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What They Don't Tell You Happens When You Have A Baby!

18 July, 2018 - 08:54pm by - First Lady | 16 Comments
by BR Natalie

4 months after having The Beast, this was my hair loss after a shower.  Yes, just one shower.

Back then, I had a lob, it wasn't like I was sporting a flowing mane.  And yet my shower trap (and wall) and hair brush and Hoover were all full of hair. 

Why on earth was I losing so much hair every time I washed or brushed it?

Four months months prior to The Great Shed I had had a baby.  And that caused the drain-clogging matt of hair you see above.

You know when you read pregnancy sites and they tell you - 'your skin will glow and your hair will be thicker and more lush than ever?'  What they don't tell you is around 3-6 months after the tiny human has exited your body, so will a truckload of hormones.  And with them goes your hair.

Now it's not really as scary as it sounds, your pregnant hair doesn't miraculously change into thick hair - it just stops shedding.  So when you hit the postpartum hair loss phase you're just losing the hair that would have shed if you weren't knocked up.  By the handful.

Why does the happen?

When you're not pregnant, 5 - 15% of your hair is in a 'resting phase'.  This means it's reaching the end of its life and will be pushed out to be replaced by a new follicle.  These hairs make up the usual daily loss you see in your hair brush, on your clothes or in the shower trap. 

When you're pregnant, less hairs are in the resting phase and more are growing.  This continues until about 3-6 months postpartum, when your estrogen levels drop and a higher percentage of hair enters the resting phase, meaning more hair is being pushed out.

Will I go bald?

I'm not going to sugar coat it. There may be temporary bald patches.  I sported a receding spot on my left side hairline. But bald patches most likely won't be permanent.

Will my hair ever go back to normal?

YES!  By the time your little one reaches their first birthday your hair should be back to its usual growth pattern and thickness.

What can I do in the meantime?

  • Don't pull your hair in to tight dos.  Use (the horror) scrunchies and no rubber bands.

  • Use thickening products to maximise what you have.

  • Minimise heat styling.

  • Brush hair gently with a tangle teezer, don't yank a brush through it.

  • Changing your parting might help hide any bald patches.

  • Get your hair cut, if only to make it look like there's less in the shower!

Did you suffer from post-partum hair loss?  How did you get through it?  Get chatting below!

Comments

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25th July, 2018

Yes I had this and it was so nice and thick while I was preggy. Mine lasted far longer than 3-6 months I think my body held onto the hormones longer as I was expressing milk. I really noticed the hair fall after I had stopped pumping milk. I stopped colouring my hair to reduce damage

24th July, 2018

Didn't really suffer great loss of hair after each child but then I also didn't really get the benefits of lushness either.

22nd July, 2018

Oh my gosh, yes! This happened to me. I wasn't so upset about losing some hair - mine is far far too thick anyway, but I hated the regrowth phase. I had wispy bits all over the place - I looked like a lion some days!

19th July, 2018

I have heard about the hair loss

19th July, 2018

Lol ewww I hate other peoples hair in the shower, it makes me cringe. I'm not a mama yet, feel sorry for you ladies that have been through or dealing with this x

19th July, 2018

Ahhh the joys of motherhood if you ever choose to become one.

19th July, 2018

Not only was the post partum hair loss a struggle when the hair finally does grow back you're left with baby hairs that have a mind of their own! Hair spray became my best friend to tame them!

19th July, 2018

I never noticed this however I have very thick hair and so probably wasn't obvious- I remember being so tired in the early stages so possibly didn't notice.

19th July, 2018

Im yet to experience this (8 weeks pp) ive quite thick hair and generally lost a bit in the shower so don't know if im too worried about it or not? come back to me in a few weeks lol

19th July, 2018

I never knew this ... There was an ad on last night for Regaine specially manufactured for women and my husband said "something else for women to waste money on that they don't need" but if this happens then I can certainly see why women would want a product like this.

I'm glad to hear that it grows back eventually but surely you should discuss this with your doctor as maybe there could be something more to it?

Also, you can buy these little things you put in your shower drain for the hair to cling to. It's a chain you put down the drain with a little plastic daisy flower attached so the chain doesn't get lost down it. Pull it out to clean it every couple of weeks and replace. Really catches all that hair so no more clogged drains.

I bought mine at Mitre 10 but they were $20 for 2. Found them on Wish.com for about $2 each.

19th July, 2018

This happened to me and I felt it would never end. My hair was so fine I thought I was going to go bald. Thankfully it was temporary and my hair grew back. Though it was worth it (funny as that sounds) to have my babies.

19th July, 2018

That explains why I lost so much hair.

18th July, 2018

"the horror" SCRUNCHIES!?!? who are you. WHO!!!!! maybe one day ill experience this clearly joyous moment in life. for now I will enjoy my luscious locks :-)

18th July, 2018

I feel like this has come at the perfect time! After having my baby 15 months ago the regrowth is still coming back slowly.. a lot of the new hair is grey. I lost a lot of hair in my receding hairline so had a big m on my forehead. And it's quite frizzy flyaway baby hair too it's only just got to the point where it is kind of long and heavy enough to be held down. Going to bed with dry hair helped me too it wasn't as fragile and easier to sort in the mornings.

18th July, 2018

I am still recovering from 2 fairly obvious bald patches around my forehead thanks to my beautiful babies ....my youngest is 3 and to me the regrowth is still obvious. It is a temporary thing though and hubby is thankful for not clearing the drain quite as much these days!

Stunning_simplicity
28th July, 2018

It will be new best friend when you become a member of the Mum bun club

tannygirl
19th July, 2018

I use a tangle teezer in the shower and plaster the hair that comes out to the shower wall as pictured above and then bin it when I get out of the shower. I used to have to clean other people's hair out of the drain so I don't like to wash my really

tannygirl
19th July, 2018

long hair down the drain to collect for a week or longer. Never knew those things existed though.

First Lady
19th July, 2018

Congratulations on the new squish! You'll have to update us! xox

Julieal
19th July, 2018

Awesome to your new bub !! Just enjoy

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