hair loss

foxhill96
foxhill96 Member Posts: 25
in Breast Cancer #1
Here I thought I was ready to lose my hair, but I guess not. Today is day 13 of my first TAC cocktail and my hair started falling out, so I went and had it shaved off. Quite upset, this sucks.....

Comments

  • skipper54
    skipper54 Member Posts: 936 Member
    #2
    It's a change!
    Yes, it sucks, but look at it this way - no bad hair days. The biggest shock for me was looking in the mirror and saying "o my God, it's my dad!" You really find your heritage when you lose your hair. It DOES grow back. Mine's a little darker, just as thick, and now wavy, which is a new thing for me. Losing your hair is one of the hardest things for women to deal with but you should be proud of yourself for taking control. Buy some fun hats & scarves! A quirkly little bonus for me was that my kittens took to washing my head. When my hair started growing back I knew it was getting longer when they quit. The other "plus", you know the chemo is working.

    Sending prayers for peace!
  • jessiesmom1
    jessiesmom1 Member Posts: 915 Member
    #3
    Hair Loss during chemo
    Yes indeed, it most certainly does suck. I had 4 rounds of A/C and 12 rounds of Taxotere. My hair started falling out on precisely Day 14. I had very thick hair to begin with so it took about another 10-14 days before it started looking truly ridiculous. At that point I had my husband shave off what remained. It was very upsetting. It took weeks before I could pass a mirror and not cry. I would look in the mirror and the person staring back at me was just not the me I knew. I had gotten a great looking wig at the local ACS office along with some head scarves. I wore the wig for the big outings where I might actually see people and the head scarves at other times. I found out bald heads are cold so I even wore a little cap indoors on many days. I got a FREE 100% silk head scarf from a company called France Luxe. They do this for cancer patients and have a huge selection. It is about 9 months since my last chemo infusion. I have a full head of salt & pepper color "chemo curls." It is kind of funny feeling since my hair prior to chemo was very straight. I must say that it beats the alternative, which is baldness. While it is not much comfort right now, rest assured that it DOES grow back. IRENE
  • foxhill96
    foxhill96 Member Posts: 25
    #4
    skipper54 said:

    It's a change!
    Yes, it sucks, but look at it this way - no bad hair days. The biggest shock for me was looking in the mirror and saying "o my God, it's my dad!" You really find your heritage when you lose your hair. It DOES grow back. Mine's a little darker, just as thick, and now wavy, which is a new thing for me. Losing your hair is one of the hardest things for women to deal with but you should be proud of yourself for taking control. Buy some fun hats & scarves! A quirkly little bonus for me was that my kittens took to washing my head. When my hair started growing back I knew it was getting longer when they quit. The other "plus", you know the chemo is working.

    Sending prayers for peace!

    thanks
    thank you so much for your thoughts....it is just another hurdle I have to get over..the thing about your kittens really made me smile :)
  • foxhill96
    foxhill96 Member Posts: 25
    #5
    jessiesmom1 said:

    Hair Loss during chemo
    Yes indeed, it most certainly does suck. I had 4 rounds of A/C and 12 rounds of Taxotere. My hair started falling out on precisely Day 14. I had very thick hair to begin with so it took about another 10-14 days before it started looking truly ridiculous. At that point I had my husband shave off what remained. It was very upsetting. It took weeks before I could pass a mirror and not cry. I would look in the mirror and the person staring back at me was just not the me I knew. I had gotten a great looking wig at the local ACS office along with some head scarves. I wore the wig for the big outings where I might actually see people and the head scarves at other times. I found out bald heads are cold so I even wore a little cap indoors on many days. I got a FREE 100% silk head scarf from a company called France Luxe. They do this for cancer patients and have a huge selection. It is about 9 months since my last chemo infusion. I have a full head of salt & pepper color "chemo curls." It is kind of funny feeling since my hair prior to chemo was very straight. I must say that it beats the alternative, which is baldness. While it is not much comfort right now, rest assured that it DOES grow back. IRENE

    thanks
    thank you for your thoughts...I did get a free scarf from Good Wishes...I had been down in the dumps that day and it arrived in my mail...it made me feel good receiving it and the card they all signed sending me well wishes...I guess it's another hurdle to get over ...God Bless
  • wndringmnd
    wndringmnd Member Posts: 44
    #6
    fingernail loss
    what I was warned about is fingernail loss. and yup about 1 month in the base of my nails turns dark brown and now, 6 months later 3 of them have fallen off and several more have changed color.
    Love, Marilyn
  • BioAdoptMom
    BioAdoptMom Member Posts: 358
    #7
    I had mine buzzed the week
    I had mine buzzed the week after I started treatment and yeah, it is emotional. As of today, day 16, I am shedding something terrible. One thing that is nice, showers and getting ready for work in the morning is so easy and quick! (((HUGS))) from someone who understands.

    Nancy
  • butterflylvr
    butterflylvr Member Posts: 944
    #8
    BioAdoptMom said:

    I had mine buzzed the week
    I had mine buzzed the week after I started treatment and yeah, it is emotional. As of today, day 16, I am shedding something terrible. One thing that is nice, showers and getting ready for work in the morning is so easy and quick! (((HUGS))) from someone who understands.

    Nancy

    Yup, losing your hair is
    Yup, losing your hair is hard to deal with. I too made the decision to shave my head. I did mine on Thanksgiving day when my family was present and I was surrounded by loved ones. Surprisingly I thought I would be upset more then what I was. When I was able to pull my hair out in clumps I didn't want the mess to clean up afterwards. When it was done, I made the decision I wasn't one to wear wigs. I wore bandana scarves under baseball caps. I always thought of myself as a vain person and my hair was everything because I always had such a thick mane which often got compliments.

