Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Postpartum Hair Loss

Hooray! What a fun topic...NOT!

Approximately 6 months after Kenley was born {also when I stopped breastfeeding} my luscious pregnancy hair started to come out in massive clumps. I have always had a ton of hair and have always been a big time shedder, so while it was gross and annoying I wasn't overly alarmed. Plus, I'd heard of this sort of thing happening, so I just went with it.

And then my sweet little nugget got to the hair grabbing stage and unintentionally ripped out what felt like large amount of hair from the front of my head.

Then at about 11 months postpartum, all these lost hairs started to regrow giving me these fun little fly-aways that just could.not.be.tamed.
I loved getting feedback that I wasn't alone and reading your ideas for how to expedite the regrowth process but I'm going to honest, I didn't do a dang thing. And now I really, really regret that.

Here I am today, 22 months postpartum and my cute little regrowth looks like this:
And that goes ALL THE WAY AROUND MY HEAD!
{also, black bra + white tank = super classy}

I have pretty much been self conscious and insecure about my hair for the past year and a half. I have to very masterfully style it to cover up the crazy regrowth and prevent myself from looking like a mushroom head since the top half of my hair is now twice as thick as the bottom. I also have to wear a thick headband every time I pull my hair in to a pony tail because this regrowth doesn't yet fit all the way back but is long enough that it sticks out weird from my headband.

I feel really shallow even talking about this as I know so many people deal with serious diseases that cause hair loss and this is such a minor problem in the scheme of the world. But, I also know there are a lot of mamas out there who are feeling insecure about A LOT of different things postpartum and hair loss is definitely one of them.

You are not alone mama!

So what do we do? Well, I talked to my Auntie Tina who has been a hair stylist for 36 years and has owned her own premier salon in Arkansas for 15 years. She told me that on average, adults lose 100 hairs a day. Boys included! So next time your man gives you grief for hair in the drain let him know he sheds just as much but his hair is so much shorter it's way less noticeable. Anyways, when we are pregnant, as all us mamas know, the babe sucks every single ounce of everything from us to grow big and strong. Once those hormones level out and you are no longer pregnant {or breastfeeding} all those 100 hairs a day you didn't lose feel the need to make up for lost time and therefore we shed BIG TIME. Unfortunately, there isn't a TON you can do to prevent or help it. You can try supplements, vitamins and products to help speed up hair growth and some may work and help but for the most part you can count on your hair growing 1/2 inch each month.


After consulting with my go-to hair professional, I booked myself an appointment to get a fresh trim to keep my hair healthy and growing and also a new style to help cover up some of this nonsense.





16 comments:

  1. Awww, I'm sorry your hair made you feel insecure. It's crazy how something like that can really bother us. I think you're doing a great job masking what you don't like [because I think you look fabulous] and love how your hair looks with the curls. Have you thought about doing twists with the front part?

    I did a post last year about how I tamed my baby hairs. I will use the twists for workouts too, when headbands just don't cut it. Hope it helps!

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  2. Girl, I am right there with you on the postpartum hair loss. It's the WORST! I still have lots of baby hairs and am not completely sure whether my hair will ever quite be the same ever again :(

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  3. I'm scared to see what my hair will do come baby time because I already have some of those weird little whispies under my first layer of hair. and they're like.. HORSE Hair course and curly and weird. ack. Love the new cut! Hopefully it continues to grow fast! I have to say, I haven't even noticed- although I know it doesn't help when you're the one dealing with it day in and day out.

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  4. Those were the worst! You'll survive them though!

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  5. Ugh. I have those stupid flyaways too. Mine aren't as severe as yours, but I have to say - I never notice them when I'm with you! The new cut looks great! :)

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  6. Um! Your hair looks gorgeous in that last photo! I can't wait to have kiddos one day, but not looking forward to losing hair ;) you pull it off well and I wouldn't have ever known it was an issue for you unless you wrote this post. You're gorgeous!

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  7. It's so crazy the things that pregnancy does to a body!!! You are as gorgeous as ever though woman! :)

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  8. Well...you do an excellent job covering up because I always like the way your hair looks in pictures! Love the curls in the last picture, you look great!

    I've never been pregnant but feel like I face alot of these same hair issues. I've constantly battled with my hair and am always researching ways to make it grow, as it seems to grow incredibly SLOW. The three keys to success for me were: biotin (5000mcg), Wet Brush, better quality products (sulfate free, etc). I also recently discovered a kukui oil spray that helps to tame the flyaways, add shine, and moisture without making my hair more oily. I love reading hair/makeup blogs and found one that has a ton of useful suggestions, too. If you find the key to stop the crazy shedding LET ME KNOW! Hahaha! :)

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  9. DONT GET ME STARTED. mine is so so so bad! ahhhhhh. you sure do hide yours well because i never noticed!

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  10. I have heard so many friends talking about this lately! I haven't really dealt with it, but I'm still breastfeeding a couple times a day...does this mean this is my future?!? Ahh! But seriously, you're still gorgeous, even with the crazy little hairs ;)

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  11. AMEN!!! I have my little spritz sticking out, too. My husband tells me one of my horns are sticking out. Too bad he didn't have to push a baby out of his va-jay and then lose all his hair.

    Also, you look JUST like K in that last picture! Twins!

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  12. These babes do a number on our body and hair... goood thing they are worth it!
    The weird thing for me? My hair shed like CRAZY when I was PREGNANT! What the? I don't know why because our body produces a hormone while preggo to STOP the shedding. Not me! So I don't feel like I lost a ton of hair after she was born, because it all fell out while pregnant!
    Your hair will grow out and be back to normal in no time!! You're still gorgeous no matter what!

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