My first hair loss event was when I was 21 years old. I had chronic telogen effluvium for almost three years, and then one day it spontaneously stopped. The last year of shedding wasn’t nearly as bad as the first two, but it still felt like it would never end. After that, I had three textbook TE episodes over the span of five years. They were triggered by a medication, a high fever, and COVID, respectively. Every time my hair would grow back from one episode, sometimes I’d even make it 18 months, I’d get hit with another one. The COVID episode was the worst by far. Unlike the others, it started out mild and then reached a crescendo. I lost appalling amounts of hair and was left with almost none. Then it shut off like a faucet, and for months I barely lost any hair at all. Hair loss devastated my twenties. I thought about it constantly, either worrying that something would trigger another episode or trying to figure out how to recover from the last one. It didn’t help that I used to have unbelievably thick hair. I grieved it for years because I never realized my hair was on loan. Finally, three years ago, I got hand-tied extensions. They made such a huge difference. I could finally think about other things, and my fear of hair loss wasn’t holding me back anymore. I felt confident and like myself again. As my hair recovered, I needed fewer and fewer wefts. Eventually, I stopped liking the look of the extensions. They just felt bulky. I got them taken out last Tuesday and you guys… my hair is so thick. Not like it used to be, but damn close. I cannot stop running my fingers through it. I’ve lost my hair so many times that I never thought I’d see this much grow back. I used to spend so much time on hair loss forums, and I remember how desperately I searched for stories where people actually recovered. So I just wanted to share mine in case someone out there needs a little hope.   submitted by   /u/Future_Seaweed2661 [link]   [comments]