Hair Hair Hair - Another question

HomeMom

I've had one trim and two colors with highlights. I will be going in on the 31st for another touch up and possibly a trim to get to that bob look! It will be 12 months PFC the first of September and I never ever thought my hair would grow out. I have these curls all over my head that I didn't have before. I was wavy and somewhat curly underneath, but this an all over effect!

I like to play with them though!

ksusan

Looking good!

MomMom

Hello All,

Just got my fifth post-chemo haircut yesterday (and second highlight!). It's growing so fast, I need a cut every 5 weeks. Finished chemo exactly one year ago yesterday. Yay!!! Still have some curly hair in front, but it's growing more like my previous straight hair. Decided to get it cut sort of like Robin Wright's short do on "House of Cards." Still pretty much maintenance free, which I'm loving, after years of blowing and curling iron before chemo.

Paula

Trvler

Very pretty, Mom!

IamNancy

MomMom - you look great!

Anonymous

You look awesome MomMom!!

Tobycc

MomMOm, prettier every post!

Lorbgoo

so pretty mom

MomMom

Thank you. You ladies are so sweet and supportive. The photograph makes my hair look more reddish than it really is (it's more golden), but I'm very happy with my newish incarnation of an evolving post-chemo hair do:-). Before chemo, I had very thick hair that always had to be thinned out when cut. My hairdresser is back to thinning it out (a lot!)! I've received lots of compliments which make me feel so good. And I'm loving that it only takes me 5 minutes (after years of 40-45 minutes trying to curling iron my straight hair into submission). Right now, I want to keep it really short forever.

When I think back to one year ago when I'd just finished chemo, I had no hair, no big toenails and limited energy. I feel so blessed to be where I am today.

anotherNYCGirl

MomMom, - looks beautiful! But, then again, I thought you looked great all along! I bought the products that you suggested from Sally's, but didnt use them yet for fear of turning orange. I will look into mixing 2 blonds? or maybe use just the lighter one? (I have never had my hair colored at the salon, - I've always done my own, and now that it is so short and I am looking for semi-perm, it would be a big expense for short lasting color!)

PamelaC47

I know one of the worries I had when growing my hair back was if coloring would damage my new hair or slow down its growth. I wasn't gray at all prior to chemo but my hair grew back very gray, and at 49 I wasn't thrilled....it didn't look like me in the mirror. After about 10 months PFC I went to an organic salon and had my hair colored. The stylist was excellent, she had colored hair for people post chemo before. Looks exactly like my old color, and if anything my hair has grown in even better- I'm sorry now I waited so long to do it. Prior to chemo my hair was very fine, it's actually in much better shape now. I also use organic shampoo and conditioner. The brand name of the color is Davines.

Wish I had looked better with the gray... I definitely didn't. Also the texture of it was very coarse, the coloring makes it softer and easier to style.

My hair did not grow at all during Taxol...probably took a good month PFC to get going. I did take Biotin throughout Taxol and still take it daily. Iwas so afraid it wasn't going to grow back! At 19 months PFC its 8 inches long.... I can remember measuring it every day like it was yesterday. It's like, one day you wake up and you have hair again. Seemed like it happened overnight.

ETA: sorry if that sounded like an ad for the color - just wanted to share the resource, it was one of my biggest questions when my hair was growing out.

Trvler

Gorgeous, Pamela!

raleighgirl

Pamela,

You look amazing! Thank you so much for sharing. I hope mine looks as good as yours at 19 months PFC!

mtait2307

hi everyone

Firstly let me start off by saying I didn't have breast cancer! I was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukimia, which is a very aggressive blood cancer in February 2015. I finished all of my treatments in June. The chemotherapy that I had was called ICE (idarubocine, cytaribin and etoposide). Even though I didn't have breast cancer, I'm so glad I found this website and can read everyone's tips and advice. So thank you all for sharing

Now with my progress: I lost nearly every single bit of hair on my entire body. At one stage I had only one eyelash left and about 2-3 eye brow hairs 😂 I looked awful. I highly recommend watching eyebrow tutorials on YouTube

Okay so anyway, here is a picture from about 2 weeks after my last treatment (going down then up etc) to about a month after. (It's been another 2 weeks worth of growth since the last picture)

I have been taking some swisse hair and nail vitmin tablets ( one like once a week, im terrible with remembering) but every second night without fail I will use Rosemary and lavender oil on my hair. It gives me a tingley feeling and I genuinely think that that's the main reason my hair has grown so quickly in just over a month

kpmacmill

You look like a model Pamela! Did your hair come back straight like it is in the picture? Mine is so wavy and curly at 7 mos PFC, I just want my straight hair back. I do currently have hair extensions, though, because I couldn't stand the short hair for another minute, but I have to keep taming down my own curly pieces that poke through.

anotherNYCGirl

Pamela, - you look beautiful!

