Hair Loss

[KMCarlson 30]

Hi, guys! I'm having surgery the 29th, and one thing that's concerning me is the hair loss. Is there anything I can do/take to prevent it/reduce it? My hair isn't super thick as it is, so any help would be appreciated! I've heard about people upping their Protein, taking Biotin, extra Vitamins, etc. I just really want to know what ACTUALLY works. Thanks!

[Aribay1 198]

I read on another form to just drink as much Protein as you can. From what I've been reading lack of protein is why people are loosing hair

[BitterSweet* 835]

The answer to your question is nothing. Expect it to happen and if it doesn't, you are truly one in a million. Shop for a cute wig that mimics your current hair, or get something totally different that you look amazing in.

Maximize your Protein, hydration with Water, and take your Vitamins. This is near impossible right after surgery, but it's those rough weeks (if you have them), that causes the hair loss.....it just shows up months later. Whatever happens, just know that it'll grow back. Biotin helps with regrow but it will not change whether your hair will fall out.

[McButterpants 2,846]

I lost a lot of hair - when I say a lot of hair, I mean A LOT.

My doc says that not everyone will experience Hair loss and some will experience more hair loss than others. There is nothing you can do to avoid it, but you can do things to help with re-growth. More on that in a little bit.

She says the reason for the hair loss is your body thinks that hair is "optional". I disagree, but that really doen't matter. When your body thinks that something is threatening it, it will stop taking care of your hair...it's going to expend it's energy, nutrients, etc. on your organs. She said that "anything you lose due to the surgery, will grow back".

For the re-growth she approved Biotin and Folic Acid. I used Nioxin Shampoo which is for thinning hair. I use a product called Toppik, which is amazing - it hides the really thin spots, it works just like the vidoes show on their webpage.

How much hair did I lose? A lot - I started to lose at 2 months and it continued thru the 6th month. I figure I lost probably 35-40% of my hair. It was noticeably thin. I can remember standing in the shower crying as I stared at my hands which were covered in my own hair. I looked in amazement at the bathroom floor after I styled my hair and wondered, "When will this stop?" I'm now at my 11th month and when I got my haircut the other day, my stylist said, "I don't know if it's possible, but it looks like it's growing back thicker!" I teared up. I had to go to a short, layered cut to try to hide the really thin spots and, like I said, I use Toppik to cover up.

At the end of the day, was it worth it? Without a doubt! Would I go thru this all over again, even with the hair loss? Absolutely.

Edited October 17, 2014 by McButterpants

[Zane's Mom 184]

I'm 4 months out and it's been happening this past month.

At my 3 month check up my Protein levels were over 32. The doc said most 3 month post ops are 14 at most. So while I don't know what exactly it means, I know I am getting ALL of my Protein and its still happening.

I take all my Vitamins and Biotin since day one.

So... I agree with most others. If it's going to happen there's not much you can do about it. I'm not worried yet. I took medication years ago which made my hair come out like crazy, so I know what's ahead. Just hoping the re growth is sooner than later.

[livvsmum 2,369]

I'm not sure that there is anything really "proven" to help prevent this. Certainly getting lots of Protein in can't hurt for a lot of different reasons. I was pretty stressed out with the hair loss that went until about 6 months post op. It bothered me, but I'm pretty certain no one else really noticed, except maybe my husband and kids because I complained about it all the time. :-) It started growing back in around 10 months and now I have tons of regrowth growing in really nice and thick.

[habsi 25]

I hate this topic cuz there is no solution ... I'm losing hair all the time and a lot at once it started from month 2 onwards I chopped it all off

I take my Vitamins and am using nioxin too I don't know when re growth will start but everyone has started to notice how thin my hairdressers are always telling me wow ur hair is getting and thinner if I sweat or wash my hair it's even more obvious it's the most depressing thing ever

That being said I would go thru it again to have the weightloss but it's defo very hard

[shelly75 35]

Hi I completely understand why you're freaking out. I did too. Here is what I did. I started losing hair at month 2. I did a lot of research. I decided to start taking Viviscal. It's expensive but after a month, my hair stopped falling out. I also used Organix Shampoo and conditioner with Biotin in it. I eat my recommend dose of Protein and a Multivitamin. I also ate a lot of red meat for the protein and the Iron. By month four I was no longer losing hair. Month 6 now and it's growing back. I can't guarantee this will work for everyone but something in there worked for me. Find what works for you and stick with it. Good luck!