hair loss Archives - Cat Lady in the CanyonCat Lady in the Canyon

My hair, while growing out from falling out thanks to chemotherapy had recently come to an awkward stage. The look went from sassy pixie to a mix of Dennis the Menace meets a short version of Farrah Fawcett’s iconic feathered “wings” only my wings looked like they could take me places. Enough of hair sticking up at the top of my head and flipping up on the sides—hello bandana! Last spring I wore bandanas because I had no hair. Today, I wear them to hide my crazy hairdo—and I couldn’t be happier. I have my hair and my health back.

An easy fix for unruly hair! Note: the sunflower painting in the background was painted by my talented mom!

Samantha Jo has given me cause to smile these days as well. She has eased into a more relaxed and joyful state of being. She still get’s a little cra-cra when she hears the rats at night scurrying across the roof or blustering wind, but she calms down so much quicker and finds solace by my side more often than inside an empty Amazon delivery box.

Samantha has taken to this vintage basket where she often sits while I work.

My feline counterpart is also going through an awkward hairdo stage, which in part has brought us closer. Her luscious ginger locks have become quite matted despite daily brushings. I’m in the process of de-matting her fur myself, which takes lots of patience on my part, and lots of trust on hers. Samantha enjoys being brushed, but I’ve had to carefully detangle and at times very carefully cut matted fur patches. I’ve successfully de-matted under her chin, on her chest and a few spots on her sides. With Samantha’s diminished anxiety, I hate to shake things up by taking her back to the vet for grooming; and she actually enjoys our detangling sessions. I play classical or meditation music and start by gently combing the top of her head, which she loves. Then she rolls onto her back and stretches out her front legs up over her head making herself look like the letter “Y”. I gently scratch under each front leg as though I’m tickling under the arms of a human, all the while telling her how special she is and how much I love her. Then I start picking away at the tangles—cutting them if she gets really relaxed and if I can easily see the fur from the skin.

Recommend tunes to sooth cats and us cat parents!

Samantha Jo with some bald patches and me with unruly winged hair have become quite the pair.

Only I can see her skin patches, her luxurious fur hides them well.

Sidebar: I’ve tamed my post-chemo crazy hair with amazing “hairwash”, conditioner and a crème texturizer by Innersense purchased at ROOTS the Beauty Underground in Laguna Beach, which sells only organic toxic-free products. I stopped into Roots a few days ago and was greeted by shop owner, Laura, who I hadn’t seen in a couple of years. She made me a cup of tea and we caught up, talked about my chemo hair, and she recommended the Innersense products that I ended up buying, and they have made my hair look and feel amazing. As far as the bandana goes—it’s kind of a cool look and I will continue wearing it, only now to add flair to my fashion.

Before my first chemo infusion I was warned by my oncologist’s nurse that more than likely, my hair would fall out thanks to one of the many common side affects of chemotherapy. She quickly followed with a recommendation—don’t shave your head now; there’s a chance it won’t fall out. I’ll go with the recommendation. I was blessed with good hair and was not in the mood to loose it. Cancer’s attack on my body, mind and soul was quite enough, thank you very much.

A couple weeks after my first chemo session, I noticed more than just a few strands of hair intertwined in my hairbrush after brushing. Then I started seeing several strands of my long hair seemingly everywhere; on my clothes, the floor, countertops, inside the freezer (go figure)…it was happening. My hair was falling out. I would soon be bald, surely not the best look for me. Yet, I was already feeling better. The chemo was killing the cancer cells (along with the hair follicle cells). I should have been thrilled about feeling better and hair should have taken a backseat. I was thrilled, but hair loss…that was a low blow. This humiliating side effect took a few days for me to emotionally process.

I consulted with my trusted feline companion. Bobcat, do I shave my head now? He just leaned in and gave me a gentle headbutt on the forehead. I could have horns growing out of my head and Bobcat probably wouldn’t have cared (although he wasn’t so crazy about his 2019 Halloween costume).

I decided that seeing my long healthy locks fall to the ground at the wisk of a shaver would be too traumatic. I let my hair fall out on its own, cutting it every couple weeks as it thinned out and became lackluster and matted. I pretty much had dreadlocks by the time I cut my hair to chin-length, along with a scalp that revealed far more skin than hair.

The bob-with-a-patchy-scalp hairstyle didn’t last long. I finally cut the remaining patches of hair down to about two inches. And there I had it: a baldhead with some wispy blonde remnants. I showed Bobcat my “baby head.” He looked at me unimpressed, as though he didn’t notice that my look had drastically changed.

I put on a burgundy knit cap with an oversized pom pom on the top of it then reclined on the sofa, settling in for the evening as I settled in with the fact that I lost my locks. They would grow back, and in the meantime, I was healing.

Bobcat joined me, relaxing alongside my legs facing me, my sweet comforting cat who looked me in the eye, then slowly moved his head and his gaze up from my face, up to the pom pom, then back down to my face.