How to Prepare Your Hair for Chemotherapy

Once you know what to expect from your hair during chemotherapy, you can begin to prepare your hair for what’s ahead. Sometimes getting yourself ready and prepared for what’s to come can actually take a lot of the stress and anxiety off your shoulders when it’s time to begin.

There are a number of things you can do during the treatment to augment your hair care, and even more decisions to be made beforehand. Take your time and focus on all the things you can do to make your treatment less stressful and give yourself as much of a headstart as you can.

Before Treatment Preparation

Just because you can’t control the possibility of hair loss doesn’t mean you can’t actively manage it. There are a number of steps you can take to work toward preventing treatment-related hair loss, promoting hair regrowth and making the process as a whole, much less stressful.

1. Talk to your doctor. Sometimes just knowing what’s ahead can take some stress off your shoulders. Ask your doctor about your specific treatment and what your chance of hair loss will be.
   
   
2. Be kind to your hair. The best thing you can do is get in the habit of being gentle when handling your hair. Take your time when detangling knots and avoid applying tension to your scalp.
   
   
3. Add hair, skin and nail supplements to your regimen. The stronger your hair is now, the less likely it is to immediately fall out during treatment. Hair supplements are also great for post-treatment.
   
   
4. Research cold caps and scalp cooling systems. These tightly fitting hat-like devices have helped many people keep some or most of their hair during chemo.
   
   
5. Stop chemically treating your hair and scalp. Hair dye, bleach, perms and permanent straighteners can all weaken the bonds in your hair follicles—and you’ll want your hair to be as strong as possible going into chemo. Chemically treating your hair can actually accelerate the thinning of your hair and can add extra irritation to your scalp.
   
   
6. Add gentle shampoos and conditioners to your product lineup. Both of Better Not Younger’s Wake Up Call and Second Chance shampoo and conditioner lines are gentle on thin and fragile hair. In addition to its careful cleansing properties, Wake Up Call also offers your hair a volumizing boost—all without any harsh chemicals or sulfates.
   
   
7. Stow away your hairdryer, straightener and curling iron. Avoid using heat to dry or style your hair, and instead, opt to air dry it. Heat can easily weaken and damage your hair shaft and ultimately your follicles.
   
   
8. Is it time to make short hair your style? There are many pros to cutting your hair short before chemotherapy: It will be easier to manage, give you time to get used to having less hair, and any shedding or thinning will be easier to control. Since short hair can often appear fuller, it also won’t be as noticeable when your hair begins to fall out. Making the choice to do a big chop before chemo can also give you the feeling of being in control of what happens to your hair, rather than letting chemo make the decision for you.
   
   
9. Do you want a head covering? Whether you decide to cover your head with a scarf, wig or other covering, take the time to decide before your first treatment. This way you have a plan of action in place so you don’t have to scramble later. If you plan to use a wig, ask your doctor to write you a prescription—the cost of a “cranial prosthesis” could be partially or fully covered by your health insurance. Before chemotherapy, you’ll also have more energy to look through all your options—something that may give you more stress and anxiety later on if you wait.
   
   

During Treatment Care

1. Only wash your hair when necessary. Use a gentle shampoo without harsh chemicals, such as our Second Chance repairing shampoo, and a very soft brush only when needed. The less stress on your hair the better. Since your scalp will likely be very tender, you’ll want to disturb it as little as possible. However, your scalp will still need to be cleansed of excess oils and dry skin—even after your hair is gone.
   
   
2. Avoid tight hairstyles. Don’t braid or put your hair in a ponytail or bun as these styles will cause stress on your already tender scalp, and likely lead to further hair breakage.
   
   
3. Should you shave your head? Some have reported that the treatments and hair loss make their scalp feel sensitive and irritated. In this case, shaving your head might be a good option to reduce the itching and irritation. It also may be easier to just bite the bullet and shave your head if the hair loss and shedding are a constant on your mind. But you know what else? A lot of women find making the decision to shave their head themselves empowering—they refuse to let cancer make the choice for them.
   
   
4. Head coverings protect your scalp. Whether you choose to shave your head or not, your scalp will likely be extremely sensitive because of the chemo treatments. Remember to protect your scalp from the outdoors with a scarf, hat or other covering. Both sunlight and harsh cold can easily irritate your sensitive scalp.
   
   
5. Head coverings are also great at night. Wearing a protective covering at night keeps everything contained and avoids large clumps of hair from appearing on your pillow in the morning. The last thing you want is for your thinning hair to be the first thing on your mind in the morning.