Raise your hand if you’ve ever been personally victimized by postpartum hair loss. (If you know the reference, you are most definitely my people.) But back to a serious note: I’m going bald over here mamas!
Nobody tells you that those luscious shiny locks you get around 6 months pregnant would turn into dry, brittle strands falling out your head after birth. They completely leave that part out of their compliments. Someone should’ve told me! Someone should have sat me down and said, “Ashley, these babies are going to make you bald and patchy” because that’s exactly what my babes did.
For those of you new here, I just had back-to-back pregnancies and I am currently 6 months postpartum. Around postpartum month 4, I noticed quite a bit of hair coming out of my head in the shower. And after disposing of several clumps of hair that month I then realized how thin my hair had gotten, not to mention dry. Especially in the front… I even had a little bald patch. It was a very depressing time for me.
I’ve always had thick hair and didn’t experience hair loss to this existent with my first pregnancy, so this was very new to me and I needed to find a remedy for it as quickly as possible.
Before I go on let me start with a disclaimer: I’m not a scientist and the only person that participated in this trial was me.
After some at-home research and some trials, I’m here to share what’s helped me grow back my hair. For 31 days I stuck to a routine hair remedy in hopes to regrow my hair. The three biggest components of my trial were rosemary oil, rose water, and biotin.
The “why” behind it:
Rosemary oil helps promote hair growth while reducing hair loss and assisting with balancing hormones. (Which is the root cause of postpartum baldness! Dang hormones) I used the Mielle Organics Rosemary Mint Scalp & Hair Strengthening Oil, that I got off Amazon and was easy to use. Biotin helps strengthen hair and nails and provides added benefits to the skin. Lastly, rose water helps moisturize hair and reduce dandruff. There are also a ton of other benefits from these 3 components, but these were the main reasons why I was using them.
How I used them:
Depending on how I wore my hair, determined how I used the rosemary oil. For curly hair days, I applied the rosemary oil once daily and massaged it into my scalp. For straight hair days, I applied the day before wash day and immediately after washing my hair. While my hair was still wet I massaged the oil into my scalp and then applied my heat protectant (that’s important and I’ll tell you why in a second.) Additionally, I took my biotin vitamins every day and spritzed my hair with rosewater daily as well.
Additional Tips:
Another huge key factor when losing hair is to try and reduces tension on your hair, i.e., ponytails and my personal favorite messy buns. Reducing how much you pull on your hair and help it significantly. Try doing things such as:
- Wear relaxed hairstyles – Loose braids, low ponytails, half up, half down, wearing it down.
- Use scrunchies instead of elastic bands – Elastic bands are super harsh on your hair and pull on your hairline. Swap them out for scrunchies and/or claw clips that won’t tug on your hair.
- Sleep with your hair down – Let your hair relax and breathe from being done all the time.
If you happened to be an unfortunate soul such as myself and your hair becomes dry and brittle as well try avoiding heat. Opt for air drying instead of blow drying your hair. And if you must apply heat from a straighter or curler make sure to use a heat protectant as well. Applying heat to already dry hair increases your hair damage and causes split ends and breakage.
The results:
After only 4 short weeks, I have started to see my hair growing back in. It’s been a relief to know my little bald patch is filling back in. As I continue to follow my hair remedies and tricks to help promote faster growth I’ll be sharing any new details along the way. My goal is to have the majority of my hair back before my baby girls turn one. Fingers crossed for growth and prosperity!
XOXO – A Busy Mama