The Day My Curls Fell Out...

This weekend I lost a part of my confidence. I am sitting here trying to write this blog with tears streaming down my face. I am having a really hard time coming to terms with my hair.

 Let me give you a little back story....

Last year during the summer, I noticed I was starting to break out a lot. I noticed some weight gain and that I was chronically fatigued and in pain...DAILY! 

I started tracking my symptoms and couldn’t figure out what was wrong so I scheduled an appointment with my OBGYN. All I knew is my hormones were acting crazy and my break outs were under my chin. (Which is typically a sign of a hormonal imbalance.) I also scheduled an appointment with a PCP. (In case you missed that blog post...I fired my entire healthcare team and started over late last year.)

Well I couldn’t get in with my doctor for 3 months. (That irritated me...a different story that is in my blog.) For 7 months I dealt with hormonal issues. I noticed I was losing more hair in the shower but didn’t really think anything of it because I’m a curly gal and only wash my hair maybe twice a week. 

I noticed my hair was frizzy and the curls weren’t really defined. Again...thought it was the dryer months and that I needed a deep conditioning mask. Didn’t think anything of it. Then I noticed my hair had some serious length so I scheduled a “big chop” (about 4-5 inches) off my hair. I missed my bounce. Definitely thought the cut would help. It did a little bit but I didn’t have the full bounce. Again...didn’t really think anything of it. 

This weekend I watched a video from a curly goddess that a friend tagged in. I had heard there was an issue with DevaCurl (the product that I have been a loyal user of for 10+years). When my friend brought it to my attention...I shrugged him off and told him I wasn’t having any issues. However, after watching the video, everything this woman talked about and showed photos of was happening to me. I never put the little things together. 

I did a photo comparison of my hair before DevaCurl was sold to Henkel Beauty and after. It broke my heart! I also did a lot of research all weekend. I followed the hashtag #recalldevacurl and found several women that also had hormonal issues with symptoms like I had. They gained 20lbs-30lbs in the same time frame. 

I NEVER linked anything to my hair products. There is a HUGE class action lawsuit in the works right now. I thought I was crazy for the last 7 months. All of my tests from my doctors came back clear. I was deficient in Vitamin D but that wasn’t causing my weight gain and hormonal stuff. I never thought that my hair products would put me through hell. Especially since I had been using them so long. I mean I met the VP of the company 8 years back and he taught me how to use the products properly.

Since Saturday...I have gotten rid of every ounce of product that I had in my home that had DevaCurl written on it. I have been detoxing my scalp. I didn't realize how itchy it was all the time. I am still having a hard time looking at myself in the mirror right now. My hair is a mess. I am waiting on some new natural, organic, clean products to arrive. 

I have answers!! I also have very low confidence in public right now. My curls are my life. I brag about my curls and they are so broken. I can’t even imagine what my hair would be like if I wasn’t drinking my superhero foods. 

I have order collagen and some new super natural products. What I learned was to really look into all the things we use daily. I was introduced to the app “THINK DIRTY”. It rates all the items we use on the daily. You can even scan the barcodes. Plus there are tons of reviews. 

This weekend changed my life. I will gain my confidence back. For now I’m in limbo and kind of in hiding. So if any of you use DevaCurl...please stop. If you have some...reach out to me and I will tell you next steps.

Until next time...

XOXO,

Dev