Wavy to Straight or Straight to Wavy?

desertgirl947
desertgirl947 Member Posts: 653 Member

Curious as to how people's hair grew back in after chemo --

  • Wavy to straight?
  • Straight to wavy?
  • Stayed the same?
  • Became really weird?

My hair used to be thick, coarse, and wavy -- not curly, just wavy.  Now, about 17 months after finishing chemo, I find that my hair has grown in straight, soft, and does not seem as thick (could be due to its softness).  I have decided this must be how it is going to be and am in the midst of deciding how I should wear my hair, since what I used to do just isn't working.

I am not complaining, lest it seem so.  It's just that I hear more of of people going from straight to curly than from curly/wavy to straight.  (Seems that throughout this whole challenge, from surgery through radiation, I was that odd statistic.  Maybe it continues.)

I am just curious. 

Laughing

Comments

  • Alexandra
    Alexandra Member Posts: 1,308
    Stayed the same - dark n' curly

       image      image      image      image      image

       2 years before cancer   2 days before chemo  2 weeks after first chemo  6 months after last chemo    1 year+ after last chemo

  • desertgirl947
    desertgirl947 Member Posts: 653 Member
    Alexandra said:

    Stayed the same - dark n' curly

       image      image      image      image      image

       2 years before cancer   2 days before chemo  2 weeks after first chemo  6 months after last chemo    1 year+ after last chemo

    Interesting.
    If I could

    Interesting.

    If I could figure out how to insert pictures here, I could put one of pre-chemo and then one I took recently because I was curious to see what the same shot showed. 

  • mommaellen
    mommaellen Member Posts: 195
    My hair went from straight to

    My hair went from straight to curly.  I love it before cancer and chemo my hair would not hold a curl but now I have a headfull of curls.

     

    Hugs

    Mommaellen

  • TraciInLA
    TraciInLA Member Posts: 1,994 Member

    My hair went from straight to

    My hair went from straight to curly.  I love it before cancer and chemo my hair would not hold a curl but now I have a headfull of curls.

     

    Hugs

    Mommaellen

    So jealous, Mommaellen!

    My hair has always been baby fine and stick straight.  I was SO looking forward to having that "chemo curl" when it grew back -- even just for a little while! -- but it grew back exactly the same.

    The only difference is that it's about a shade or two darker than it was before chemo -- everyone told me that was temporary, but, now that it's been 4+ years since I finished chemo, I think I have to say it's permanent....

    Traci

     

     

  • Clementine_P
    Clementine_P Member Posts: 518 Member
    Curly to...

    Mine started as wavy and coarse and a deep red color and then after chemo it was crazy (like stick your finger in a lightbulb socket sort of crazy) coarse and still deep red.  Now 3+ years after chemo it has almost completely returned to its previous texture.  I know lots of people call it chemo curls but when my hair returned my friends enjoyed calling it my chemo fro.  Being that I am a fairskinned redhead an afro does not exactly look attractive!  Ha ha.  Still, I would take pretty much any kind of hair over being bald.  I know it is not a big deal for lots of ladies but I really didn't like it very much at all.

    Clementine

  • 1surfermom
    1surfermom Member Posts: 396 Member

    Curly to...

    Mine started as wavy and coarse and a deep red color and then after chemo it was crazy (like stick your finger in a lightbulb socket sort of crazy) coarse and still deep red.  Now 3+ years after chemo it has almost completely returned to its previous texture.  I know lots of people call it chemo curls but when my hair returned my friends enjoyed calling it my chemo fro.  Being that I am a fairskinned redhead an afro does not exactly look attractive!  Ha ha.  Still, I would take pretty much any kind of hair over being bald.  I know it is not a big deal for lots of ladies but I really didn't like it very much at all.

