Women’s Hair Loss Project

Hi, thanks for posting my story! I still haven’t really figured out what’s going on with my hair. I forgot to mention that I went to even more doctors after I wrote the story - another Dermatologist, another General Practice doctor, and three different Gynecologists. Everytime I needed to see a doctor, I’d see a new one, since I wasn’t happy with any of them. None of them had any clue about hair loss.

At this point I honestly don’t know if I have chronic TE, or AGA. For me, what started the hair loss could have been several things - being on the pill for a long time (even though I was never on one that was high in androgens), or not having a good diet (I used to eat a lot of sugar, processed foods, and bad carbs and hardly any iron, meat, or vegetables). Since I know a lot of women’s hair naturally gets thinner as we age, I am starting to wonder if that’s it. Since I don’t have any of the signs of AGA (miniaturized hairs, thinning mostly on the crown), I wonder if overall thinning can also be AGA. I’ve noticed a lot of my high school and college friends have slightly thinner now, so maybe it’s normal, but they were also on the pill for a long time.

Anyway, the only good news in all of this is that my hair is no worse than it was 4 years ago, and it’s probably slightly thicker. That could be from getting out of my depression, and eating better. I’m still not “cured” but I’m still working on trying to find an answer, and cure.

I forgot to mention that the last Dermatologist I went to said I had Seborrheic Dermatitis. I don’t really have any symptoms of it, but he said my scalp was inflamed. It is characterized my an inflamed scalp, oily hair, dandruff, and in severe cases, it can look crusty or scaly. I use Neutrogena T-Gel off and on (but not a lot). I tried Nizoral, but that made a lot of hair fall out after each washing, so I prefer the T-Gel. Apparently this disorder can negatively effect your hair because excess sebum is produced, which blocks your hair from growing properly. But if you control the disorder, your hair can grow back. I will use the T-Gel more often. It just makes my hair look really flat.

Just thought I’d let you know! Between that, TE, low iron, and a low thyroid, and not eating a lot of protein, it’s a wonder I have any hair.

Lisa,
I’m not an expert at thyroid problems, but 4.28 does sound high to me. I have heard of the new range, and I personally would go by that. Also, there are so many symptoms of hypothyroid, so I would check to see how many other symptoms you have as well, since that can be more telling than the actual number your test tells you. If I don’t feel comfortable with a doctor, or don’t feel like I agree with what they’re saying, I usually find a new one.

I was on Wellbutrin for a few days, but it made me extremely anxious. Lexapro worked fine me, except it caused my legs to constantly feel exhausted - like I had run a marathon! Otherwise it caused no other side effects. Once I started my Yasmin birth control, it somehow has worked better than antidepressants for me, so I haven’t needed them since.

I so much appreciate this website. Whenever I do research on the internet I do not know how many of the stories are fabricated or truthful. I am new to this site, one week, and I am encouraged by what I am reading. I have been losing my hair since I was 33 and it has progressively gotten worse over the years. When I talk to people I see them looking at my head instead of into my eyes and it hurts and makes me feel like running and hiding. My daughter is 27 and I see her hair has thinned a great deal over the past 2 years. I hurt for her too but do not want to make her feel self conscious. I live in WA State and wonder if anyone knows of any good doctors in western WA that will deal with woman’s hair loss. I have had blood test done for thyroid and iron and my counts are fine. My grandmother on my father’s side had thin hair also. I use minoxidol %5 solution and take vitamins from provillus. I started this product 3 months ago. Has anyone had any success with any prescribed solutions or know of any stylist in Western WA that can aid me with styling. I appreciate your willingness to share your struggles with something we have to face everyday. Thank you

