Postpartum Hair Loss

[lcarlson90]

I noticed that my hair started falling out at about 9 weeks pp when I stopped breast-feeding. My DS is almost 4 months old and it's still falling out. Is it normal for this process to take so long?

The reason that I am questioning this is because I was on Yasmin (BC) before I was pregnant and it made my hair fall out so I switched to a different pill. I started on Ortho-Tri-Cyclin Lo ( a pill I have never taken) at 9 weeks pp so I am not sure if my hair is falling out from the pill or the change in hormones.

[emschwar]

My hair fell out forever. I think it stopped around when DS was 8 months old. My hair stylist said it's normal for it to fall out for up to a year.

[ce_Kathleen]

If it makes you feel any better my hair is still falling out! It didn't start falling out until almost 6 months PP and DS is 10.5 months now.

[Pookie]

DS will be 4 months next Friday and mine is still falling out. I was starting to think it was more my thyroid. I have Hashimoto and hypothyroid.

[blessed02]

Oh, crapola. I had forgotten about the hair loss thing. I guess I'm due for that soon. With my first child, I can't remember when the hair started falling out, but I remember that it lasted until around 6 months. I never knew I had so much hair!

I don't think it's related to breastfeeding/weaning. I breastfed for 15 months and still had tons of ppm hair loss in the early months.

[dana b]

i can't remember when mine stopped falling out, i just remember that it all started growing back at once and i had all these spikey hairs everywhere.

[LilMarty]

Gosh, I am so glad someone posted this...I was starting to wondering what was going on with me! I can't believe how much hair is falling out, it is everywhere!

[BooeyJ2]

Mine has been falling out like crazy for the past few weeks (DD will be 4 months old next week). I throw away a huge handful of hair after each shower.....and when hubby sees he's like "WHOA CHEWBACCA!" lol. Luckily I have thick hair...so I can probably stand to lose some haha. It's just amazing to me how much hair falls out..yet i'm not completely bald yet!?!?! Weird.

[onomatopoeia]

My hair is still falling out! Every time I brush my hair or take a shower - hair everywhere!

I even went to the doctor and they tested me for anemia and for thyroid b/c I guess hair loss can be a sign of those 2. Anyway, everything came back normal and they said it can take up to a year or two for all the hormones to get out of your body.

Thankfully I have VERY thick hair. I have heard of women who literally end up with bald spots - but eventually it does grow back.

[seattleguamgirl]

DS is five months and my hair is still falling out. Luckily it's not coming out in chunks--a friend of mine lost soooo much hair, she was bald all along her hair line after she had her DS!

[Juniper]

My hair finally stopped falling out when my son was a year old. Now I have the crown of spikes around my face, although those are looking much longer now!

[sunmoonstars75]

The girls are 4.5 months old, and the past few weeks, I have been shedding like mad. Shouldn't this be over and done with this by now? I didn't think my hair got much thicker when I was pg, and I kind of thought that if this were to happen, it would have started earlier. I'm BFing, if that makes a difference.

So, when did you start feeling like you should look for bald spots with all of the hair falling out and clogging the shower?

[NicoleWisconsin]

I think my pp hair loss stopped around 6 months. It was awful. When I'd wash it, I'd feel like I was going bald, too! Someone I work with actually had bald spots by her temples, but I think that was pretty extreme.

I think the reason it happens is this: Your hair goes through natural cycles. When you are pg, it skips the shedding part of the cycle. (You might have noticed you didn't lose much hair when pg.) Then, for whatever reason, the shedding cycle goes into overdrive after you give birth. So your hair might not have really gotten thicker - you just might not have lost as much.

[phart]

Aiden is 20 months and I still shed. And I'm pregnant again.

[jlc1012]

After Daniel was born, I was shed until I got pregnant again which was 6 months later. Aiden is 4.5 months and I just stopped shedding. Mine was so bad I had a bald spot on both sides, right in the front. It was pretty gross.

[nancy drew]

i didnt start shedding until 3 or 4 months, and i think it slowed down at about 6 months. maybe later.

[BooeyJ2]

I'm shedding like crazy right now. DH keeps calling me Chewbacca :P

SHANNON - Hi and CONGRATS!!! :)

[cbiggers]

My girls are 8 months old and I am just now noticing a slow down on the shedding. It seriously made me very, very nervous for a while! I am also seeing some new hairs growing in around my hair line! I can't believe I still even have any hair left considering how much fell out!

[Marisa]

I don't think I started until 3-4 months in either, at least not as noticeably. And it was probably around 7-8 months that it slowed down. I still feel like I shed a little more than I used to, but I'm down to a few hairs here and there as opposed to handfuls.

