Eyelashes

Diseases & Conditions Breast Cancer
1
I don't like sounding vain, but my lashes are still very thin. In November, my lashes and brows started coming out for the third time. Brows are great now, but lashes are extremely thin. Does anyone know if they will ever come back as thick as before.
 
I don't wear mascara now because I am afraid the lashes are too fragile.
 
Any answers?
 
Judy
2
Judy:
 
Your post caused me to do the finger-flick on my lashes and for the first time, I noticed that they are thick again.  It's been almost two years out of chemo for me, and that's how long it took.  Hopefully my brows will come back thick soon, too (this from someone who used to have one big brow across the forehead!!!!!!!!)
 
Hope that helps.
 
 

"Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall." -Confucius

Ellen

3
Odd -- how different everyone is. My brows have always been very neat, well-shaped, requiring little plucking. If anything they came back this third time a "little" thicker, but still neat, well-shaped. As for the lashes, I'm willing to wait!!

Thanks loads for the info.

Judy
4
Judy

I remember when you lost your lashes and brows again last fall. I thought at the time that was strange but mine started coming in and then fell out again too. I have started to get some lashes but my brows are non exsistant. I wish they would hurry up and grow. My hair too seems to stay at the same length. It has gotten thicker but not much longer, I still wear my wig everyday. My DH says just go without but I dont feel comfortable yet.

L&H

Bernadette

 
 

5
My lashes came back about the same as before.  So did my eyebrows.  It seems to me it took a couple of months after chemo for them to be back to normal.  I know it's hard, but believe me, time is all it takes.  Be patient.  By the way, I always wore mascara, even when the lashes were thin, because I was working in the public eye.

L & H,
Kathy

6
My lashes were long and thick and this is no longer the case. I have no idea why they do not seem to want to come back the way they were. I hope yours come back really thick and beautiful. When they do let us know so we can do our happy dance with you. Love and Hugs Joyce

How wonderful it would be to see Angels where there are only clouds. How sad it would be to see clouds where there are Angels.
 
 

7
I seemed to have my brows and lashes until recently I noticed I only had a few hairs for brows. I've been penciling them in which I have NEVER had to do, and my lashes seemed to have thinned out also, especially the bottom ones. My last chemo was on 12/29. My head just feels like sandpaper which it did before I did my last chemo. I hate to think of wearing this wig all summer because I refuse to even walk around with just 2 inches of hair! mad
8
My lashes are almost all gone again, for awhile they came back in and I was able to wear mascara on them. I have been penciling my eyebrows on for months now. My hair just seems to stay the same length, I wish it would get moving and grow. I have been done with chemo for a month now. I have a week of radiation behind me too. I wonder why the lashes and brows come in and then fall out again.

Kattbird you have 2 inches of hair? I have about an inch. I have went out a few times without my wig but not to work yet. Iam going to color my hair first and then I think I'll stop wearing my wig. I have been comfortable without my wig but working without is different. I feel like people will see my hair and feel sorry for me, and I don't want that. I remember my Dr saying that women with breast cancer don't look sick, so it makes it hard to believe they are sick.

Take care

 
 

9

Bernadette

I don't have any hair. My nurse told me maybe by Easter I may have 1-2 inches of hair and I still refuse to walk around with that short of hair when it does get to that length. But I don't know how I'm going to be able to stand a wig either once it gets warmer. The last 2 days have been almost 60 here and my head has been sweating a little, so I can imagine what it will be like when it gets warm and stays warm and hot. Anf I spend a lot of time at the beach in the summer.

10
Kattbird

Did you have Taxol? I started getting my hair back during that. It came in medium blond and fuzzy. Then it started falling out and came back in dark and grey. I know what you mean about the wigs and sweating. When I have a hot flash I get all sweaty under my wig. I'am going to Mexico in May and I hope I will have plenty of hair by then. I'm sorry your hair is taking so long coming back.

Bernadette

 
 

11

All my hair is thinner than before, but my eyelashes seem to be longer, go figure.

The advantage is that I don't need to pluck my eyebrows, because I no longer have any sign of a unibrow. And the hair on my legs and underarms is also thinner, which is a definite plus. Even the hair on my arms is thinner and blonder. So I guess there was an upside for me, LOL!

Peg
12
I had Taxotere in my cocktail. I know it's going to take forever for my hair to come back only because it stressed me out so bad to lose it and I want it to come back fast. mad I have no hair on my legs or armpits and no signs of any coming in either. That can take it's time as far as I'm concerned.
13
Peg

My hair is thinner everywhere too, there is almost none on my legs or arms. The good thing is it has come back much thicker on my head, now if I could just get lashes and brows again.

Katt

I'm sorry that your hair is taking it's sweet time to grow back. I had a head start because of Taxol. Mine started to grow after about the 3rd treatment. It still is short but thick and curly.

