi-permanent, something I had used before and had good results, now it doesn't take well and my hair is still dull. I'm really frustrated. I will have to keep it cut short too. I finished with Herceptin in Oct 2012 and I could not tell that it stunted my hair growth at all. Could it have contributed to this mess though? Oh please, somebody, tell me my former locks will return!!! Funny, people would say during that time of baldness..."Oh, your hair will come back and be more beautiful than ever"....hmm, hasn't happened yet.
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Lago
I don't have an artistic bone in my body. Even in art class in school my passing marks were for effort only LOL! Certainly doesn't apply here.
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sunny2 It took about a year for my hair to START to get back to it's old self. The strands were finer, different texture and not shiny at all. I have very shiny hair. As you can see from my picture it's all shiny again. It can take up to 2 years to get it back to it's old texture. But this "more beautiful than before" is bull shit. I always had beautiful hair. No way would chemo make it better. It wasn't as nice for at least a year but did come back. I decided to keep it short though.
Myleftboob maybe it's because you are PR-
I'm kidding about being creative and getting breast cancer. To be honest I think many of us in the creative fields work under a lot of stress and that might be a risk factor.0 -
Lago
I had some major work and financial stress 3 years preceeding my diagnosis so I totally agree that stress has to be a major factor. Unfortunately had alot of stress after too. Going through a breakup, selling the house kind of stress. But one week from now I'll be losing 230 pounds AND one of the major stressors in my life LOL!
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Agree with Iago that "your hair will be more beautiful than ever" is BS. I'm 14 months PFC and my hairline is different (more of that male-pattern with thin areas over both eyes); I have cowlicks I never had before; the texture is much finer; the hair grew back curly (although it gradually is loosening from its poodle self); it's not as shiny; and, even after more than a year, the length barely covers my ears.
I'm happy to have hair and enough hair now that it looks like someone meant to have it this way. I've colored and highlighted it 3 times, and that has made me feel a lot better. I tried those 28-day colors, but none would cover the gray. I finally went to a salon and my hair was so different that it took 3 tries to get an accceptable color. (I took a bag of my old hair with me. Very sad.) My hair was so short the stylist couldn't use foils and had to pull hair through that gross rubber cap.
As for stress, I know from experience, and the scientific research backs up the fact that stress can lower your immune system and wreak havoc on your body. After an especially stressful six-month period of my life (death of ex-spouse, child graduating from high school and going to college, selling 2 homes (including ex-spouse's and all his belongings) and buying one with fiance, moving,marrying and getting a huge job promotion), I developed extreme panic attacks and, within 13 months, had two major surgeries, one for colon cancer, one for compressed spinal cord.
Myleftboob, congrats on geting rid of that 230-pound stressor!!
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WaveWhisper and lago: I couldn't agree more with the BS assessment! After all we go through it would be nice for our hair to resume to normal and not have to wait on it. I guess I'll go whack it off again. I just got through recon surgery and since I was going to be out of the public eye for a bit, I decided to let it grow but it ain't workin' for me. I look forward to my post that says, "it's back!" Until then, blessings to all.
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ok ok i just want to put it out there that everyone's hair comes back very very different. SOme get lucky and some have an awkward period. I never had great hair. Before chemo i had over hilighted it and it was very dry and the ends were very stragly. So of course brand new hair came in thick and healthy and nice by comparison. It was not as shiny though that idd take a while. So now I try to eb really good to my new hair and not abuse it. I shampoo as little as possible and I try to not blow it out or wash it at all whenever I can. I also ahve not used any color. I did out a semipermanent color in once at 4 months but it looked too fake to me and it washed out leaving my greys kind of yellow so that was the end of that. Recently I noticed I am perceived as well, my age. I used to pass for much younger. I think it oculd be my grey. I also had a pink streak in my hair for BC awareness once and I loved it. So I am thinking of adding some dark blwon and pink to my hair. I figure worse case I will look funky and old an not jsut old lol.
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carrol you can't be a funky old lady because then I would be an old lady and I'm not… Remember I have a few years on you
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Carrol2: I understand what your saying. I was one of the ones that had, I must admit, beautiful hair. My hair was my best feature and I miss what it used to be tremendously. I know some people might find that petty but I don't. I'll just wait it out...what else can I do, right? I definitely prefer what I have now over the wig, that's a no-brainer. Blessings to all. (Carrol and lago...both of you look quite lovely whatever your age may be)
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sunny try to experment with hats and headbands or things. you would eb surprised how cool you can look.
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Thanks sunny. BTW Carrol rocked hats when she was bald. I was all about long scarves and dangley earrings… Carrol remember us at that car show?
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sunny2 There is nothing petty about missing your hair, especially when it was your best feature. Just give it a little more time. I never really thought about my hair very much until it was gone. I would say the reason I have been pleased with my hair is because I set my expectations very low.
Carrol2 I think you look great!! About "looking your age" I went through that right after I turned 45 yo. One day I looked in the mirror and I saw an older woman, I had put on weight, and I had problems sleeping. What really did it for me was what a screener at the airport said after looking at my passport picture which was from 9 years earlier: "Wow, you must to have had a very rough night".
Now I am fifty and I feel better than I felt at forty five because I eat better, exercise, and sleep.0 -
islandmom yeah I am working on it. perhaps when I lose the weight i will look younger. I know my Mary Kay skincare is helping too.
Lago yes the car show . . . the only time we met inperson neither one of us had hair. I feel like I have known you all my life somehow. Just got a booking for detroit in June for a metaillica concert again. Probably be in Chicago again next winter. I'll keep ya posted. BTW got a new laptop apple offered 12 months interest free finanacing. Still working on a ver 6 number.
