Desperate for a bleach job

[Singer]

How long did it take for all of you post-op folks to get back to the hairdresser? I have had a friend coming to my house to trim my hair since surgery, but she doesn't do color I don't dare color my own hair. When can you recline back in a hairdressers' chair? I can handle the actual sitting at this point, but I'm worried about the leaning back.

Thanks.

[suzyjay]

I had my hair highlighted 5 months post op. I would have had it sooner, but my hair was falling out like crazy and I was afraid if I colored it, I would be bald. The sink wasn't bad, I told them I had surgery and I would have to lay back slowly. Maybe you should take a pillow to stick behind your back for support while in the sink.

Sue

[crepehanger]

Boy, do I commiserate with you on the dye job! I have always colored my own hair. I accepted that it would be a long time before I could do it myself again, if ever. I was almost as gray as a rat and miserable when I made it into the hairdresser after surgery- I wondered who that old lady with the straight back was looking back at me in the mirror!!!! I was not about to complain to the hairdresser that I was uncomfortable in the shampoo chair, but it was a little firm. I did take my pillow and she put a plastic bag over it to keep it dry. But, i felt 200% better and it was so worth it! So honey, my advice is to take your pillow and get that hair done! Hope you are doing well! Lisa

[Janet]

Chris-
My hairdresser & I have a plan in place for my highlites: she will do the foils, as usual, and when I am done, instead of going to the sink, I will head to my car for the 5-minute drive home, get the shower to the temperature I like, then step into the shower and IMMEDIATELY remove the foils while water pours over my head. The key apparantly is to not let the bleach touch the non-foil-covered hair 'cause the bleach will transfer onto it.
I don't know if this would work for coloring a full head of hair.
The salon also has an adjustable height sink, which I have used the last several times, and it is much much better for me with my humpback and lower back pain.

[bsprings]

Chris-
I had my "Color" girl come to my house. It was worth it! I think it was 4 or 5 months post op before I went to the salon. So glad you are doing better! (I go see Dr. B. next week!)
Cathie

[LEELEE85]

I had my hair coloured 8 wks post op. I had my hairdresser come to my house, after she did the colour i just had my own shower to wash it out....

[Singer]

Wow, some great ideas here. Janet, you crack me up -- I don't know if I'd have the nerve to run out in public with those foils hanging all over my head....

[Linda W]

Chris,
You are definitely on a roll -- driving and having your hair done! Go for it! I love the idea of bringing a pillow.

However, like SuzyJay, I'm afraid of adding any color to my hair because my hair is falling out at an alarming rate. At my three month post op appointment last week, I told Dr. Rand that it was not my plan to be straighter, taller AND bald. He laughed and said it is not unusual for major surgery to set off a cycle of hair loss. If anyone has experienced the issue of hair loss, please chime in!

Chris, you are making major milestones, and I bet it is a huge morale boost for you!

Linda

[Singer]

Thank you Linda! Yes, at almost four months post-op, things seem to be humming along.

I am also losing hair....not a huge amount of hair, but enough that I'm kind of careful not to comb it a lot or towel dry it too roughly. I'm told that will subside in the next month or two. Good point about maybe waiting to do the color bit until it all calms down.

[Janet]

Janet, you crack me up -- I don't know if I'd have the nerve to run out in public with those foils hanging all over my head....

Chris - remember, I live in Berkeley, so I doubt that the foils would catch anyone's attention.

[sccrm08]

I also lost my hair by the handful, I'm almost 5 months post op and I just noticed it has not been falling out nearly as much the last two weeks. I stopped washing it more than twice a week it was so bad and I brushed it as little as possible.

[DebbieM]

I am curious. Will your hair grow back? I sure hope it does. I cannot afford to lose my hair.

[Cakedec]

I remember this!!

I remember Lynn and myself posting about this same subject a couple of months after surgery. She was also nervous about leaning back in the chair and called Boachie and they said she should be ok. But what I ended up doing is just buying a kit and doing my own at home because I could rinse it out in the shower and didn't have to lean back or bend forwards over the sink.

You're right, it is so nice to get that color back in. I do not think the color had any effect on the hair coming out.

Deb
age 48
posterior surgery 7/24/06
for T72, L77
50% correction

[suzyjay]

My hair is growing back. It started to fall out around 3 months post op and lasted for about a month. I am now 8 months post op and it has been growing back it feels a little thicker, not totally back, but it takes time if you have long hair the new growth has to catch up.

Sue

[Shari]

I was losing my hair for serveral months after my surgery. My husband helped me wash it and he didn't tell me that it was coming out in clumps when he combed it. Once I started to comb it myself, I paniced!!!

It eventually did grow back in, and my hairdresser has a sink that she can move up and down, forward and backward so the leaning back was never an issue.

I felt like shit to begin with, but once I was able to get my hair cut and a perm, I felt better. It's amazing how much better I felt when I thought my hair looked nice.

Shari