Hair Falling Out

[Baby_Sham]

I know this will sound a bit 'pathetic' and possibly vain (I can assure you I'm not), but it's been worrying me.
Everytime I wash my hair or even brush my hair, there seems to be a load that comes out.
Every time I have a shower, I have to literally pull the hair out of the plug, and there's lots. Whenever I brush my hair, the bathroom floor, sink and side of the bath is covered in my hair. I don't know what's going on? It's not been bleached recently, I do dry it with a hairdryer (always have) and only use a 'shine' product after I've dried it, which again, I always have.

I woke up this morning and there were strands of hair on my pillow. Without wanting to sound like a drama queen, it left me in tears. I seem to be loosing my hair? :-/

Any ideas?

[Baby_Sham]

Sorry, I should have said, this has been the case for about three/four weeks. Nothing like this before.

[Peter Pedant]

google alopecia - I hope it is telogen - your hair grows back

from the NHS site I got this:
Telogen effluvium

Telogen effluvium is a type of temporary hair loss that can be caused by your body reacting to:
hormonal changes, such as those that take place when a woman is pregnant
intense emotional stress
intense physical stress, such as childbirth
a short-term illness, such as a severe infection or an operation
a long-term illness, such as cancer or liver disease
changes in your diet, such as crash dieting
some medications, such as anticoagulants (medicines that reduce the ability of your blood to clot) or beta-blockers (used to treat a number of conditions, such as high blood pressure)
Page last reviewed: 12/11/2012

[Baby_Sham]

Thanks Peter. I spoke briefly with my hairdresser about it, and she did ask if I'd been stressed. I don't think I have, well, not for a few weeks anyway.
Again, I don't want to sound dramatic, or princessy, but I was really upset this morning to see it on my pillow.

[Peter Pedant]

I am sure you wait and see

all mine fell out after chemo - details you dont need....

but it is alarming for a gal and I hope it goes OK (comes back)

[Baby_Sham]

Sugar. Sorry Peter, here's me being all dramatic, and there's you losing yours to chemo. I'm so sorry :-(

[pixie373]

I'm sure it is upsetting, babysham. Like peter says it could be stress (assuming no new medications) and hopefully temporary. I'm not aware of any treatments, but i know very little about it. Wish you well x

[Scarlett]

Try not to worry. Hair loss seems to be cyclical - you lose it for a while at certain times of the year and then it stops. We all lose around 100 hairs per day, which is normal, but can seem like a lot if you are looking out for them. I know that I lose hair at an alarming rate when I am stressed and it is the worst feeling. I buy FUSHI shampoo from Waitrose which is actually really really good. Very expensive- around £12-£15 per bottle but lasts for ages. It absolutely helped me. The thing to do is not to count the hairs that are falling out, but try and ignore them. Get a good hair cut and maybe semi-permanent dye which can improve shine/make hair seem thicker. Make sure your diet is as healthy as it can be. And if you are stressed, make every effort to address that. Also apparently hair loss can be a reaction to something you were stressed about several months previously, so if you have got over your stress, the hair loss will stop too. But don't fixate on it- I am sure everyone gets this. I know I do.

[kylesmum]

I've had that recently. It's actually quite distressing and i'm the least vain person you could meet.

It was stress related, it was upsetting to see my hair clog up the plughole, my hair is just past shoulder length so am used to shedding some, not handfuls.

Good news is I now have one inch curly wurly frizzy bits randomly scattered over my scalp :) My scalp no longer glows like a beacon when I get a picture taken and I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

You'll get there, don't fret, worst thing I did.

[Baby_Sham]

Thanks for the reassuring replies. I really don't mean to sound pathetic, I realise there are worse things that could happen, it's just been a bit of a shock to me.
I suppose I could put it down to stress, but I'v e felt good for the past couple of weeks, hence not thinking of this before.

[grasscarp]

Are you by any chance short of iron? If you don't know your gp can check it out. There are supplements you can take for thinning hair and one of the main ingredients seems to be iron.

[Baby_Sham]

Hmm. Interesting comment actually, as i faint very, very easily, so I've been wondering if I could possibly be anemic.

[grasscarp]

I bought the hair supplement for my daughter when I noticed her hair looked thin. Noticed the other day she is now taking spoons of Ferrodix so she must be anaemic.

[Baby_Sham]

Thanks grasscarp.