So I got into the best shape of my life and then all my hair started falling out!

Hi! Welcome to my very first blog post

I know that title is a bit "What?" so let's back up a bit.

I've competed in several different sports throughout my adolescent and adult life but the most recent has proven to be the most challenging both pre and post show-- bodybuiding.

Now before anyone reads this and thinks I'm about to trash this sport, keep reading before you @ me lol.

I've been in the fitness realm for ten years, now. I've been lifting for all 10 , spent 6 getting my bachelors and masters degree in kinesiology and been a fitness coach for the last 3 and a half years but I really never learned jack diddily about the sport of bodybuilding.

To be completely honest, I never had any interest in it. I've always had a deep love and fascination to just lift as heavy as I could in everything. I thrive in the sub 5 rep range.

And training like a bodybuilder definitely IS NOT that lol.

But shitty environments and trash talking have clearly proven to land me in sports I never had any interest in.

So I found a coach, convinced my fiance I couldn't possibly do this without him and thought "what the hell, let's do it".

And we did. Four months of prep later, I stepped on stage (slipped during finals cause hellooo its me) and was so beyond proud of what I was able to showcase. And it's a high, lemme tell ya. For someone who hates being in any kind of spotlight, I thoroughly enjoyed struttin' around in my tiny bikini and heels that were way too high.

Following show day, I had every intention of taking a week or so to decide if I wanted to prep for another show (not immediately after but if I wanted to take an off-season and compete again in a year). I was taking the time but was pretty sure I wanted to.

And then it started.

My hair started coming out in chunks.

I know most females, and any males that have ever lived with a female, understand what the shower wall looks like after a shower.

My shower wall was covered with hair every time I washed it.

I absolutely dreaded hair washing days cause thats when it was most obvious how much was actually falling out.

Naturally, I started flipping out.

I began researching if any other women had posted about hair loss following competition.

I found one comment on reddit. ONE.

On a thread titled "Share the things they don't warn you about prep & bodybuilding", someone posted "not having a menstrual cycle, compromised bone health, anemia, hair loss..."

How the heck is that the only thing I could find?

Which brings me to why I'm starting this blog in the first place.

There's no chance I'm the only person to experience this-- so I wanted to create some type of open forum for people to talk about it.

Even if you're experiencing excessive hair loss not related to effects of competition-- please, lets chat :)

This unfortunate circumstance has resulted in a deep dive of causes of hair loss, natural remedies to encourage hair re-growth, how hormones are related to hair loss, etc.

If this has caused anyone else to do the same, I'd love to exchange notes on things that have maybe worked for you.

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In the meantime, keep tuning in to find out what supplements and other pills occurred in prep, how those potentially contributed to hair loss, and what to be aware of if you're thinking about competing.

Till next time :)