The treatment is causing hair shedding, is this normal?Updated 10 months ago

Why Does Hair Shed After Starting Hair Growth Treatments?

1. Hair Growth Cycle Basics

Hair on your scalp goes through a natural cycle with three main phases:

• Anagen (Growth Phase): This is when your hair is actively growing.
• Catagen (Transitional Phase): This is a short phase where hair stops growing and gets ready to shed.
• Telogen (Resting Phase): This is when the hair is resting and will eventually fall out to make way for new hair.

2. Hair Growth Treatments and the Hair Cycle

When you start using hair growth treatments, they can stimulate your hair follicles and accelerate the hair cycle. This means that hairs that are in the resting phase (telogen) can quickly move to the shedding phase and fall out, making room for new, healthier hair to grow.

3. Initial Shedding

This initial shedding can be alarming, but it's actually a sign that the treatment is working. The old hairs are making way for new growth. Think of it like clearing out old, weak hairs so that new, stronger hairs can take their place.

Why Are There Multiple Shedding Phases?

1. Different Follicles, Different Timings

Not all your hair follicles are at the same phase at the same time. Some may be in the growth phase, while others are resting or shedding. As hair growth treatments continue to work, they affect different follicles at different times.

2. Cycle Adjustment

Over time, your hair follicles adjust to the new growth cycle stimulated by the treatments. This can lead to multiple shedding phases as your hair adapts. It’s like your scalp is trying to synchronize all your hair follicles to a healthier growth cycle.

3. Ongoing Stimulation

Hair growth treatments keep stimulating the follicles, pushing more hairs into the growth phase. As this happens, some hairs may shed again as part of the cycle adjustment process. This is why you might experience shedding more than once while using the treatments.

In Summary

• Initial Shedding: Happens because hair growth treatments are pushing out old hairs to make way for new growth.
• Multiple Shedding Phases: Occur because different hair follicles are affected at different times, and your scalp is adjusting to the new, healthier hair growth cycle.

Remember, shedding after starting hair growth treatments is usually a temporary phase and part of the process of achieving stronger and thicker hair in the long run.