In some ways, it was wonderful. In others... not so much. I didn't have to shave my legs or get a bikini wax for months and months. But, my hair came out in clumps and my eyelashes just disappeared. You take the good with the bad and you deal with it.
I think I preferred being bald
My new post-chemotherapy hair is very curly and very dark. It is soft and reasonably easy to manage which is good for me because I have no idea what to do with my hair. I haven't had to "do" my hair in many years. I wore it very short in order to avoid hairdressers, blow dryers, curling irons and all that jazz. Yes, I am admitting that I was (am) quite "hair-lazy".
(more after the jump...click the READ MORE link)
Losing my hair to chemotherapy was traumatic. To move beyond it, I promised myself that if my hair came back I would allow it to grow as long as it could grow. So, I havent' been to the barbershop since the fall of 2008. But...now I am frustrated. I've got this curly afro on my head and I have no idea what to do with it.
I need help.
Where's my hair growth?
After almost a year... My hair really hasn't grown much. Well, let me take that back. Its grown a lot. Although its pretty curly, stretched out its about 3 inches long all around. Considering that I was bald as a cueball this time last year... I am appreciative of the growth. At the same time though, I realize that hair typically grows about 1/2 inch per month. So... if you do the math... either my hair is growing at half that rate OR I've got a serious breakage issue going on over here.
Might be a little bit of both -- slow growth and breakage. Since I'm not accustomed to being overly concerned with my hair, this is all new to me. I thought that by now I would be fighting myself to get to the barbershop and have all my hair cut off. But it really hasn't happened. I would like to see myself with long hair again. I can't remember the last time I had hair that came down farther than my ears.
Hair chronicles
In the coming days, weeks and months... I plan to chronicle my journey with my hair growth. Learning how to care for naturally curly hair is challenging. Fortunately, there are a lot of sisters out there working with learning how to manage their hair in its natural state. I've discovered quite a few blogs and websites dedicated to helping african-american women go "natural" and learn to appreciate the hair texture that they have. I am hopeful that with their help, I will also learn how to work with my natural curliness -- even if its different from the hair I had before chemotherapy.
The first thing I have to figure out is a regular regimine that is healthy and somewhat easy to carry out. Wish me luck.
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