Hello Jeni. Problem sounds all too similar. I have been on the same oddessy. My problem started with a change from my doc of my thyroid medicine. Levoxyl. He lowered the dose 1.25 to 75. Kept telling me that had nothing to do with hair shedding. Internist do not know thyroid so get a specialist or homeopathic. A couple of things I’ve learned. And it was one tough learning experience.The last two years about destroyed me. Your TSH may not show a problem for years when it is off. Go to a holistic Doc. They know more about this than endo’s unfortunately. Start taking Lugol’s iodine. A couple drops a day with evening primrose oil. 1500 per day. This helps to stop the shedding. Get thyroid med or at least seaweed from health store. This will stop the inflamation and hair loss. Get rid of the sea salt and get salt with iodine. Do not take Synthroid as it makes hair shed in some, maybe many. A T 3- T 4 combo is best. Healty diet, exercise, calm down. Take your basal temp under your arm for ten minutes with a mercury thermometer. If basal is low repeatedly, you are hypo. Read Brody Barnes Missing Diagnosis. Modern Med cannot decide what is the correct TSH. Med Community changed scale from .5-5.0 to new range of .3-3.0.They are playing with our lives and it stinks. Get active don’t take these guys nonanswers. Look around. This is happening to way too many women. With lack of iodine in our diet and a medical community that doesn’t get it, there are too many women tired, depressed, aching, itching,losing hair like I’ve never seen before. Too much sea salt. No iodine in the bread anymore but bromine which blocks iodine absorbtion. Get salt with Iodine. Use it only for all salt uses.There is sea salt with iodine too. Armour Thyroid is a good combo drug but Docs have decided Synthroid is end all be all. It is not. It makes hair shed. Read Mary Shoman at about. thyroid. Hope this helps. My Doc was such a goof, he told me lot of people loose hair get over it.This was a family frien so i was getting good attention just the medical community off on thyroids. Get a woman if you can. They are much more sensitive and understanding to this issue. But take those basal temps. Go armed with records. Do not take no. Keep on it.Use a gentle shampoo. kerastase has protein. do not shampoo not too often as Hypo has already made the scalp dry and scaley, itchy. 1 0r 2 times per week shampoo with calming conditioner. Good luck. Let us know how you do.

Hi Jen,
Needed to say, your story sounds familiar to alot of us. Mine too. Again, the first thing doctors want to do is throw you on the antidepresant routine. I have always said….. NO SHI_ I am depressed , my hairs falling out and now you want to put me on medication . Doctors are lazy and get rebate checks or something for pushing the dope thing. While I will agree that these are sometimes needed, they have become the easy waty to treat everybody. When I grew up it kinda reminds me of the days when moms thought enemas where the cure all. I remember my mother chasing me around the neighbor hood with that white rubber bag! UUUGGGHHHHH! If I had an earache or headache or whatever. It was the bag treatment. Today we laugh about it. Now any thing rubber flips me out. I no this sounds redundent, but you need to stop stressing. Try the natural approach with chinese vitamins for hair, a good Iron supplement, amino acids and copper supplements twice a week. You need to ask about these things. Dr. Kingsley from New York has put me on this regimen and my hair loss has dramatically decreased. I also mix my own tonic and spray it 2 times a day. If you would like the recipe let me know. As I have stated I am seeing great results. Eat 6 times a day small meals, stay away from caffeine and eat a well balanced diet. De stress and if you can afford it a massage as often as you can. Another thing is deep relaxation breathing. STRESS KILLS YOU IN MANY WAYS! hope to hear from you. Love Robin

Hey Petey,
Sorry I haven’t been back on this site for the last two days, here goes the recipe I take a bunch of fresh rosemary….when i say a bunch a big handfull, two cups water and fresh ginger root peeled and chopped, needn’t be real small. Find some lavender heads (flower) and throw them in the pot and bring to a boil and then simmer. I use a whole fresh ginger root from the food store and I buy the lavender heads at the health food store. About half cup of heads. Simmer and cool. Put in a spray bottle and do it twice a day. I let it dry and try not to get it on my hair so I dont have to shampoo twice a day. After it dries in the scalp it does not leave any residue, in fact it smells nice from the lavender. If I may add…. Everyone who comes to this site should purchase a copy of The Truth About Womens Hair Loss By Spencer David Kobren. It is a must have, and has recipes for the natural approach. Also visit http://www.hairandscalp.com (Dr. Kingsleys) is a Trychologist from New York. These two gentlemen have helped me tremedously! I believe in them with all my heart. I went 15 years and finally found someone who listend with a caring heart. Hope this serves you well. Remember STRESS IS YOUR ENEMY! LOVE ROBIN

