Mono, Starting College and Kidney Stone

by Lindsey
(North Carolina)

I am an eighteen year old female that was put in the hospital in august for seven days with a severe case of Mono (Edited: Mononucleosis is a common infectious viral disease transferred in saliva or kissing), Tonsillitis and strep throat. I was discharged from the hospital on a Thursday and passed out in the shower the following day with severe back pain which found out weeks later I had a kidney stone.

During all of this I had to move into my dorm 3 days after my hospital stay. Went through the month of September with bouts with my kidney stone missed some school but was able to make up my work. October they had to do surgery to remove my stone (also had a stent)mid November I started losing large amounts of hair (my mom told me it was stress from classes and upcoming exams) when I came home for Thanksgiving it was very obvious that I was losing lots of hair, my mom panicked we went to the doctor.

Thinking blood work would show maybe a thyroid condition and that I could be put on medication and everything would be ok. The blood work came back fine and the doctor told me it was coming from my illness back in august and that it takes 3 to 4 months for your hair to start falling out and he promised me I wouldn’t go bald. I am in the week of exams and my hair is falling out I am depressed because of all of this and I am still very weak from the Mono.

Can someone tell me when the hair loss will stop and is there anything I can do to make it stop? (I have a tennis scholarship and my tennis season starts in Feb. I am worried that my hair will still be falling out and I will still be weak from the mono)

Editor’s Comments,

I can say your doctor’s diagnosis is probably right and you are suffering from Acute Telogen Effluvium of sudden hair loss in relation to all the bouts that you were having back in August. As the time frame of 3 months coincides with the normal time line of the onset of Telogen Effluvium, you are most probably facing with this temporary condition.

This hair loss condition is usually temporary and can last for days to a month depending on the period of excessive stress that you body receives and also how well your body can tolerate it.

Still, it’s very safe to say that most people that face Telogen Effluvium will see their hair loss stabilize after a month or two the latest. Of course, to get the hair back to its full length will take months depending on the length of your hair because your hair can only grow an average of half an inch a month so you will need to be patient.

In the meantime, try not to panic and try to find ways to divert your attention for your current situation. If you have long hair, it might be the right time for you to change to a shorter hair style, a good way to reduce the appearance of hair loss.

Besides that, there isn’t much that you will need to do because the problem will usually resolve by itself. Still you can try other ways to help improve your hair growth rate by browsing through the Preventing Hair Loss Section. Good luck!