L&H

Bernadette

 
 

14
I had 4 treatments of Taxotere after my other cocktail.  My hair never really ALL fell out.  I shaved it and it grew slowly from there.  I wore a wig for about 6 months.  It was about 1 1/2 months after ending the chemo that I had enough hair (and nerve) to ditch the wig.  How liberating that was!  I never lost the hair on my legs or underarms.  I did lose eyelashes and eyebrows.  After seeing this post originally, I took another look at my eyelashes and I realized they are still thin.  Oh well.

L & H,
Kathy

15
Kathy

How strange it is that all of us have a different story to tell concerning hair. I never lost all of my hair either, I always had a thin amount all over, maybe that explains why my head never got cold. I have been wearing a wig since August and I tell you it is getting old. My last chemo was the end of January. How long was your hair when you ditched the wig? I lost all of my leg and underarm hair and it is just barely starting to grow back. I could handle another 6 months of not having to shave. My lashes, what little I have are coming in thinner too. I still have no brows. I know how you feel about getting enough nerve to go without your wig. I colored my hair and went to work Friday without my wig, but chickened out and put it on before getting out of my car....LOL.

L&H
Bernadette

 
 

16
Bernadette,
 
You can do it!  My hair was about an inch long and very gray when I ditched the wig.  I had just found out that my tumor marker was below normal, so I was so happy that I took that big step.  Everyone thought my hair was very cute.  It was about a month and a half from ending chemo to ditching the wig.  Sorry if I already said that.  Good luck!

L & H,
Kathy

17
Kathy

I just looked back on my posts to see when I finished chemo and it was Jan 6, no wonder my hair is growing so well. I did go out yesterday without my wig. People don't stare as bad as they used to. I always take it off before rads and walk into and out of the hospital without. I have been getting my nerve up, tomarrow I will try it at work, alot of our customers are regulars and they will probably be shocked but oh well. I received lots of cards from customers when I was first diagnosed it made me feel soo good.

Well wish me luck!!

Bernadettte

 
 

18

Ladies: I remember how I hated to wear that darn wig. I didn't care how good it looked, I HATED it. As soon as my hair was about an inch long, the wig was donated to a local theatre group. One thing to remember is that short, short hair is NOT uncommon anymore. There are many women that actually have their stylist cut their hair as short as yours is now. So, be kind to yourself and ditch the wig!

I lost all, and I do mean ALL, of my body hair during my first round of chemo. It took about a year before the hair on my legs and arms started coming back. I have to admit that I really didn't miss having to shave. But one thing to remember is this....if you have had lymph nodes removed, be very, very careful shaving under that arm. NO CUTS!

Hang in there. Your hair will come back and be beautiful again but each of you are beautiful, with or w/out your hair!

Hugs..Deb

 

 

19
Hi everyone, the eyelash thing is a mystery to me...I lost EVERYTHING with both chemo's - it's taken forever for my hair to come back the second time and my eyelashes came in thin and then fell out again - that's happened twice. They are little stubbles now and even though I'm happy to have hair I wish I could speed up the process as long as it didn't speed up my life! It seems to be going by like a fast train.

Like Bernedette my hair got to a certain length and seemed to have stopped. It's just started again and boy is it curly. a new experience for me! I understand that it will go straight again so I'm enjoying not having to curl it.

I miss having thick eyelashes and my eyebrows are thinner too but for some reason EVERYTHING else is thicker! Who knows, actually I'd trade all of the hair all over my body to get a guarantee that the cancer wouldn't come back. Hair is important but now that I've been through this a couple of times I understand the old saying "If you have your health you have everything".

I'm keeping my wig in a box on a high shelf in the closet just in case -- but for now - just for today - it's fun to have hair again.

This chat room helps me so much - I love knowing all of you through your postings, if ever there is a get together I'm there! I'd love to meet you guys and share the spirit of love and friendship that I feel for you in person.

Love from Denver,
Donna
20

Well, I thought I'd weigh in with my hair issues...

My arm and leg hair is all gone, my eyelashes are very sparse (but I still use mascara, and have all through the chemo), but my eyebrows have really thinned. I'm not too good with makeup, so I just use mascara on them as well. The head hair is pretty thin, but getting to be about an inch long. Unfortunately, its mostly the greys that are the long ones! And no curls! Geesh. I was really looking forward to having curly hair - since mine has always been very thin and straight - and I dont even get that!! I had my last chemo last Wed., so I hope that my hair comes back fairly soon. DH and I are planning on visiting his parents down in florida at the end of March - if I dont have hair, I'm not  going to go swimming, so I hope it doesnt take too long.

I'm going for my preliminary rads appt tomorrow. I had a good talk with my radiologist, so I'll be doing 5 weeks of rads - with the option for masts after.   And here is (CAW CAW) me eating some crow... The  reason why I'm not doing 6 and a half weeks of rads is because I didnt have any lymph node involvement.

Hugs to all

Chantry

 

 

There are no wrong turnings, only paths we did not know we were meant to take - Guy Gavriel Kay