I just looked online for that brand, - seems it is only sold to salons, - now to find a place nearby that uses it (and wont charge a fortune for my very short hair!

MomMom

Pamela - Absolutely beautiful!!

PamelaC47

thank you for the kind words

kpmacmill, yes my hair grew back very curly... As soon as it got some length to it, it curled. When it was gray it was very kinky, the color made it softer so it was literal ringlets. It's still pretty curly in the back, though much flatter n top as it starts to grow out more. I blow out the front.

Another thing I did that I feel really helped - I only washed my hair, when it was super short, once a week. Even now I do two or three times a week. This was recommended to me by a friend who has the most amazing long hair, and I feel like it really worked.You have to understand, prior to losing my hair with chemo my hair was very fine and literally NEVER grew. I was so afraid it would never grow back, or it would take forever since pre chemo I had little to no growth.

anotherNYCgirl, I haven't seen that brand anywhere for sale either. I use their shampoo and conditioner too, I have to buy it at the salon, I can't find it. I never n my life had my hair colored at a salon before chemo, but a fellow survivor at work told me about a local place that was all organic, and I was afraid to color my hair myself because I had no idea if the color would take. I was really pleasantly surprised that t lasts as long as it does. I don't even get a blowout to keep the price down lol

Tobycc

Like many of you, mine came in course, gray, white, curly, all over. Today was second trim and color. If I can style it like she did, I may ditch the wig. My goal was Sept--- first day of chemo.

Not sure how I feel about short hair. I have had shoulder length for 20 years, and my staff/ community do not know.

I used Davine at my old salon and really like their products.

Will also attach picture from Sunday with my wig

Hugs

Kath

IamNancy

Toby - your short hair looks so cute - hopefully you can fix it like the hairdresser .. I purposely get my hair cute that short now... You do look good in your wig also..

Nomatterwhat

Toby, you look great either way!!!! Gook looking boy with you. I bet he is on his way back to school. Sorry, mom!!

Question -- Do I count my hair as starting to grow back the day I had my head shaved or the day after my last chemo? I have done nothing to it since having it shaved and it is really starting to bother me. Everybody loves my curly/kinky gray/white hair, but they do not have to wear this "fur coat" in this 100 degree heat with hot flashes.

rosesrx

Most pictures seem to indicate weeks and months pfc (post final chemo)

I hear you about the heat. Made my first wigless outing Wednesday. Did have ball cap on. Only 3 people have seen me topless.

ThinkingPositive

tobycc..your hair looks great. Mine is at a point right now that I don't need to wear the wig...but my own hair looks worse than it did before.. I am thankful that it has grown back, but its so thick and curly. If I blow dry it, it ends up being a frizzy mess. I still wear the wig to work, weekends I just put some gel in it and go around with a little mini afro.. How long did it take before you could get it to look like your picture..

PamelaC47...beautiful hair!!

PamelaC47

Thinking Positive, I know you were asking Toby, but thought I'd chime in - that curly, unable to do anything with it stage was where I was last summer. I was looking at my pictures - in May it was still a super short pixie. July, August, September - it was growing out, curly and wiry. I had clips, barrettes and headband galore! I still wore my wig to work through that period. By October it was long enough to style and that's when I finally hung up my wig

ThinkingPositive

PamelaC47...thanks...that gives me hope that my ringletts will soon become something manageable!!

Tobycc

I am still wearing to work. I unveiled tody at church and many did not recognize me :)I

I had my first trim and color to cover all the grey and kinks 7 weeks ago. She cut it pretty short-- This past week was second color and trim.

I tried lots too: but I use a round brush to blow dry, and some straighterner on my fingers.

Kath

Jane_MJ

Hi,

I finished chemo at the end of March 2015. I now have about one inch of hair, but the top and bangs are taking longer to grow than the back and sides. A few of my 'breast friends' are experiencing a similar regrowth pattern. Any comments on how much longer it will be before the hair gets into a normal 1/2 inch/month growth pattern?

Italychick

Two and a half months months out. Still have a weird bald spot in the front. Be patient, it grows back patchy. The male pattern baldness areas are the last to come back.

Trvler

I have bald spots in similar areas to you, Theresa. BTW, what brand of color did you use?

Italychick

I just bought the grocery store hair touch up for gray, nothing special. It was enough dye to get the job done. I'm not worried about the first inch or two of hair growth, because I figure it will be damaged chemo poodle hair anyways. Like Clairol or something?