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This Everyday Routine Might Be Making Your Hair Loss Worse — And Here’s How to Fix It

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Getting home after a long day, all I can think about is a nice hot shower to help me relax and get ready for bed. But, the sight of how much hair I lose in the shower sometimes makes me even more stressed than my packed day (ugh!). Turns out my cleansing routine might be making the problem worse, and there are ways to lessen all that hair loss in the shower.

Is losing your hair in the shower normal?

If you’ve ever finished rinsing your hair only to see your hands covered in broken-off strands, then you know that deep feeling of panic. You might frantically think, “I don’t want to lose my hair!” Yet there it is again next time you shower, and the next. The thing is, some amount of hair loss in the shower is normal as strands fall out during our hair’s natural growth process. In fact, research from 2018 found that the average person loses around 100 strands a day. But, hair loss could be made worse with some of our everyday shower routines.

How do I stop my hair from falling out when I wash it?

While you can’t fully prevent hair loss in the shower, there are ways to make the damage a little worse. For starters, that super hot shower you love after a long day? It could be making things worse! Heat exposure increases hair loss both while showering and after, hair expert Dr. Dominic Burg told SheFinds. Your hair follicles and roots are naturally weaker and more vulnerable in the shower as water floods your scalp. And scalding hot water makes these minuscule openings even weaker over time as your scalp reacts to the temperature.

Even worse is all the heat we sometimes apply to our hair after the showering. Blow dryers can be our best friends when we want to dry our hair and style it quickly. But the flash of hot temperature, likely combined with heavy brushing, can really punish our weakened follicles. Luckily, just making a few changes to your routine can really benefit your hair.

Next time you’re ready to dry your hair, start with a cool temperature and work your way up. Using a wide-toothed comb to detangle your hair, both after and during your shower, will really help curb hair loss as well. And a heat protectant spray can keep your hair healthy even when exposed to high temperatures.

While the battle against hair loss in the shower might be never ending, using simple tips to help strengthen our hair will go a long way!

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