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Awesome Carrol! Yeah we need a hair meet up. Know what you mean about knowing each other for a lifetime. It's not even been quite 3 years yet.
Islandmom I'm a little older than you too.
So do we have any new hair photos ladies?
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I am 7 wks PFC. At first I thought nothing was happening because I did not see any hair growing. Now I have growth covering my head, but growing faster on the sides and in the back. Well I am shocked to find my hair is mostly growing in grey. I did not have grey hair, in fact not much grey at all. I am at a loss, is this from the chemo treatments I had? I will have to be coloring it, but at what point? Did anyone's hair grow back in grey?
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Waitingforthenextstep my hair grew in with more gray but it also grew in black. I never had black hair. Dark brown but not black. Even my eyebrows came in black. Eventually my real color came back. Not sure though about the gray though. I mean I had gray before, was coloring my hair before and I am older. Don't panic. It takes about 12-18 months for the real stuff to come back. In the mean time color it when you decide to go topless. I did at 13 weeks. Just couldn't stand the black and grey.
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lago- You are so lucky that you could go without a wig at 13 wks. That is less than 6 wks away for me. Right now you can still see my head, no hair of length covering- just beginning to grow in. What might I expect at 13 wks?
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Can anyone give input regarding eyelashes and eyebrows? I am 6 weeks post chemotherapy and just lost my eyebrows and eyelashes this past week - naively thought I would keep them!!! Now I am curious as to when to expect them to grow back in. I have no hair yet on my head - can't wait - getting so tired of the bald head!!
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Hi everyone - on a different topic - did anyone experience dents in the finger nails during chemo? I have dents and the nails are discoloured and I can see the nailbeds - none of the nails are loose yet. What is everyone else's experience regarding the nails?
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Adagio, I had the same cocktail as you, and yes, my nails got little dents and got yellow looking. This started to happen during Taxol, and gradually got better afterwards, but took about a year. Nurses told me to soak in white vinegar and water to avoid infection, and I also used a tiny bit of tea tree oil on them when they were at their worst until the really discolored parts cleared up. I was afraid they would beecome loose or lift off, but they never did. I think that may be more common with Taxotere. On the eyelash/eyebrow quesion, mine got very thin during Taxol, but looked their worst a few weeks after Taxol ended. I finished Taxol 2/1 and within 2 months they came back thicker than ever. It was actually a nice chance to start over with my eyebrows and get them shaped up after too much waxing over the years. I know some may go through that cyle of loss/growth for awhile aftre chemo, but not everyone.
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My lashes and brows seemed ok for a long while, and then suddenly they were not ok at all. I found that wearing eyeliner helped a little. It took a while for them to come back, 4-5 months, but they did come back eventually.
The nails looked pretty awful too for a while, but the ones on the fingers recovered fairly quickly. The ones on my big toes took almost a year to grow out normally again.
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Waitingforthenextstep my hair always grew pretty fast, even on Herceptin it was going at a pretty good pace but Herceptin does slow hair growth. Also I do think my hair started to grow before I ended chemo. I didn't pay much attention because I thought my hair might not come back. I also, unscientifically, have observed that it appears (triple positive) people on Adriamycin might start their hair growth process later than those of us on other chemos. Maybe because you treatment is a little longer. But it does come back. hair transition linky with dates. Last chemo 1.18.2011
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adagio I have been selling Mary Kay lash and brow serum to BC.org members at $10 off with free shipping. I am hearing that it makes the lashes and brows you have look fuller and longer. It's $28.64 total cost to you. Just send it to my paypal email boo7of9@aol.com and be sure to leave a note what its for and where you want it shipped. (and that is for anyone reading this)
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Ok, well a couple of issues. Summer is coming and I am a swimmer, love pools and the ocean. How am I going to do this with a wig? Concerns> it is windy by the ocean, I know I can wear a hat, but my wig is synthetic and doesn't really tie back into a ponytail. Also, if I wanted to swim underwater, can't do it with a wig. My real hair won't be long enough by July or August. Not to mention how the heat affects our wigs being uncomfortable.
As for eyebrows and eyelashes, I did begin to lose both during taxol tx's. Honestly, I was so distraught over my hair, it didn't bother me that much. I could easily disguise the eyebrows, and I just wore my same eyeshadow, eyeliner. You really couldn't tell. Anyway, now at 7 wks PFC my eyebrows are grown back, and lashes starting to fill in too.
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Waitingforthenextstep you still have a 1.5 months before June… and even that can be early. A lot can happen in a few months. You may have a short pixie by then.
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Waiting,
Grease up with SPF and go au natural! You can do this. Wasn't a wig or scarf wearer. Did wear caps sometimes to protect from the elements ...running, raining, etc. But mainly made certain I was daily using lotion with an SPF and for runs, beach, pool without cap I really greased my head up good.
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lago - beautiful photos of you and your hair transitions. You look lovely in everyone of them. I would have to say by looking at the dates on the photos that I think your hair came in very fast!!
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Thanks adagio It came in fast because it needed to. I looked like Gollum with no hair. I don't have a nice shaped head. It's a bit lumpy. Also I have an oval shaped face so without hair it was even longer. But it actually grows faster now. I've always had fast growing hair.
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Waitingforthenextstep - I love the beach and swimming in the ocean too.. I have made up my mind, I'll wear a hat at the beach and take it off when I go in the water - I can't let this disease/treatment keep me from doing something I love.
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IamNancy,
I love the Jersey beaches too. What beach do you go too? Will it be ready to open for the summer?
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