Hair Loss Caused by Chemotherapy

Hair loss is an obvious side effect of chemotherapy. Before starting a course of chemotherapy, it is a good idea to decide how you will cope with hair loss and explore your options fully before deciding what would work best for you. There are many factors to take into account when choosing how best to cope with hair loss caused by chemotherapy. Your decision will vary according to whether you are a man, woman, or child going through cancer and chemotherapy.

For women and girls going through chemotherapy, they might find the loss of their hair especially difficult to come to terms with, as it is an obvious sign of their femininity. This is often the case even if they were not very interested in their hair before they found out they had cancer.

How to Cope with Hair Loss Caused by Chemotherapy: Wear a hat

Hair loss will not happen overnight. It will come out gradually over a period of time. Hair loss is most noticeable after you have taken a bath or shower or if you have finished brushing your hair, only to find it falling out in clumps. You might decide to cover your head by wearing a hat. This is an option that anyone can go for, whether male or female. A hat can also help to disguise the loss of eyebrows. As many people know, it is not just the hair on your head that is lost during chemotherapy. Eyebrows and other parts of the body that have hair will also be lost during chemotherapy. A hat can provide just enough coverage to disguise hair loss from the head and from the eyebrows.

How to Cope with Hair Loss Caused by Chemotherapy: Scarf

Many cancer patients decide that wearing a headscarf will be the best solution for them as they undergo chemotherapy. Scarves are relatively inexpensive and can be tied loosely or tightly around the head to help disguise hair loss. But this is not the best option for all girls though, as many of them will associate scarves with elderly women.

How to Cope with Hair Loss Caused by Chemotherapy: Wig

Wigs have come a long way in recent years. If this is what you decide to wear, you can look at different wigs that contain your natural hair colour and a length you are comfortable with. A wig can help girls and women to still feel feminine and relatively "normal" while they are going through their course of chemotherapy. A man may also wish to wear a wig once his hair starts to fall out.

Coping with hair loss can be very difficult. It can come as a huge shock to suddenly find your hair falling out in clumps, even though you were expecting this to happen. The reality can cause bouts of depression. But rather than let it get you down, you must continue with your course of chemotherapy and do all you can to follow your doctor's advice. Once chemotherapy ends your hair will grow back. For hair to grow back quicker, it is best to remove hats, scarves and wigs when you are at home, otherwise hair growth will be much slower.