From what I have read, in cases where low serum ferrutin (below 40)is a culprit in hair loss and thinning, serum ferrutin has to get up between 50 and 80 to trigger regrowth. That’s really hard when you’re starting from 18 like I am. I take three slowfe iron pills a day and at last check I was only up to 40 after a few months of religious pill popping. I need to get my iron way up and it needs to stay there if I’m going to regrow hair but I fear it’s not safe to take too many iron pills so I’m hoping the 3 a day will get me higher and maintain a higher level for a while. I have also been using the laser comb as directed for almost a year now. I didn’t see results from that alone so I added a strong minoxidil solution to the routine about 6 months ago. Still no regrowth. According to my derm, my scalp biopsy showed that I am “genetically predisposed” to alopecia but I don’t know what that means. I know the women on my dads side tend to go almost bald between the ages of 30 and 50. I think if I have the genetic predisposition, I’d better make sure I do everything I can to fight or delay the inevitable. It’s frustrating and expensive and impossible to know if anything is really working or not but at least I’m trying! I also think the nuvaring is bad if only because in my case, I had lots of breakthrough bleeding and long periods which would result in losing iron…hormonally I’m not sure what it does.

Hi Dottie,
Where did you hear about needing a ferritin level of at least 70 for regrowth to occur? Do you know how reliable this info is?
When I went to the doctor about my hair loss (which I should add, I feel I am tackling early) they seemed quite nonplussed - I guess because I haven’t got big bald spots (but as you’ll all know, a woman knows when her hair is thinning).
They sent me for an iron test and my ferritin level was 9, and I was surprised that the doctor was so laid back about it. I know 20 is the very minimum but he simply said 9 was ‘on the low side.’ It seemed very low to me!
He gave me 200mg iron supplements to take once a day and told me to take them for 2 months. He didn’t tell me to come back for a repeat blood test to check for improvement, just said - come back if you’re still worried.
From what I understand, regrowth can take a lot more than 2 months, and if it’s true that ferritin needs to be around 70 for this to occur, I have a long way to go.
Now I’m not sure whether to continue taking the tablets beyond the 2 month period, or maybe go back to consult with another doctor. Does anyone have any advice?!
To be honest I’m not convinced the iron is what’s causing my hair to thin - I fear it may just be genetic and I’m fighting a losing battle.

Wow, reading this really hit ‘home.’ I also am originally from San Francisco where I always had long, thick, beautiful blonde hair. When I moved to Los Angeles over ten years ago, I noticed it really beginning to shed. At the first place I lived, I remember huge clumps coming out in the shower; it was truly terrifying. I thought that it must be the water there, but at my second place, same thing. I lived in the [San Fernando] valley for a while and it seemed to be a bit better for my hair. I had also started smoking and drinking coffee regularly around this time and thought that this may be the culprit, but when I quite smoking, my hair loss actually got worse temporarily, probably from stress. Then I quit drinking coffee as I thought that may finally be it, but still no noticeable change. I always collected a ‘ball’ of hair when I left the shower, and I could feel it running down my ankles when I rinsed my hair. There was always tons of hair on my bathroom floor and on my rugs; I cleaned it up all the time, but between myself and my Persian cat, I went thought quite a few vacuums! Luckily, I genetically have a lot of hair, so I was never bald, I just had about 2/3 of the amount of hair I had when I was younger. When I braid my hair, all the hair I’m am working with is about the size of the one of the three sectioned pieces that I used to have, if that makes sense. My family members all talk about how different my hair was when I was younger, and I actually don’t mind that, because at least I know I am not imagining it! I have much less volume to my hair now, and when I wear it long, it becomes very stringy. I have had all my blood work done and it always comes back normal, the thyroid tests always came back negative and my basal temperature is always normal. I had pain on my left lower abdomen once a couple years ago, and when I went in to my gynecologist, they discovered that I had ovarian cysts, but they did not diagnose me with PCOS, they just put me on birth control pills. I felt afraid to take them because my mother had developed blood clots from taking them in the 70’s even though this was from a much higher dose of estrogen. Also, I wanted to see if I could get my body working normally first. I went back to the PCOS specialist for some follow up blood work, but this was all very expensive because of high insurance deductibles…needless to say my tests have not ever been completed, partly because the only cure they were offering me was to take the pill, and also because they did not think I had PCOS to begin with. I have always been really slender and I have good skin (thank goodness!) so I do not fit the profile of someone with a major hormonal disturbance. I just had the hair shedding problem and a slight heart arrhythmia from drinking too much coffee, so that may or may not have anything to do with hormone levels anyway.