[seattleguamgirl]

Roman is almost 6 months and I still shed like crazy. No bald spots here, but I always find huge chunks of hair in the shower and in front of my vanity where I blow dry. :-\ I cannot wait for it to stop!

[Katie]

I'm so glad to hear that all of you are going through this! I just started shedding about 3 weeks ago - DS is almost 5 months - and it's driving me crazy. With the shedding and my DS pulling on my hair all the time (and taking clumps with him) I joke that I'll be bald by the time he's two! :rolleyes:

[Brady]

It's funny because I just came from my hairdresser's where I was crying to her and just telling her to chop it all off, as I have nothing left! She said just from what she's seen, that it happens for at least the first six months. So, I was hoping I'd get a reprieve in another month, but now reading this- looks like I may be ordering some Rogain soon.... :o But seriously, as someone with really thin/fine hair to begin with.. it's quite frightening seeing the amount of hair in the shower/sink/floor!

[Chylynn]

Darn, I had hoped it would not happen to me, but it seems that a lot of you did not begin to shed until about 4-5 months and my DD will be 4 months on Tuesday. Hopefully I won't go bald!!!

[HGMorgann]

I'm so glad to read this thread. I started shedding like crazy about 3 weeks ago, and was wondering if I was normal, or if my thyroid was off again....hopefully its just the normal PP hairloss;-)

[tgray99]

I started shedding at about 2 months PP and I'm still shedding a month later. I have to have DH check my backside before I go out to make sure I'm not coated in long blonde hair! I'm SO ready for this to be over with!

[duke's flygirl]

I didn't start shedding until Ryleigh was about 4 months old, and I am still shedding now and she will be 9 months on Thursday.

My husband says that I shed more than the cats do! I am noticing the new growth starting again now though. I do find clumps when I am washing my hair, but so far no bald spots for me, for that I am grateful.

I am still BFing too.

Good to hear that there are still some of us shedding like crazy!

[Pookie]

I was starting to think something was wrong with me. DS is 4 1/2 months old. I started shedding last month and it's still going strong. I have fine hair and feel like I'm going to have none left.

[margiepgh]

I didn't start shedding until I was about 5 months PP, and it lasted about 2-3 months. During my shedding phase, I got several inches cut off of my hair to make it seem fuller.

[PinkMartini]

(Did a search - couldn't find anything - please bump the thread up if I missed something)

I'm 4 months PP now and am loosing a tremendous amount of hair. For probably 2 months now it's just falling out in amazing amounts. When I take a shower our drain cover is literally covered in hair, I'm cleaning out my brushes daily, my DS constantly has clumps of it in his hands, ect. I have really thin hair to begin with, I'm worried I'm going to go bald soon :eek:

How long does hair loss last PP? Is handfuls of it coming out, normal? Is there anything I can do/use to lessen the loss?

[MauiWife]

UGH...I so remember the PP hair loss!!! For me, it started around 3-4 months after DS was born and continued until he was about 8-9 months. My hair came out in huge clumps-running my fingers through my hair would make make tons of strands come out, and washing my hair resulted in the same. My hair was everywhere in the house, on my clothes, etc. It was really gross, but it does eventually get better! :) I feel for ya!

[Ericka_Jarett]

http://www.constantchatter.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3709&highlight=hair+loss+birth

[PinkMartini]

Thanks Ericka... I only searched in the Preg forum, that's why I didn't find it

[Ericka_Jarett]

no problem, here is another one, can't find the other more recent one right now:

http://www.constantchatter.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1737&highlight=hair

[Wrighty26]

Hair loss last about 3-4 months for me. It was SO digusting. I would just run my hands through my fingers and clumps would come out.

Now I have "new" hair growing in. That's equally as fabulous because I have hair just "sprouting" up all over my head. It's particularly noticeable around my forehead. I'm considering bangs because it looks so ridiculous. At least it IS growing back though. It felt pretty thin for a while!

[ShannonGH]

Yeah, it sucks. Mine lasted about 6 months and I was SO glad when it did! I feel your pain. As far as I know, there's nothing that can be done about it other than just waiting it out.

[babylove]

THIS LASTS FOR 6 MONTHS?! :eek: Mine started falling out at 3 mo PP and is still going strong at 6 mo PP. Ick. Why is hair so pretty when it's on your head but so utterly disgusting when it's anywhere else? :p

[tunibell]

I am now 15 months postpartum (still breastfeeding - not sure if that is relevant) and still shedding like a dog in the summertime. Is this normal??

[LRL]

Tuni- I am still shedding like crazy, but I can't say that it is more than I did pre-pregnancy. My mom tells me that she started losing hair after my first sister was born, and that the hair loss never tapered off.