    Being bald has taught me that my hair didn't make me who I am. Wearing that bandana and ball cap out in public brought smiles from strangers and an outpouring of support from my community. I never hid my cancer and now that my hair is growing back, you wouldn't believe the "You look beautiful" compliments I am getting now. Your time is coming... hang in there.

    Hugs,
    Lorrie
  • carkris
    carkris Member Posts: 4,553 Member
    #9
    butterflylvr said:

    Yup, losing your hair is
    Yup, losing your hair is hard to deal with. I too made the decision to shave my head. I did mine on Thanksgiving day when my family was present and I was surrounded by loved ones. Surprisingly I thought I would be upset more then what I was. When I was able to pull my hair out in clumps I didn't want the mess to clean up afterwards. When it was done, I made the decision I wasn't one to wear wigs. I wore bandana scarves under baseball caps. I always thought of myself as a vain person and my hair was everything because I always had such a thick mane which often got compliments.

    Being bald has taught me that my hair didn't make me who I am. Wearing that bandana and ball cap out in public brought smiles from strangers and an outpouring of support from my community. I never hid my cancer and now that my hair is growing back, you wouldn't believe the "You look beautiful" compliments I am getting now. Your time is coming... hang in there.

    Hugs,
    Lorrie

    yes it does suck, but it
    yes it does suck, but it does grow back. I buzzed my hair when it started to fall out. I was the opposite though, I did it in private at a salon that specializes in it. 'The same place I got my wig. I did not wear my wig that much and feel it was a waste of money. there was only a couple of times when I wore it. to my daughters school, and to her confirmation. So I would not stand out. I did not like to go bald, but got used to the scarves rather quickly. It has been a year since I finished treatment, and my hair is curly. It is so easy i will be bummed when it goes straight again.
    anyway it is a shock to the system but I bet you look beautiful!
  • carkris
    carkris Member Posts: 4,553 Member
    #10
    carkris said:

    yes it does suck, but it
    yes it does suck, but it does grow back. I buzzed my hair when it started to fall out. I was the opposite though, I did it in private at a salon that specializes in it. 'The same place I got my wig. I did not wear my wig that much and feel it was a waste of money. there was only a couple of times when I wore it. to my daughters school, and to her confirmation. So I would not stand out. I did not like to go bald, but got used to the scarves rather quickly. It has been a year since I finished treatment, and my hair is curly. It is so easy i will be bummed when it goes straight again.
    anyway it is a shock to the system but I bet you look beautiful!

    I actually had a harder time
    I actually had a harder time with the lashes and eyebrows but now I JUST LOVE TO WEAR MASCARA because i can! I have come to realize its the small stuff!
  • VickiSam
    VickiSam Member Posts: 9,079 Member
    #11
    carkris said:

    I actually had a harder time
    I actually had a harder time with the lashes and eyebrows but now I JUST LOVE TO WEAR MASCARA because i can! I have come to realize its the small stuff!

    I had a difficult time with all the hair loss...
    hats, baseball caps, bandana's as well as scarf's .. make all the differnce in the world to 'us' bald women! Use them, color coordinate your outfits and hats .. go wild. I surely did. Heck, I save a nice sum of money -- not going to the salon, coloring and cutting! I did find myself going crazy purchasing hats from every hat company on the internet! Yikes!

    My lashes and brows has yet to fill in ... My hair started growing back, this time last year .. and her I am 12 months later .. brows, oh brows where art thou? Lashes have regrown, not as thick, or luxurious as before...

    Did I mention that my under arm hair is back in full force, as well as the hair on my legs .. Ugh!

    Strength and Courage to all ..

    Vicki Sam
  • cahjah75
    cahjah75 Member Posts: 2,631
    #12
    It is a shocking change
    to see oneself with no hair. It takes time to get used to it. I didn't get a wig. Instead I lived with hats and went hatless in my house. It is just as hard when it starts growing back in SLOWLY! My hair is gray (after coloring it for more than 20 years) and the texture is fuzzy curly. OMG! Hair came back where it wasn't before (my face), eyelashes ok but not eyebrows and hair on arms is heavier in some spots. I don't need to shave as often. Be patient as you go through chemo.
    {{hugs}} Char
  • Heatherbelle
    Heatherbelle Member Posts: 1,226 Member
    #13
    It DOES suck, and it was the
    It DOES suck, and it was the hardest part for me. I would wake up in the morning, dark circles under my eyes & since i didn't completely lose all my hair (i had itty bitty stubbles all over it, almost like a 5 o'clock shadow) - id go look in the mirror and see my younger brother looking back at me.
    It's a brave thing to take control of the situation and shave it off. That is a memory that I will never forget. I was bald in the late summer/fall, so what I did was get a few 100% silk scarves on ebay & wore them. They were so soft on my head & looked really cute & weren't too hot with the heat plus those lovely chemo hot flashes. Then in the colder times I wore knit stocking caps.
    Sending you lots of hugs -i know how bad it sucks. It will, however, start coming back in really quick after you're done with chemo, and your hair will come back in even better than it was before :)
    *hugs*
    heather
  • Pam Kiley
    Pam Kiley Member Posts: 18
    #14
    hair loss
    Yes foxhill, were told, and seen this happens but when it does, whew, takes your breath away. But it will grow back and more importamtly u will go on. Lots of prayers and good positive thoughts to you!!!! I liked scarves alot more than wigs. God Bless You Kiley

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