Awful post chemo hair. Desperate to improve it.

[Lunificent]

Hi. I am about 7 months post chemo, although I am on a semi chemo till August which slightly slows regrowth.
My hair used to be wavy, long and brown. I used to have it dyed blondish and it straightened really well.
It’s now growing thick grey and straight upwards like Fido Dido. It’s less chemo curls and more like a straight Afro. I’m finding it a bit distressing as I want to grow it so it will be long again, but don’t know if it will ever stop growing upwards!
Is there anyone here familiar with styling and cutting post chemo hair? Should I trim it again or just let it grow and see what happens? I’m also considering shaving it all off as I hate it so much. Could it grow back differently if I did that?
Pics of before and after chemo attached. Thanks for reading.

Ah, you poor thing.

What did you do to your hair after you washed it in the post chemo picture?

It looks to me like it wants to be wavy, so I'm wondering if some curly products and methods might be useful for you. Hair can often grown back wavy after chemo.

You could try some cheap gel and scrunching it in and letting it air dry?

Alternatively, go for a pixi type cut, taking some of the sides away and giving it shape might make you feel happier.

Thanks @JuneOsborne. I did have it trimmed so think might do the back and sides again. I’m just hoping the hair will eventually give in to gravity.

I got my hair re-shaved after chemo and it grew back in it's original type.
I did it earlier than you as I didn't have that much growth and so was probably an easier decision to start again.
I'm on targeted therapy indefinitely so my hair is thin but the same colour and texture as it used to be.
I think if it keeps thinning I'll probably cut it quite short/shave it again as it's somewhat depressing to have to think about cancer when your getting ready every morning.
Good luck with it.

I had thick wavy hair, lost it and it grew back just like yours but maybe with a tighter curl. It reminded me of my grandmother's 'Pin up' perm if that means anything to you.

However, it is now shoulder length, not quite as thick as before, which is a good thing and I have it coloured lighter than before.

I have to say I found the growing back
Stage the most difficult of the whole chemotherapy hair loss process. I loved my wig and found removing it and therefore looking like a cancer patient hard but it very soon began to lose the curl and the weight of growth brought it downwards rather than outwards.

It won't happen overnight but you will get there.

Thanks so much @user1497787065, that’s really helpful. Did you get trims or just let it grow?
I wear my wig to work and out and about but it’s getting tight because of all this hair grown upwards underneath it!

Have you considered a salon keratin type treatment to relax it and get it to lay flatter so you could at least style it like a pixie for example?

Thanks @M0rT. It feels a gamble whether to shave it all off for the risk of it growing back just like this again.

@yorkshireteaspoonie - I might try that.

I had the length trimmed at the back but that was all but I did have it coloured fairly early on too.

It's one thing to have it looking like a hedgehog but I couldn't deal with it the colour of a Brillo pad too.

Good luck, it will be hard.

Mine looked like that too. It was awful, so I sympathise. 8 years on and it's completely back to normal, wearing it in a straight chin length bob. You just have to power through!

Another here whose hair grew upwards and curly after chemo. It’s now shoulder length and, where it was very dry and took tons of product to keep it smooth before the chemo, it falls into a lovely smooth bob these days! I did get it styled in a kind of pixie cut while it was growing out, which helped to minimise the upward growth.

I would leave it, as far as shaving off goes. It might take a good few months before you start seeing decent length, but gravity will prevail.

In the meantime work on the condition and style it as best you can while waiting for it to grow out. I think pls have given good suggestions for that.

I'd forgotten about Fido Dido. Blast from the past!

Thanks all for further reassurance and suggestions.
Any ideas for colour? Would colour take on my grey hair?

When it gets longer you are going to have enviable root lift without any effort. I think it could be perfection in the making.

It just needs a chance to grow longer that's all. And colour is easy to fix.

Your hair looked good in blonde shades it should be possible to achieve this again.

oh wow my hair is growing upwards like yours but I'm only 3 months out from chemo so it's much shorter. Its also gone completely silver, which actually I love. I'm embracing the silver, but like you can't wait for it to fall straight again. I'm told by my hairdresser that it will fall straight anywhere between 6 and 18 months... Right now I'm so damn happy not to be bald that I'm not complaining. I'm having mine trimmed at the side and back and plan to keep it as a short style and then gradually go pixie and then into a long on top style. Hair goals is a choppy bob in about 2 years. Hang in there!

and @Lunificent are you taking a biotin supplment? that helps it grow faster. x