# ‘I’m an OB/GYN. Here’s My Honest Opinion on Perelel Prenatal Vitamins’

- Link: https://jandjinvestllc.com/im-an-ob-gyn-heres-my-honest-opinion-on-perelel-prenatal-vitamins/
- Published: 2024-11-01T15:32:41-05:00
- Author: J and J Health

Here’s more info on vitamins that help first, second, and third trimester health.

I have hundreds of photos in my camera roll that might seem like the musings of 
someone who never turns down a selfie. But if you look closer, the subject of these
countless photos is my hair. You might think I’m a stylist’s dream—constantly chopping
and coloring, with cool memories to accompany each change. But, in reality, my collection
reminds me of what I’ve lost and how much further I must go to feel like myself 
again.

## My diagnosis

It started in 2022 with a trip to the doctor for white bumps in the back of my throat,
which I assumed was strep. From January through April, I bounced from ENT specialists,
trying to figure out why these swollen bumps wouldn’t disappear after treating them
with rounds of steroids. By May, I found out I had Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma(
DLBCL), a type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) that affects white blood cells. 

The irony was after years of having light brown hair, I finally started the journey
to go blonde, getting it to the perfect golden shade a week before I received my
diagnosis. I caught my cancer early, and everyone, from my doctor to well-intentioned
friends, told me it was a “good“ cancer to get, meaning my outcome would likely 
be positive, and after treatment, I’d remain in remission. People automatically 
put me in the “cancer warrior“ category, but dealing with a diagnosis and starting
treatment was anything _but _easy. My body experienced blood clots and cancer-induced
asthma, to name a few. Despite all this, I made it through my six rounds of chemo
and had one final PET scan standing between me and remission. I went in for my scan,
and two weeks later, my doctor told me that everything looked good and that they’d
see me in three months.

It was quite surreal after twelve emergency room visits, one collapsed lung, and
seeing a slew of specialists. Medically speaking, I was cleared to rejoin society,
but mentally and physically, I was still in shambles. My bald head and eyebrows 
were the most obvious signs I was still healing. I desperately counted down the 
days my hair would be below my shoulders or could be thrown up into a messy bun 
without needing a pin to secure still-growing flyaways. I regularly dreamt of sitting
in my colorist’s chair, in hopes that the foils would put an end to the neon “cancer
patient“ sign my hair (or lack thereof) communicated.

> “People automatically put me in the ‘cancer warrior’ category, but dealing with
> a diagnosis and starting treatment was anything _but _easy.”

## Hair loss and cancer treatment

See, hair loss is a common side effect of chemotherapy and, according to Beth N.
McLellan, MD, and director of supportive oncodermatology at Montefiore Einstein 
Comprehensive Cancer Center, hair loss during treatment happens because chemo works
by attacking rapidly dividing cells, like cancer cells. “Unfortunately, some normal
cells that divide rapidly can also be affected, like hair follicles, which are the
second fastest-dividing cells your body produces,“ Dr. McLellan says. 

The most common side effects of chemotherapy are fatigue, nausea, mouth sores, loss
of appetite, and hair loss, but each person’s experience is unique. “Hair shed typically
happens in the first few weeks and grows back over the months following a patient’s
last treatment, but some other cancer treatments can affect the texture or color
of the hair, and some can cause thinning rather than complete hair loss,“ Dr. McLellan
says.

Hair follicles go through four stages within a growth cycle: anagen (growth), catagen(
intermediate phase), telogen (where the hair stops growing and rests in the follicle),
and exogen (where hair falls out). “Certain chemotherapy treatments can cause the
immediate release of hairs in the growth phase known as a type of hair loss called
anagen effluvium,“ explains Anabel Kingsley, consultant trichologist and brand president
at Philip Kingsley, meaning that after completing chemotherapy, your hair will grow
back, but the treatment can cause it to return with a different texture and color,
which can be another emotional ordeal for some people. “For many people, it’s not
uncommon for hair to come back curlier, unpigmented, or slightly lighter. However,
everyone’s scalp and hair will be more fragile at first following chemotherapy,

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