Where I’m at now is: I eat a mostly raw food diet and don’t drink coffee for the heart murmer, just green and black tea which is much milder. I’ve read that a mostly raw food can help almost any body imbalance, so I practice this but I do not eat raw vegan per say—-I also consume some cooked animal protein and raw dairy. The result is that I feel much happier, healthier, and far less depressed than I used to, and I do shed less, but I still do not have glorious head of hair I once had. I just began to use a sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) free shampoo to see if that works, but no major difference yet. I tried taking saw palmetto but that made me dizzy. This ’hair quest’ is all very time consuming, and I go in and out of reading about it—I just came across this site. What I’d really like is to move on—with a full head of hair! I just want a long reasonably thick braid down my back of my natural, God-given hair. I’m hoping that isn’t too much too ask! I will keep everyone posted on my progress. Some things I’d like to do is: visit a dermatologist once and for all, just to see if my hair pull is normal if I have time (but I do NOT want to take Rogaine!) finish getting my blood work done, (but I DO NOT want to take birth control) continue with my mostly raw food diet, continue to drink less caffeine, continue to be happy and productive in other ways in my life (this is the first time I’ve blogged about my hair journey!) continue to exercise and keep a positive attitude that my hair will become thicker again! I’ll post again in about four months and let you all know how I’m doing!

Hi,
I just turned 40 and noticed my hair shedding every where. I just wonder if hormome changes can do this to hair?

I think my iron supplement has definately helped me. I use a prescription form which doesn’t have the intestinal side effects of the over the counter iron. I am not sure what my actual current number is. My doctor regulates it, and either says it is fine or on the low side. She orininally had me taking it 3 times a day, but has now cut me down to once. I think I will check on the actual number to see if it is just on the low side of normal or high. Right now I am going through a terrible shed. I had my second child 4 months ago. I lost most of my hair after the birth of my first child. Starting around 3 months. I had to wear a wig for over a year. I was told at that time that I was anemic. I took iron throughout my last pregnancy and was hoping I would not lose my hair again since I was on the supplement. I have been shedding for one month now, but am still hopeful that it won’t be as bad as last time. You can see my scalp at this time, but I am good with styling my hair so hopefully most people don’t notice. I went ahead and ordered a wig since my sister is getting married in Sept. and I don’t know if my hair will have stabilized by that point or not. I also have female pattern balding which is unrelated to my current shed. The little hair I have on the sides of my head does not grow past about 2 1/2″ . I wondered if Rogaine would increase the growing cycle of these hairs or not. I am really tempted to try it, but I am undecided if I want a third child or not and don’t think I would chance taking Rogaine durning a pregnancy. Has anyone taken Rogaine and then stopped to have a child and then come back on? Also, I was wondering if there could be a connection between hairloss and Chron’s disease which I was diagnosed with about 7 years ago. I have to undergo colonoscopies about every other year. I have wondered if the anethesia they use could contribute to hairloss. I am suppose to have another one soon, but have been putting it off. I have found reading other women’s stories so helpful. I think women’s hairloss is not treated as seriously by the medical community as it should be.

