Coping With Hair Loss
- About two weeks ago, Netflix star and professional organizer Clea Shearer, 40, underwent her second round of chemotherapy for stage 2 breast cancer. Now, she said she's finally feeling like herself again amid losing her hair.
- SurvivorNet experts say that hair loss is one of the more "distressing" side effects of chemotherapy, as it’s “one of the things that people can see from the outside” indicating that you’re sick.
- Hair loss begins about three to four weeks after your first chemo treatment; you could start to see some hair regrowth about four to six weeks after your last treatment. (Remember that hair loss is temporary!)
"I had a rough week following my 2nd round of chemo, but I finally feel like myself again," the Netflix star who lives in Nashville, Tenn., posted to Instagram over the weekend.
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"It's the first time in my breast cancer journey that has made me feel self conscious," Clea said. "Not after having a double mastectomy and being completely flat chested, not after shaving my head, and not after sharing it publicly. Losing my hair in small but steady, sad, chunks, makes me look like I'm sick instead of strong."
"But I AM strong."
Coping With Hair Loss
Vivian Ruszkiewicz, a nurse practitioner with OhioHealth, a not-for-profit system of hospitals and health care providers in Columbus, Ohio, previously told SurvivorNet that hair loss is one of the more "distressing" side effects of chemotherapy.
"It's one of the things that people can see from the outside that people may know that you are ill," she said, "and that poses a lot of stress for patients."
Chemotherapy Side Effects Hair Loss
There are a large number of chemotherapy treatments that cause hair loss, but not all of them, she said; others cause hair thinning. Ruszkiewicz stressed that if you're concerned about your hair, talk to your doctor or nurse practitioner about what to expect from your chemotherapy treatment.
She said that some people who only experience partial hair loss still choose to wear a wig, like many people who lose their hair completely, before chemotherapy so that they're prepared, "so they can feel more like themselves during chemotherapy."
Ruszkiewicz said that hair loss begins about three to four weeks after your first chemo treatment; you could start to see some hair regrowth about four to six weeks after your last treatment.
"Then it will kind of continue from there, as long as you aren't being treated with another medication that might cause hair loss," she said. "But in general, most people do have a resumption of hair growth, and can slowly over time put away their wigs and scarves, and are able to kind of go back to what they expected in terms of their hair growth."
In other words, remember that hair loss is temporary!
Related: Making Peace With Hair Loss Stephanie Hess Shares Her Ovarian Cancer Story
Coming to Terms With Hair Loss
Just as it's important to make peace with your cancer diagnosis, it's important to make peace with losing your hair. When coming to peace with this, some patients will sport wigs or scarves, while others embrace their baldness.
In a new photo shared to Instagram, Clea Shearer is seen wearing a scarf on her head, but her husband shaved her head a few weeks ago when she began chemotherapy treatment.
San Jose resident Teri Chow was 44 years old when she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, and she knew she would eventually lose her hair while undergoing chemo. In order to prepare her family, she decided to cut her hair into a short bob. However, as expected, she started losing her hair.
"I think it was shortly after the second round of chemo, so that would've been about four weeks after starting chemo, (my hair) started to fall out," Chow previously told SurvivorNet. "It was coming out in the shower (and) it was coming out just combing (my) hair."
How Ovarian Cancer Survivor Teri Chow's Wig (& Humor) Helped Her Cope With Hair Loss
Some people may choose to shave their head as a way to avoid watching their hair fall out, but instead, Chow decided to start wearing a wig. For her, it was a humorous experience, especially since many people didn't even realize she was wearing one.
"In fact at the school, the other moms at the school didn't realize that I was going through this and they would compliment me on the wig and not knowing it was a wig," Chow laughed.
Clea Shearer’s Breast Cancer Diagnosis
In April, Clea Shearer announced that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer and that she would be undergoing a double mastectomy.
"I found a lump myself (in) the last week of February," Clea posted to Instagram on April 7. "I had been trying to make an appt with my OB(GYN) for several months, and even when I told them I found a lump, they couldn't accommodate me. I had to request a mammogram from my general doctor, which led to an ultrasound, and then an emergency triple biopsy."
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Clea, who's been sharing regular updates about her health on Instagram, was originally told her cancer was stage 1, but during the nine-hour surgery on Friday, April 8, doctors found cancer in one of her lymph nodes, which elevated the cancer to stage 2. The type of breast cancer Clea was diagnosed with hasn’t been been made public yet, but she said her cancer is "aggressive and fast-moving," however, "I caught it early."
She had two tumors, one measuring 2 centimeter in size and the other 3 centimeters (she was originally told each tumor was 1 centimeter). The tumors were sent to a lab in order to determine if Clea would need chemotherapy or radiation, and it turns out she needs both. (Once she’s finished with chemotherapy, she’ll begin radiation treatment.)
According to her Instagram, Clea also underwent a second breast cancer surgery shortly after her first because “some of my skin tissue is just NOT having it…”
It’s now been over a month since her surgeries, so the next phase of treatment chemotherapy can begin. She underwent her first round of chemotherapy on May 19, and shortly after, she shaved her head.
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“Very short hair, and really don't care,” she posted to Instagram on May 28, about a week after cutting all her hair off.
“This first round of chemo has been a lot, both physically and mentally. It wiped me out for a few days, but it makes the good days feel that much better.”
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