Hair loss- post takedown

Hi Nikid,
You are going to find a lot of posts on this exact same subject...lots of us have lived through the horrors of hair loss to near balding post op, post colon, post pouch etc...some say that it is the anesthesia, others the vit/mineral loss, others the surgical shock etc...I say that it is all and more mixed together which means that there is no 'one size fits all' solution but there are a few tricks...After a horrendous run of a dzn surgeries that included tons of meds and sickness I lost a lot of my hair...my dermatologis finally put me on H&S shampoo...worked wonderfully...but you need to do a little 3-5min massage during the shampoo all over your scalp (head down if possible like leaning over the tub)...brings the blood flow to the scalp along with the massage that stimulates the hair folicles and the zinc in the H&S stimulates growth...in about 6 months I saw serious regrowth and by the end of the yr my hair was growing in thicker...a good multivitamin helps to and healthy diet and exercise do wonders too.
I can't give you any better advices than a good shorty haircut to give you some bounce and a lot of patience until it grows in.
Sharon

I think a lot of us went thru this. I was panicking too.. a lot of my hair fell out. I think it's a combination of the anesthesia, stress from the surgery and all the meds. It is normal though after surgery. I can tell you that it will stop falling out. You won't go bald! It took a good year for my hair to get back to normal. Sharon has some great tips above.

Nikid,
I have been loosing my hair as well. I have natural curly hair and throughout the meds I was loosing it right along and after the takedown the same thing. I looked like I had chemo hair. It use to be curley and it looked stringy and burnt. Lost alot of it. I know this because my son had chemo when he was young. Now, after the takedown and almost 5 months from takedown the curl is coming back tighter than ever. I do still have alot fall out but I try to not wash the hair that often and let it dry naturally. Oh yeah, just found out too that I am postmenopausal, so that may be my problem as well.
I believe like Sharon and Marianne it is a combination of diet, surgery and our bodies just not getting enough nutrients.
It will come back once your body makes the adjustments and you are still young just try to be patient with your hair.
Roberta

I quit dying my hair because I didn't want to further the trauma to my hair. I had a 3rd surgery for an incisional nernia 6 months post take down. Besides the effects of the surgeries and anesthesia my thyroid was way out of whack and took 18 months to get under control. It's growing back.

I hope they are testing your thyroid as, besides hair loss, it also can affect pouch recovery per my Mayo GI.

Easy to say don't worry and it will grow back but is depressing when looking into the mirror or cleaning out the shower drain and hair brush.

BTW it had been so long since I'd seen my natural color I'm keeping it. It is white around my face and the rest of it is 25% or so and looks like highlights more than white hair, or so I tell my husband. He wants me to dye it again, lol.

tough,
I hope that you meant that your hair is growing back and not your thyroid!!!
Sharon
ps...nice to know it is growing in and I honestly believe that you must be beautiful with your natural colour!
Sharon

Oh my! I had no idea this could even happen! I wish you the best of luck- not only have you had to go through so much, but now something you should be able to take for granted is being taken from you.

LOL Sharon, good catch!
My hair is growing back in. I've never had thyroid surgery so believe it is full grown by now.