Watching the grass grow

So my hair should start growing back now. Any day now. Annnnnnnnny day.

They say growth starts about 3 to 6 weeks after chemo ends--that's some range! It's been 3 and a half weeks, and if you run your hand over my head, you can feel that it's rough, but not really hairy. Maybe it's like the 5 o'clock shadow of a teenage boy whose beard hasn't fully arrived yet.

Last night I had a great dream. I dreamt that one afternoon I reached up to my head and found hair! It was very dark brown, and curly, and about chin length. I didn't know it was there, but suddenly I was running my fingers through my own hair. Excited, I began telling people how I awoke that morning with beard-like stubble, but during the day my hair had grown out that much. It was quite wonderful. Now, today, I feel so dissatisfied, wanting that to be true.

A month or so ago, in my support group, a woman who'd just finished chemo complained of her own frustration with wanting to be all better, now, against the reality that getting better was a slow process. I sympathized at the time, but I didn't understand. Now I do.

Meanwhile, I am going to start the new Hair Watch 2006. In May, it was a hairloss watch. Now, it's a hair growth watch. It takes a lot for me to do this, but I am going to post photos of my progress (from the back--I do have limits). So here's the first one, taken last Saturday, at zero growth. When there are notable changes, the HW will be updated.