Covid Hair Loss

I am blessed to have a lot of hair. It’s coarse and thick. My hair dresser swears it grows while she’s cutting it. It has always been healthy and recently, I have been letting it grow long. Next to my health, my hair is one of my favorite gifts from God.

I had a mild case of Covid back in July. I say “mild” because I was only sick and feverish one day.

It is now October and my hair is falling out!

When I mention it to other ladies around my age, they will say “oh yea, my hair sheds too”, or “It’s just hormones”. No. This is different. 

Now I’m gonna get a little personal here:

(not for the squeamish)

My hair actually comes out in handfuls in the shower. I can see and feel strands of hair running down my body as I rinse through my hair. It’s gross! It will just continue coming out util I finally just stop touching it and get out and wrap it in a towel for a few minutes. After I blow dry my hair, I will have to clean up another handful of hair off the bathroom floor. It’s devastating and leaves me in tears. This has gone on now for at least 4 weeks. I first thought it was from wearing hair ties so I started using hair sticks or claw clips to hold my hair back. 

If I were to measure wads of hair I lose each shower or brushing, I think it would be a cup full when normally I lose maybe a tablespoon amount. 

Just running my fingers through my hair in the shower, this is what I get each time. 

(Told ya it was gross) The bathhouse shower at the beach adds a special touch haha.

And this is more.. This is a photo after one shower. This has gone on for weeks.

Imagine losing this much every day. It freaks me out. 

 

This phenomenon is called “telogen effluvium”. 

I am afraid I will start seeing baldness if this continues. I think I have already lost 30% of my hair. I would almost say 50% but I will let my hairdresser determine the percentage when I go see her again at the end of the week. I may not have any other choice but to cut my hair to a shorter length just so it will look more evened out and fuller. 

I read that this can continue for a month or three months. I may need to go wig shopping. Seriously, This is scary! 

What am I doing about it? Well other than just letting it run its course, I have purchased some Pumpkin Seed Oil for hair growth. Crossing my fingers it works. I read on a hair loss group I follow, that this is a really good supplement to take and also has other health benefits. 

I also purchased a scalp massager to promote a healthy scalp and help with hair growth as well. 

I need all your prayers that this will end soon. My hair feels so thin now and do not know how much more I can take. Luckily, I have thick hair and still have a lot to lose. 

Have you or do you know someone who is suffering the same condition? 

(Note: I can’t blame it on the vaccine because I have never been vaccinated and never plan to). 

This condition is attacking those who have and haven’t been vaccinated all the same. 

Wonder Bread Chaffles

I’m still holding my weight down and enjoying the feeling of not carrying around the extra pounds. It’s amazing what a difference 10, 20 or 30 lbs loss makes. In the grocery store the other day, I picked up a 10 lbs bag of potatoes and thought to myself, “this is pretty heavy and I lost 3 of these bags in weight”. I have kept the weight off by staying away from breads and pasta and sugar. However, I will grab a handful of cheez-its every now and again and I have had some thin crust pizza. But I think staying away from starchy foods contributes to a healthy weight loss. 

People will ask, “If you don’t eat bread, then how to you have a sandwich?” There are alternatives out there for bread. I bought a loaf of “Keto” bread the other day. It was ok and did fine for a sandwich. Keto bread is often made with Almond flour or Sunflower flour. These breads are expensive and run about six dollars a loaf. With that being said (or rather spelled out), I chose to make my own bread if I want a sandwich or toast.

I made some bread using my little Dash waffle maker. I have blogged about making chaffles before but chaffles use cheese, egg and almond flour. They are really good too but I didn’t want all the cheese this time. I searched around and discovered “Wonder Bread Chaffles”. They turned out light and fluffy and made the perfect sandwich. 

No, they did not taste like waffles. They did not have any waffle ingredients in them. They taste just like regular bread. I plan to make them this way for now on when I want a sandwich. I have tried making the microwave bread with basically the same ingredienta but these chaffles are way better. 

I slapped some deli ham and provolone cheese between to pieces and had the perfect sandwich without real bread. Want to know how I made them? Easy!

I have the recipe below. “Don’t knock it til you’ve tried it”.

WONDER BREAD CHAFFLES

1 large egg (whisked). I used liquid egg whites.

2 Tbsp Almond Flour.

1 Tbsp Mayonnaise.

1/4 tsp baking powder.

1 tsp water.

-Preheat your mini waffle maker. (I use a Dash)

-Add all ingredients together and mix well.

-Spray waffle maker and pout half the batter in.

-Close the lid and let cook for 3 minutes.

-Repeat for second piece. 

Dash waffle maker

Make ahead and place in sealed container or plastic bag. Stays fresh for about 3 days in a sealed container.  

My other chaffle Ideas can be found HERE.