Are you still BFing? Maybe it has something to do with your hormones. I found this on Kellymom (it mentions taking mutivitamins, and other supplements): http://www.kellymom.com/bf/concerns/mom/hairloss.html

[mrst2001]

I didn't stop losing hair until I stopped BF-ing at 8 months. It is definitely hormonal!

[jesseybell]

I started loosing hair at 3 months and it stopped when I weaned at 6 months. It really was one of those things that people never tell you about - 3m pp and you *think* things are starting to get back to normal and out comes the hair.

[Toonces]

With DD I lost gobs of hair from 3 months pp through about 9 or 10 months pp. I BF her until she was 22 months old though so that didn't seem to affect my hair loss one way or another.

With DS I started losing hair at 3 months pp; now almost 7 months pp, still BFing, still losing it.

[Weddings by]

I didn't notice losing my hair after pregnancy. I do have that problem when my thyroid medication needs to be upped.

[Whitleigh]

Ok I know its normal to loss some hair when you BF but is there anythign you can take that can slow it down a little bit?? I have really thick hair and I swear every day I wash my hair and you would think I was going bald but I have so much hair you can't really tell its just really disgusting. I could probably sweep my bathroom floor daily and make a bald man have a full head of hair again. ANY SUGGESTIONS?? I'm still taking my prenatals also!

[jennylou]

I'm not sure it's the BFing, I've never heard that BFing can cause hair loss.

I have, however, heard that women lose hair PP. I'm finally experiencing this (started just shy of when DD turned 1).

[KimberDK]

Same thing, I have heard that it's a PP thing, not a BF thing. From what I've heard, apparently when you're pg, you don't shed hair like you normally would and then pp it falls back out to what it normally should be. I started losing a couple of months after my dd was born and it probably took a good 6 months until it tapered off. I'm finally not losing clumps every day anymore.

[NicoleWisconsin]

Yes, I have also read that hair growth/loss goes in stages and when you are pregnant, you skip the shedding stage. After pregnancy, you catch up. Some days, I'd swear from the amount that went down the drain, I was about to have none left!

[micd]

Yep, it's a pp thing. I'm going through the same thing. When I was pg I would shed one, maybe two, hairs in the shower and now I am losing it like crazy. It's all over th place in the shower and the bathroom floor, and on my clothes, and in my baby's fists! It just started a week ago and my DD is 3 months.

[whitlockan]

yes it begins pp due to the hormone levels but it does not go away until about 3-4 months after you stop bf. I just had my convo with my stylist this past week (whom is very good and very educated). She gave me a deep protien conditioner to use 3 times a week in place of my normal one, its the RedKen extreme line.....thus far I have seen improvements, but nothing will stop it......its only 15.25 for a "tube."

[Scooter]

It's not the breastfeeding, it's just from having a baby. You lose it regardless of whether you're BFing or not.

I started losing it around 3 mos and stopped the PP shedding after about 6 months. From what I read online at the time, that's a normal time frame. My hair's just as thick now as it ever was. And since weaning at 16mos I haven't noticed any difference at all--it was just those 3 mos early on.



[I]ETA: Earlier in this thread there's a link to this article on Kellymom.org:
FAQ: Does Breastfeeding Cause Postpartum Hair Loss?

By Kelly Bonyata, BS, IBCLC

Postpartum hair loss is a normal - and temporary - postpartum change that is unrelated to breastfeeding. Most women will return to their usual hair growth cycle between 6 and 12 months after birth.

Many new moms notice hair loss - sometimes quite dramatic - around three months postpartum. This is a normal - and temporary - postpartum change that is unrelated to breastfeeding.

(read rest of article here (http://www.kellymom.com/bf/concerns/mom/hairloss.html))

[Winter Biscuit]

Like all the PPs have said, it's not related to BFing and can happen to anyone in the postpartum period, BFing or not.

DD#2 is just shy of 8 months and I'm still dealing with it. I'm not losing as much hair as I did around 4 months or so (I remember there were a bunch of moms in the January 2007 thread - myself including - who seemed to experience a hairloss "peak" at the same time and I want to say it was somewhere around 4 months but I could be wrong) but I'm still losing more than what I'd consider "normal."

[katmg]

Mine started falling out at about 4 months PP. Now at 8 1/2 months PP it has slowed down considerably but still seems to be more than normal.

[LIZNKEITH]

I'm with you, I feel like mine was BF related as well. My hair was falling out in clumps until DD was over a year old. Within a few weeks of weaning it stopped. Coincidence? Maybe.

[Delaney21]

Mine stopped falling out in mass quantities around 6 months pp. DS is still breastfed so I really think its a pp thing and not a bf thing.

[katmg]

I think mine is more related to AF and those hormones getting re-regulated. Maybe if AF stayed away the whole time you BF then the two would be linked?