Hair Loss, Hair Regrowth, and a Lesson on Gratitude

I used this photo in last week’s blog post about a lesson I learned from my cute little Tyson.

As I added the photo to the post, my first thought was, “I wish I could get rid of those fly-away, sticking out hairs on the side of my head.”

Then I remembered…those fly-away, sticking out hairs are new hair growth! And I’m so very grateful for them, and I should be embracing and celebrating their stickoutiveness!

I had really thick, curly hair when I was younger. But I’ve been dealing for a long time with what I recently found out was androgenetic alopecia, and it seemed to get worse after my hysterectomy almost 7 years ago. This hair loss has been something that has really bothered me, and I was envious of women who had such thick hair at the crown and especially on the sides, which were my problem areas. I came up with some “tricks” to try to hide my hair loss, but I always knew it was there and that it was getting worse.

And did I mention that I was pretty self-conscious about it?

John and our two sons also deal with hair loss, and I know it hasn’t been easy for them. At all. And it might just be me, but I think hair loss is harder for women. We like to have full heads of hair that we can style, flip, put in a ponytail, or whatever, and let’s be honest—it’s an important part of how we feel about ourselves.

So when Kailen started having some hair loss issues at the very young age of 20 (probably due to her IBS), I decided to talk to my boss, Heidi, about her own hair loss/hair regrowth journey in the hopes of helping Kailen. She connected us to her hair loss specialist, and Kailen happened to be home for a few weeks in between semesters when we had our FaceTime consultation with Carly Klein of The National Hair Loss Association. Carly was so awesome in helping us to understand what was going on and why, and we decided to embark on this hair regrowth journey together. Not the usual mother-daughter activity, but we were excited to get started AND hopefully grow some new hair!

We both got the recommended shampoo and conditioner, and Carly’s staff was amazing at giving us tips on how to make the product last longer. It’s a bit on the pricey side, but it’s worth every single penny!

We each also got a Capillus laser cap, which has definitely been a huge key to our hair regrowth.

So…what can cause androgenetic alopecia! You might be surprised:

• Genetics: My mom and maternal grandma both had thinning hair, and I believe my aunts do too.
• Menopause: I went into instant menopause after my hysterectomy.
• Hormonal changes
• Stress: This hair loss is often temporary unless the stress doesn’t go away as in the case of chronic stress.
• Some medications
• Some medical conditions (diabetes, lupus, etc.)
• An unhealthy gut
• Lack of protein in your diet

Over the year that we worked with Carly, it was exciting to see the changes not only in our hair regrowth, but in our hair health as well. For me, I can see the difference on my crown and on my sides (the hardest area to regrow hair!)—the areas that bothered me the most. I’m not where I’d like to be yet, and I might never get there, but I’m so grateful for any improvements!

Here are the befores (left) and afters (right) of one year. The lighting is different, but I think this is pretty awesome for only a year! I’m still vigilant about wearing my cap as recommended, so I expect to continue to see more improvements.

And whenever I see those sticking out hairs, instead of instantly thinking about fixing them, I’m going to embrace them and remember how it felt when those hairs weren’t there and I was losing even more of them. And I’m going to be oh, so grateful!

If you or anyone you know is suffering from hair loss, I’d be happy to talk with you and share more of my hair regrowth journey!