Post COVID hair loss: Will it grow back?

Did anyone break out with tiny pinpoint red spots on their scalp? I had covid at the end of April. About a week after covid I had several painful spots on my scalp. They want away after a week. Now my hair is coming out and I continue to have an occasional painful red spot.

I had the same experience as Lucy. My dermatologist said that sudden hair loss can follow a major stress to the body (not necessarily covid) and covid certainly can be that. She said this usually occurs 3-5 months after the stressing event.

I also lost my eye lashes and they have not returned.

I am having hair loss too, it awful. My eyelashes are falling out, my eyebrows are getting thinner. I have swelling over my body, and still suffering tremors, when will this ever stop, I'm on oxygen 24/7 . Even through all this I'm still working but its so hard the pain, and all of this is just to much, I spent 5 days in the hospital with covid, why do we still have to suffer. Why aren't they putting this out there so people know

Yes, I have long hair and it was falling out in handfuls. I bought some otc product for hair loss but that didn’t help. The fellow that trims my hair told me those products don’t work. I kept taking them anyway. Wasted money. Finally after a few months the hair loss stopped. I was so worried. My hair is somewhat normal now.

I am aware from having hypothyroidism myself (as a layperson) that after some illnesses even normal people's thyroid levels can alter temporarily. However they do rebound and recover. My understanding is doctors do not test for say hypothyroidism after an illness because such results will mislead. I mention all this because hair loss is common with hypothyroidism. Following a illness like Covid-19 your body's thyroid levels may have changed temporarily (Some people when they hear thyroid problem run out and purchase a iodine supplement, but taking iodine can make thyroid matters I've read worse!).

Thyroid levels change slowly and have been found to require many weeks to measure by lab. If you have been good and sick, from a thyroid standpoint your body may require due time to heal internally (as the thyroid runs the show).

Yes! Mine came out in handfuls. Added collagen peptide powder to morning tea. Two months later hair started growing back in.

mine is doing the exact same thing. I was getting scared at first it was falling out really bad like handfuls. The breakage is horrible. I have long hair and my hair at the base of my neck is like you said about 2 inches from my scalp. I had never heard of covid hair loss, I was panicking. last week my cousin told me about it and how she was going through it. so, I started googling and wow there is so many. I'm a little relived I at least know what it is now though. I had covid the 2nd time in May. so hopefully it starts to get thicker again when I put it in a pony tail it is like as big around as a pen or pencil .

Have your iron and ferritin checked. Apparently Covid targets either the red blood cells or maybe the bone marrow, where they're made. Once I went on an iron supplement (Ferrous sulphate, 325-mg) I began to see an improvement (after a couple of months). You could also have your thyroid checked but the breakage makes me think that it's probably iron, I wouldn't put my hair in a ponytail unless you're using a scrunchy. The other thing is don't wash your hair too often, twice per week is enough. You could also bump up the vitamins that you take that will improve hair condition, such as biotin, B5, magnesium and zinc. Add collagen to your diet, it's good for hair. I make bone broth but there's also powdered collagen available (it's tasteless and can be added to whatever you're drinking). Diatomaceous Earth (silica) is also good for the hair. Good luck—it takes a while but it will most likely improve (from my experience).

Yes, I had Covid in Sept of last year and by November my hair was coming out in handfuls - very scary - I've always had a ton of hair, and I lost about 1/2 of my hair volume. I switched to a true Biotin shampoo and conditioner that I found on Amazon - stay away from the sulfates, etc, in the drugstore shampoos (I've always used TreSemme and Pantene, and they were never a problem before) and it helped a lot. The biotin shampoos don't smell fruity/flowery like the regular shampoos you get at the store - it's more of a grassy/earthy smell, but it's not bad. I only wash my hair once or twice a week - my scalp was dry, so this also helped. I also started taking a biotin/collagen supplement. My hair started filling back in and I was on the way back to a more normal hair volume, then got Covid again in June - my hair isn't falling out, but it has stopped growing for sure. The only good thing is my leg hair also stopped growing, so I haven't had to shave as much 🙂

Yes, I experienced this big-time and, yes, it did stop falling out and started growing back again.

When it started happening to me, it was scary to see a huge handful of hair just fall out every time I washed my hair. I only wash my hair twice a week, thankfully, but the hair loss continued for at least 3 months for me.

I researched it online at the time and found that hair follicles close up, which causes hair to stop growing and to fall out, in response to major physical events in your body such as bad infections, high fevers, major surgery, etc. Essentially, the body only has so much energy so, when it's taxed (due to infection, fever, etc.), it focuses on keeping your organs well and not on other less important processes such as growing hair or fingernails.

I believe it's the same reason a fever can make a person's hands and feet cold. The body is working so hard at fighting a virus or infection that it's not as important to keep the blood flow to the extremities as it normally would.

I did what someone else here suggested: only shampooed twice a week, took biotin, iron, C, D, and zinc.

And, as someone else suggested, have your iron, ferritin, and D levels checked. Mine were all low. My ferritin was so low for 6 months post-covid, it was causing me neurological problems: 24/7 vertigo ... not episodes but constant... for 5 of those 6 months; incoordination of my legs to the point it looked like I'd had a stroke; inability to understand what I was reading and often couldn't find the right words when speaking; tremors in my hands, etc.