It’s happened like clockwork after having both of our babies: at four months postpartum with both Teddy and Peter, I started losing hair by the handful, leaving me with nearly bald patches around my hairline. They say you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone and that’s never been more true for me than about my pregnancy hair! This shedding process lasted a couple months and then my hair very slowly began the process of growing back, leaving me with a ring of unruly baby hairs around my face far too short to pull back or tuck behind my ears.
Yes, I know it’s only hair, but I also know firsthand that it can be a frustrating experience, particularly in the midst of all the other adjustments that come with postpartum life (a body that doesn’t look or feel like your own, learning to function on limited sleep, adjusting to your life revolving around the needs of this new teeny tiny person, etc.!). So today I want to share a few little tips and tricks that have made the regrowth phase of postpartum hair loss a little more manageable for me the second time around. Hopefully they will resonate with a few of you who are in the same boat!
This is my hair at almost eleven months postpartum… finally getting back to where I’d like it!
MY TIPS FOR DEALING WITH POSTPARTUM HAIR LOSS
1. Continue taking your prenatal vitamin (or switch to a postnatal version) after giving birth.
This is commonly dispensed advice for keeping your hair as healthy as possible after giving birth, but of course please check with your own doctor before starting any kind of vitamin or supplement routine!
2. Use products designed to accelerate new growth.
My hair grows pretty slowly when left to its own devices so I’ve found the Navy Haircare line to be a lifesaver in the regrowth phase that begins shortly after postpartum hair loss. I used their biotin-enriched Search & Rescue shampoo and conditioner starting at eight months postpartum with Teddy and continued straight through my pregnancy and postpartum with Peter.
While it won’t prevent postpartum hair loss if that’s a postpartum symptom you’re experiencing, it’s done wonders to make my hair grow faster (and 4 or 5 inches longer than it ever was pre-pregnancy — look how much shorter my hair was when we announced my first pregnancy!). I also love this hair mask and this serum from them and code MACKENZIE30 should work for 30% off your order.
3. Ditch the straightener and try a straightening brush.
This is probably less applicable to those of you with naturally straight hair, but this is a must for anyone with naturally curly/wavy/otherwise unruly hair! I made the switch to this $39 straightening brush four years ago before having kids and haven’t looked back, but if you’re still trying a traditional flat iron to address the short baby hairs around your face, this tool will be a game-changer for you. It makes it so much easier to brush back the baby hairs so you can use the product in my next tip…
4. This $8 hair finishing stick is your new best friend.
I keep one on our vanity and another in my handbag and it’s a miracle worker for getting those staticky baby hairs to lie flat and fall in place with the rest of your hairline.
I’m personally not a huge fan of headbands (I love them on other people, just not myself!) but that would be another idea worth considering when you’re in the in-between phase of growing out the baby hairs but not being able to tuck them behind your ears or pull them into a ponytail. Any other tips or tricks you’d add to this list? Hoping these will be helpful for some of you!
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*photo by Julia Dags
