I’ve never been blessed with great eyebrows or eyelashes. They’ve always been sparse, short and well, not impressive. Nevertheless, losing my eyebrows and eyelashes completely when going through chemo was, while expected, still an adjustment.
While I started losing the hair on my head about ten days after my first chemo appointment. Once my hair began to fall out, it went quickly, and I was fully bald, with a little weird fuzz-wuzz sticking in there by the time my second chemo rolled around. The experience with my eyebrows was different. Even though my eyebrows and eyelashes were thin, they hung in there for several weeks. I didn’t lose them completely until close to the end of my therapy. This seems to be the case for most women who go through chemotherapy for breast cancer, based on conversations I have had with others.
Going around without eyebrows just telegraphed that I was in cancer therapy and somehow made me look sick – which is not how I felt! Here are some things I tried, and things you can do.
False lashes for those with no lashes
I relied on eye makeup and eyeliner to give my eyes emphasis and to distract from the fast I had no eyelashes. Again it wasn’t like I was sporting long bambi lashes to begin with, so honestly, the adjustment here was not that bad. A good smokey eye can work wonders. If you feel the loss, there are eyelash kits that use magnetic eyeliner vs glue. The brand C-Lash out of the UK was created by Codila Gapare a fellow cancer survivor to remedy her lash loss. Eylure C-lash Naturals is a strip lash with a soft, flexible & invisible band that aids application- created specifically for lash replacement. The band provides a bigger, more solid foundation for the lashes to stick to the eyelid and remain in place all day. One thing to note is that your skin and eyes can become quite sensitive during chemo. So test any liners (magnetic or adhesive) before applying and also it’s always a good idea to check with your care team.
False eyebrows for those who have lost their brows to chemo
I know a number of women who turned to microblading prior to chemo to achieve a permanent eyebrow effect and they have been very happy with the result. On the pro side you never have to worry about pencilling or shaping your brow, it will never wash off and the effect will last long after chemo is done. On the con side, it is costly at several hundred dollars — at a time when many women are already feeling the impacts of cancer financial toxicity. The end result does depend on the talent of the artist. You won’t have the ability to change the look and shape of your brows (thin, full) to stay on trend. I can’t verify this, but I was told my my makeup artist that individuals who have chemotherapy can experience discoloration of the tattooed brow over time. It is not recommended that microblading be performed while someone is in active therapy (chemo or radiation). It should be done before treatment and completely healed. Those with a lifetime risk of lymphedema also have additional risks.
I chose non-permanent tattoos for my brows while in treatment. Remember those lick-and-stick tattoos we used to use as kids? Yep like that. In terms of pros, they were super affordable, quick amd easy to apply, lasted all day, and honestly, I found them to look quite realistic. I remember my son leaning in in disbelief for a close look amazed at how good they looked. I wish I could still wear them but they don’t apply well over natural brows! On the downside, they do take a bit of practice to apply evenly. My daughter and I had a few giggles at some wonky applications that had me looking like Jerry Seinfeld’s Uncle Leo!
I say often now that one of the lessons cancer taught me (and there are many) is that I should have been filling in my eyebrows for the last 30 years. The good news for all going through this is that while eyebrows and eyelashes are the last to go, they also typically return quickly. Mine came back as sparse and underwhelming as always. So I still need help! Right now for my eyebrows I am loving the Benefit Brow Pencilj for its precision lines and control and waterproof smudge proof wear. For my eyelashes I am using Thrive Causemetics Liquid Lash and lash serum.
I will also admit however, that those lashes are still rather sad even with all this help. I have these Lashify DIY extensions sitting in my shopping cart right now…
