Crowning Glory

Reading Peppermint Energy's entry on "Maidenhair Fern"... reminded me of the traumatic days of a bout of telogen effluvium several years ago. We were very sure that the trigger was mycoplasma pneumonia (primarily the consecutive days of high fever prior to my hospitalization). My cousin also had high fever around the same period and had problem of hair shedding around the same time as me too. But he's a guy, could always shave evthg and still look cool!
Despite reassurance from the Dr and Andy that i won't go bald, and that the hair will grow back, my heart sank further after every shower or when i was combing the hair... Chunks of hair clogging the sink, on the comb/brush, on the pillow. The Dr was so sweet, checking on me periodically via email, and was encouraging. Counting every strand of hair shedded.... made things worse, as i got more stressed up as the rate of shedding increased. *bleah*
Subsequently, found out about this site: http://www.keratin.com/ by a research dermatologist with special interest in hair follicles. Learnt quite a bit about Hair and the various forms of related "diseases" from this website. Even Dr. Wong was impressed when i told him about this website. :) The severe shedding lasted about 10 weeks, and was so sad during this period as the top of the scalp was starting to show. To allay my fears before cutting my hair short, Andy even volunteered to help me select the wig which i insisted to buy, just in case the short hairstyle didn't turn out well. The shoulder-length wig was not cheap... about S$240, i think. Those made of human hair was even more expensive! Luckily, thanks to Andy's skillful hands, the new short haircut was not bad at all. :P At least it was less obvious than when i was still keeping the hair at shoulder length.
Over the subsequent weeks, started to notice the short furry new growth on the scalp. That was a HUGE Relief, i tell ya! :)
Through this entire traumatic period, there was no medication prescribed by the Dermatologist... stopped using the lotion after 1st week coz it was too oily. So, my mom attributed the accelerated rate of the regrowth to her regular 首乌 + lean meat boiled soup. Apparently, this is a common recipe that most of the folkz running those chinese medicine halls are familar with. My mom swear by this herb, coz in the process of finishing up the soup that i couldn't finish, she discovered that she had less gray hair... heheh.
Man, after this episode, it made me realize that i've always taken my crowning glory for granted, subjecting it to those various chemicals, etc.. but now, i'm thankful evthg's back to normal. :)