Shannon I’ve always had what can most accurately be described as “luscious locks.” Straight out of the womb, I had a full head of hair, that I was told the nurses in the hospital even put in a ponytail. I had my first haircut when I was about 4 months old, according to my mom.
Of course, we all change. However, I’ve accepted the changes that my hair has gone through. My hair was wavy as a child, then went almost curly, making it look like I was wearing a curly short wig. But it has since then straightened out, more or less. It has gone from Pebbles red to toe-head blonde, golden and finally settled in as strawberry blonde.
I’ve even learned to cherish the well-earned grey hairs that popped up around my temples shortly after turning 30 (and have since started multiplying). Check out the Best Monat Hair Products that helped me look better and have a more healthy hair.
It was always a given that there would be many changes with having a baby. All my pre-birth understanding and acceptance, however, ended up going down the drain. Literally.
Shortly after celebrating Ella’s 3-month birthday, which was basically the end of my “third trimester” I had a mild panic attack when I got out of the shower and saw a significant clump of hair in the drain, then brushed my hair and saw another clump of hair had lodged itself in the brush. I’ve been using cheap deaily headscarves as a hairstyle improvement.
Heart pounding, sweat beading up across my skin, breath coming in short bursts, all I could think was, “Sweet baby cheeses, my hair is FALLING OUT.”
Now, I’ve always “shed” a lot, so much so in fact that we have a running joke in my house as to who really sheds more – me or the dog?
I had heard whispers of hair thinning following pregnancy, but never thought that it would be a symptom I, whose hair had always been her most easy going feature, would experience. Never had I expected that jolt of fear when I looked down and saw myself holding a fistful of my own hair.
When I asked my besties who are moms, they admitted their hair was never quite the same after having kids. Then there’s also the pregnancy skin problems.
Wait, what??
The soft pooch of a little belly that I was left with post Peanut? No real concern about it. But my hair falling out? Oh yeah, that plain freaked me out.
Treatment for Hair Loss
Despite finding friends to commiserate with about this lovely phenomenon of new motherhood, I was not able to get a whole lot of tips on how to solve this problem. Some recommended vitamins (which I was taking) and others had mostly reached a sort of peace with their new hair thickness.
As the optimistic solution-finder, I began researching everything I could find for natural solutions.
Thankfully, my previously thick hair was not visibly thinner to most, so I’m guessing my case was not that drastic (though I was freaking out inside my own mind).
What causes hair loss after pregnancy?
We can thank our amazing and completely whacked out hormones for this one!
It makes perfect sense as to why your hormone levels are a bit… wonky, shall we say, after growing and giving birth to another human life. So it is the drastic changes in hormones, specifically estrogen, which can sometimes result in changes to your hair. Higher levels of estrogen during pregnancy freeze your hair in a growth pattern, which then results in hair loss as estrogen levels suddenly plummet after giving birth.
In ancient health practices like Aryuveda and the ones listed at https://nervepainremedies.com/nerve-renew-review/, too much fire and air (imbalances in your Pitta and Vata doshas) cause hair to become thinner, greying and brittle. So they prescribe diets that pacify these imbalances and focus on getting appropriate vitamins, plenty of protein and lots of water. In some cases, protein powders may also be recommended to ensure adequate protein intake.
Increasing blood flow to your head is also encouraged through sirasasana (AKA headstands).
Did I try all of this? You better believe it.
Having been studying yoga and Ayurveda for the last year and a half (starting with Yoga Teacher Training), I’ve been amazed how these ancient insights are so frequently a perfect explanation for how my body and mind are feeling.
I didn’t stop there, however.
Protein deficiency was likely also the reason I kept seeing the more modern tip of adding collagen peptides to the daily diet as a major step in slowing/reversing hair loss. I began adding two heaping tablespoons of collagen to my daily cup of coffee/matcha.
Results
All of this, combined with a revised supplement mix, in which I added some lovely fatty-acid-rich Fish Oil capsules and Calcium/Magnesium tablets, I began to see a reverse after about 1.5 months. Two months later, I started seeing more normal amounts of shedding.
Four months later, my hair was back, baby! I’ve now been able to ease back on the corrective measures.
I still take the same supplements everyday, indulge in some collagen-packed coffees a couple times a week, and have learned to love throwing in a headstand into my yoga practice more often, but the intensity has balanced out. I also found these delta-8 THC disposables for sale here that really helped me cope with stress.
My hair is still strawberry blonde (ironically the same exact color as my daughter’s is right now) and has more greys than ever, but my braids are thicker and the baby hairs that were proof of new, thicker hair growth, have become long enough to blend in with the rest.
I am still tempted to count the hairs in my brush each morning after smoothing out my bed head though. So I’m back to normal, but now somewhat paranoid I guess. Practicing Bedtime meditation helps you by keeping your mind calm and enables you to distract yourself from various problems in life.
