Hair regrowth

Hi. I did a very similar post a few months ago. I lost most of my hair from chemo. I finished on 4th Aug and the bald patches did fill in quickly but 4 months on my hair is still very short and not very thick. I’d like to say it’s pixie cut style but it’s not even that yet. 

I have started using watermans which is clinic proven to work within 3 months. 

I always look at Amy Dowdens hair, shoulder length and taken 2 years to get there

Hi Recon

I am still mid-chemo so can't give personal experience, but I did the Look Good, Feel Better workshop about hair loss and new growth. They said it could be some time before the hair grew back but you should have some by about 3 months after chemo ends. 

They said the Faith in Nature rosemary shampoo range was good, as was a weleda hair tonic. I've not tried either but would recommend the workshop!

Hi

I finished docetaxel chemo in December last year. My hair had shown some re growth, like a peach. By March it was still very very short but I was confident enough to go out without any head covering. It was still short in June. 12 months later it isn’t quite as thick as it used to be but I have had about 4 cuts since July. I used  weleda tonic and faith in nature with rosemary shampoo - which I still use all the way through. I didn’t cold cap and was totally bald. 

Hi Recon 

I'm almost 5 weeks post chemo too.

I can see about 1mm of growth which has just started to come through.  I can only see it when the light is shining behind me otherwise I can hardly see it at all.Iit feels like a peach when I rub my scalp, kind of slightly rough.  I cant see how thick it is yet, but I had quite fine hair.before chemo anyway.  No regrowth yet on eyebrows or lashes.  

Can't wait to get to the suede head stage!

Take care x

I had my last chemotherapy on 29th April and started to notice some hair regrowth about 6 weeks later.  By mid July, although still quite short, it was long enough for me to feel confident enough to go out without covering my head.  

I am still yet to have a haircut although it is on my things to do list for early next year, I was totally bald in May.

I haven't used any special treatments, just used shampoos and conditioners for dry hair.   My hair is now wavy to curly where previously it was dead straight and although still fine seems denser if that makes sense.

The back seems to have grown more quickly than the front.

I'm sure you will notice some hair regrowth very soon.

Sending you hugs x

Hi LXC16,

Thank you so much for replying and for sharing what you learned at the Look Good, Feel Better workshop — that’s really helpful.

I was advised to use baby shampoo from the start of chemo, so I’ve been sticking with that. I don’t have much hair left now — probably around 20% with the everyday shedding — but I’m still using the baby shampoo for now. Once I start to see some regrowth, I’m planning to try the Faith in Nature rosemary shampoo you mentioned.

At the moment I’m also quite religiously using rosemary and castor oil on my scalp, so fingers crossed it helps when the time comes.

Wishing you all the best as you continue through chemo 

Recon

Hi MurphysMum,

I’m so happy to hear you’re starting to see regrowth at 5 weeks post-chemo — even a few millimetres is such a relief, isn’t it? That peach-fuzz stage feels like real progress at last.

I’m also 5 weeks post-chemo and very much in the same boat. No regrowth yet on my eyebrows or lashes either, even though I’ve noticed some body hair starting to come back. Funny how it works!

Hopefully we’ll get to that suede-head stage soon — especially in the places that really matter

Love 
Recon

Hi Sparkle498uk,

I saw your post after you mentioned. Thank you for sharing this — it’s really helpful to hear honest timelines from someone who’s been through it.

It’s reassuring to know the bald patches filled in quickly. I think we all hope it’ll be faster than it often is.

I hope Watermans works well for you — I’ve heard quite a few people mention it.

Love

Recon

I'm four weeks post chemo and nearly at the end of radio. I had long waist-length hair in August and then my hairdresser friend chopped my hair into a pixie cut. I retained a thin forelock of hair which I sometimes pull down to give an impression of having hair when wearing my woolly beanie!  - otherwise... bald as a coot.

I now have a 1mm of re-growth.  I can feel it rather than see it, except in sunlight... and it may be my imagination but perhaps I've already lost some of the re-growth? I'm getting a bit obsessive about it. My scalp is also a little itchy from time to time. I'm hoping that the itchiness signals ongoing re-growth. 

I attended the Look Good, Feel Good workshop too but at the end of my chemo treatment and I was the only one present without hair - everyone else was pre-treatment and still had their lovely flowing locks, so I felt a bit out of it (me being super-sensitive over my hair-loss again).  They did however recommend the Faith in Nature rosemary shampoo or the Weleda one to encourage re-growth.  I've been using the Faith in Nature one sparingly for about two weeks now, just a small amount from the bottle and lathering well before putting it on my scalp - whilst looking in the mirror and thinking, "Come on, come onnnn."   The re-growth seems to be coming in patches... there's still a lot of shininess on top, particularly towards the front. 

Prior to that, I was using baby shampoo - if it's gentle enough for babies, I thought - but the ladies at the workshop warned me it might cause cradle-cap... and it did!  Which was when I decided to try the rosemary shampoo. 

Rosemary seems to be the current favourite to encourage growth. I've also heard that coconut oil is useful.

Hi post chemo 8 weeks and my hairs all coming back all of the sudden … and quick x