post surgery hair loss

I'm 5 weeks post surgery. Everything went very well, very easy. I have noticed however that for the past two weeks I have been shedding my hair like crazy. I ready that genera anethesia can cause hair loss. I'm told it will grow back, but I would like to know how long the shedding is going to last. I have very fine thin hair to begin with!

Hi,

I am sorry your hair is shedding, as I know this can be quite upsetting to us women. My hair shedded after the surgery, and it did it for several months. My doctor explained that for some of us it has a lot to do with hormones and balance. If you had your ovaries out then this would affect your balance of hormones in your body. I also started my vivelle dot hormone patch right after surgery, and so this was something new to my body and now I was adding hormones to it, so this was another change.

I did use a good nourishing shampoo, and took some fish oil and evening primrose supplements to help it from being so dry.

It may take some time for the shedding to stop. I did not get a receding hair line or bald spots, just some shedding and maybe a little thinner. My hair shed for 6 months, it stopped ,and then it gradually got thicker.


I hope yours is just temporary and will stop sooner than mine did.

s

Maxine,
I have fine, thin hair also. My hair shedded alot following the hysterectomy. My hairdresser told me that she sees this alot in women after surgery, more so after a hysterectomy. She said all the meds come out thru the scalp, that coupled with the issues of menopause can cause major trauma to the hair.

I tried to get a perm a few months after the hyst and it totally didn't take. First time in my life that that happened! That is when I began a pamper my hair routine. I went for trims about every 4 weeks, bought a vitamin enhanced shampoo and conditioner (no more cheapo stuff for me), started using Evening Primrose Oil and Fish Oil, and gave my hair a break from the blow dryer and curling iron whenever possible, at the very least once a week. I also deep conditioned once a week. I continue this routine to this day.

Sorry, I don't remember exactly how long it was before things improved dramatically.

Here is an interesting thread from the archives about hair issues post op The Hair Report

Hi (((Maxine)))) and to Hyster Sisters.

Like (((Suzy))) and (((Kim))), I also delt with excessive hair loss after my surgery. I have very thin, fine hair to start with, so it was rather depressing.

My hairdresser asked if I'd recently had surgery, when I was about 4 months post-op: she had noticed my hair was thinning. She explained that it was a normal side effect of anesthesia and that it could take a while for the body to adjust to the shock of surgery.

One thing my hairdresser suggested, both because of the thinning hair and because I tend to have a hard time with the frizzies, was to shampoo every other day, at the most. This seemed to help a lot.
I can't remember how long it took, but I eventually noticed that my hair was getting fuller as time went by.

I am just over 3 months post op now and my hair has finally stopped falling out by the hand full! My doctor told me it was a combination of the surgery and hormones and assured me on my 6 week that it would slow down and he was right. I also started taking evening primrose oil at 4 weeks post op as I read on this site some of the women took that and it seems to work. I also only washed my hair every other day and only brushed it once in the morning as suggested. Hope this helps and hang in there!

I've had 3 surgeries since Oct. 2006 and I've lost loads of hair after each. The one in oct was the worst, my whole scalp actually hurt and my hair thinned so bad in the front my hairdresser had to cut it to try and hide it. It grew back really fast though after about 2 months, just in time to lose it all after the 2nd one in Jan. I didn't loose it too bad after that one, but now after the TVH I have to pick the hair off my clothes all day long. Hope it stops soon!

One thing I noticed in the Hair Report article was someone mentioned Naproxen as a culprit towards hair loss. I was shocked to read that and have been taking it for a long time before and after surgery for my back pain. It was recommended as an anti-inflammatory. Is there any other anti-inflammatory I can take that would be better? I've been having gradual hair loss for several months now, even more since surgery.

Another question, regarding Omega-3, if it's already in a multivitamin, is it really needed to take more, or is the amount in a multi enough? I almost bought some O-3, but saw my multi had it listed.

My DR just told me at my 6wk post-op that to take prenatal vitamins. It has only been a little over a week and the hair isnt comming out as much. He said its the best thing for hair loss and I have to agree. I actually lost so much I have bald spots. I wish I would have asked sooner! Hope it gets better for you! Oh I also started washing my hair every other day and I wash it at night to avoid the hair dryer in the morning.

Hmmm, pretty interesting about the prenatal vitamins. I searched online and read that they have more folic acid, iron and calcium than multi's. Also, I read that Hair/Nail/Skin combo vitamins have a huge amount of Biotin (2500mg) compared to 30mg in a multi. The article said Biotin may be helpful in promoting hair growth, although it wasn't confirmed. I'm curious how much Biotin is in the prenatal vitamins.
And here, many of us thought our lives would get easier once we were rid of the pain, etc. Now we just need to get our bodies to agree to the changes and work with us, rather than argue with us.
BTW, I've tried to go a day without washing my hair and because of the terrible night sweats, I wake up finding my hair was styled already by creatures lurking in the night. Mine is just too oily the next day and I'm pretty scary looking in the am.

I was finding my hair falling out by the handfull also! I knew it was because the shock of surgery, which happens to most people. TG I have a ton of hair, it isn't really noticable. I too am only washing my hair everyother day! I find it takes too much energy to shower more than that right now.