Hi All,

I am 36 and had great hair for the first 30. My hair started falling out and I think I lost half of it by the time I really took it seriously. I ended up having problems with low thyroid. The TSH was in the normal range, but most doctors don’t know that anything above 2 is hypothyroid. For me, taking thyroid medication is what is finally making a difference. It took 5 months to notice a change for the better. Be careful with what the doctors tell you about your thyroid levels. Most are out of date on this. Even a small change in thyroid function can have devastating effects. Aim to have your TSH in the 1-2 range and you’ll start seeing the difference. My story is very much like all of yours, but I think I found the answer. I hope I found it for some of you also. Good luck ladies!
Rita

Jackie–That is great advice and i totally agree…in my case, I overdid the healthy thing, to the point that I think it wreaked havoc on my body, and has expressed itself in the form of hairloss. I was a vegetarian, iron deficient, and running long distances pretty much everyday, plus really stressed out at work…so, I am still being healthy, but not overdoing it.
How long did it take for your body to adjust to your lifestyle changes?? It hasn’t been very long for me since giving my body a break and taking iron supps (2 months…)
Thanks for any info
BETH

Hey Jeni,
Reading your story it was as if i had written it. I also had very thick curly hair. As i kept going to doctors and researching i also reached the conclusion that among others the main reason is seborroic dermatitis. The disease goes in cycles, it gets worse with change in climate, water(as for example when u moved), and seasons. My hair condition gets better when i go home and worsens when i get back to Germany where the water and climate and food is different. As i kept reading and talking to my dermatologist also your digestion had a lot to do with it. It seems that my body dosnt process food very well. Drinking a glass of fresh carrot juice every day, i think it helped. Using anti inflammatory cream regularly also helps. I also had lower iron levels and even though my thyroid was fine, the level of hormone wasnt right. Just today i read that diffuse hair loss was also associated to inflammatory bowling disease and hemorrhoids, so i will have to get checked for that as well :). So all this problems that i have combined, i also am surprised i have any hair left :).

Hi Everyone,
I am reading all these posts and breaks my heart to know so many other people have been through the depressing hell I have been through over hair. I started shedding a ton of hair when I was in an abusive marriage and had a complete emotional collapse with a lot of depression and anxiety. My hair fell out all over the place and clogged the drains for almost a year. Then that slowed down and some started growing back. Then, my scalp started burning when I left my husband…two years later we are now divorced, but it is very bitter. I am no longer depressed, but have a lot of stress/anxiety over finances, a crazy ex, all of it. I hear the burning scalp is from stress and it has been on and off (mostly on) for 2 years now. For the last 2 years, my hair no longer falls out in handfulls, it comes out more slowly, but doesn’t regrow! THAT is the bigger problem. So, I have almost no hair left…literally….and will begin wig shopping soon. The hair that IS growing back is wierd…some of it very thick and wirey…like kinked but not curly! NOT normal for me! And all the new hairs fall out very quickly…most have a tapered tip indicating they are fairly new hairs that have never been long enough to have even been cut…and my hair is very short now (had long hair my whole life before this and I am in my late 30’s). I don’t know if stress causes THAT but just have no other explanation. Tired of this. I tried the Rogaine, not much help so stopped. I remember that when I saw my hair growing back a couple years ago, I had was about 3 months into an exercise program. I stopped and so did my hair regrowth. I hear that working out is really good for stress. So, that is my plan of attack now. De-stressing. I have ordered guided meditation CD’s for relaxation, I am going to TRY to afford a massage every two weeks and I am going to work out regularly. Also hoping to find a job soon to ease financial stress. My type of hair loss….slow but no regrowth….IS also form of stress enduced Telogen Effluvium. I also saw Dr. Strick at UCLA like many of you, he told me I definitely had TE, but from what I am reading, I am wondering if he is telling EVERYONE that! I wish I could make a hundred bucks to spend 5 minutes telling a person they are too stressed and have TE and he does it without doing a scalp biopsy or even looking into my hair. I am sure he is really good, I just hear over and over you all saying he told you you had TE and it will grow back eventually, and none of you seem to have had that happen…just like me. Sigh. Oh well. My iron is fine, my B12 is fine, I take Omega 3-6-9 every day, I don’t have lupus or PCOS, my thyroid is fine. I don’t take anti-depressants, BCP’s or any meds at all so THAT is not causing it. I have been to endocrinologists, dermatologists, psychologists…for 4 years! Now, I am going to hit the gym and see what happens! I pray God blesses ALL of you in the New Year and new decade! My prayer is that the hair will regrow for ALL of us here and that this can all be just a bad memory. Until then, we will cope, de-stress, and find a way to be happy despite it all. Much love and compassion for you all. XOXO