    Clementine

    Stick straight to

     My hair has always been blonde and straight. My hair came back in coarse  with a slight wave and the color of a rat. I now know what the term " mousey brown" means. The wave stayed for about two months and then my hair went back to it's stick straight thin texture.  I have to rely on hair coloring to get near the original shade of blonde but  I really don't mind.As Clementine said I would take any type of hair rather than being bald. Love Surf

  • debi.18
    debi.18 Member Posts: 850 Member

    Stick straight to

     My hair has always been blonde and straight. My hair came back in coarse  with a slight wave and the color of a rat. I now know what the term " mousey brown" means. The wave stayed for about two months and then my hair went back to it's stick straight thin texture.  I have to rely on hair coloring to get near the original shade of blonde but  I really don't mind.As Clementine said I would take any type of hair rather than being bald. Love Surf

    Straight to Curly

    I've always had thin, straight baby fine hair.  After chemo, it came back wavy with curls on the end.  The longer it grows, the thinner and straighter is becomes.  Before chemo I had a little gray, but it grew back salt and pepper.  Couldn't wait to color it!

     

    Hugs, Debi

  • desertgirl947
    desertgirl947 Member Posts: 653 Member
    Comparisons

    Pre-chemo hair/post-chemo hair

    imageimage

  • 24242
    24242 Member Posts: 1,398
    blonde to dark

    I think my son wishes he never shaved his head at the same time I did because we both came in dark haired and mine actually is nothing like my old thin whispy hair.  I now have my Dad's hair and I did dye it for awhile but never liked the color that came out so gave up on that one...  Nice to have hair and I was not as brave as some of you, I do not have one bald picture anywhere because I did not want to be reminded of that time in my life and don't regret it one bit.

    How many like me and have a hard time not shaving hair off when the heat finally gets to me.  I liked the coolness of being bald in the summer months and think often about doing it again...

    Nice pics

    Tara

  • desertgirl947
    desertgirl947 Member Posts: 653 Member
    Bald pics

    The closest I have to a picture of me bald is me with a close buzz cut I had my friend give me when I knew for sure I was losing my hair.  I do not have one of when I was truly hairless.  I have a few of me when my hair was very short as it grew back.  I used to have thick hair and totally get that idea of wanting an excessively short cut.  I know ladie who have.  I think that is why I was quick to bare my head once I had full coverage, no splotches. 

    I do wear short hair but not as short as it was last year at this time.

  • carkris
    carkris Member Posts: 4,553 Member

    Bald pics

    The closest I have to a picture of me bald is me with a close buzz cut I had my friend give me when I knew for sure I was losing my hair.  I do not have one of when I was truly hairless.  I have a few of me when my hair was very short as it grew back.  I used to have thick hair and totally get that idea of wanting an excessively short cut.  I know ladie who have.  I think that is why I was quick to bare my head once I had full coverage, no splotches. 

    I do wear short hair but not as short as it was last year at this time.

    I had stick straight hair, it

    I had stick straight hair, it came back frizzy ,, chia pet like, now it is wavy. It also came back very dark

  • desertgirl947
    desertgirl947 Member Posts: 653 Member
    Interesting

    It seems wavy/curly is the majority.

  • skillerkelly
    skillerkelly Member Posts: 2
    Hair

    My hair came back totally different.  I am of Irish descent on both sides, so there has not been one strand of black hair in my family that I know of.  But my hair came back very black and white.  Looked like a skunk.  Also, lots thicker and much less curly.  So now at 60 I have super gleaming mega white hair to my waist, with beautiful texture and thickness.  Best hair of my life.  Before chemo, my hair was really long and I was coloring it to be my red of old, and it was costing a fortune and time consuming.  I said many times, "I would give anything to keep from dying this stuff!"  Got what I asked for!  So be careful of what we ask for or you just might get it would be the moral of this story!  By the way, I think all of the hoorah for breast cancer is really embarassing to me as a member of our breast worshipping culture.  One of the easier thnkgs I have had to deal with in my life.  Why not the same find of funrdaising and carrying on for pancreatic or kidney or brain cancer?  Can't live without those, but can live quite well without breasts.