| Jeni runs a great blog on beauty and skincare called “Savvy Skin” and has contributed several comments on The Women’s Hair Loss Project. Now she is sharing her story. Here it is: |
I’m 28, and I used to have really thick curly hair up until recently, and now I have probably half as much hair as before. I first started noticing that my part was really thinning back in September and I freaked out. After doing research, I first assumed that it was from the pill (ortho tri-cyclen) and I stopped taking it shortly after. I had been off and on it for over 10 years, but never really noticed any hair thinning before, or even the few times I went off it. I always lose a ton of hair (people always comment about my hair falling out all over the place), and I guess my hair has decreased over the years, but I never saw any baldness before Sept. My dad’s hair is thin on top, and my mom’s hair is thin now (but she has diabetes, is hypothyroid, takes a lot of medications, and eats terribly, so I don’t know if hers is AGA).
I first went to a dermatologist who said it could be AGA but couldn’t tell, and he just recommended Nizoral since he saw dandruff. Then I went to a general doctor who had no idea about anything, but she determined I was depressed, and suggested anti-depressants. I actually was really depressed (even before the hair loss), so I started taking anti-depressants, even though I was afraid it could make my hair worse. She claimed my hair loss was probably just because I was depressed and that it would grow back. I asked for all the various blood tests, and everything appeared normal. I started using Nioxin shampoo, Nizoral weekly, started taking a better multi-vitamin, attempted to eat better, including more iron and protein. For several months I‚ve also been taking Evening Primrose Oil, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Iron, & Flaxseed on my food.
Things not getting better, I saw Dermatologist Dr. Richard Strick at UCLA in Los Angeles because he supposedly specializes in hair loss. He looked at my scalp and said I definitely have TE (telogen effluvium) and that things should just get better eventually. He said I could use Rogaine to speed up the regrowth, or just wait it out. He seemed pretty sure of himself and didn’t suggest anything else. The cause of the TE remained elusive.
A few months had passed and it was time for a visit to the endocrinologist because now I was sure I had a low thyroid (despite the previous test coming out normal), because I still couldn’t determine the cause of my supposed TE. Both my parents are hypothyroid, and I have a lot of symptoms of low thyroid (low body temperature, high cholesterol, fatigue, depression, etc.), although I am actually pretty thin. The doctor did more tests, said my thyroid was normal, although on the low side, and said everything was fine and that I didn’t need to treat my thyroid with medication. Oh and my testosterone levels appeared normal, and he said I don’t have PCOS. My ferritin was around 40 I think, so against his advice (he said my iron was fine) I have been taking Slow FE iron pills ever since, and I think my ferritin has increased, but the other iron level decreased. He didn’t see anything wrong with my hair (but he himself is bald!) and also determined I was depressed and recommended anti-depressants! I actually do feel a lot better on the anti-depressants (Lexapro), and for a while knew I needed to get out of my funk, but it wasn‚t until this whole hair thing that I did anything about it.
Next I went to this place in Los Angeles called Regenix and there I got a free scalp analysis. I was sure they were going to just try to sell me on their products, but they did a pull test, and examined the hairs under a microscope, and then put this magnifying camera on my scalp to examine my hairs close up. The trichologist claims that he can help almost everyone that comes in, but not me!!! And that’s because he also said I don’t have AGA, and that my hair follicles are exactly how they should be. He was actually really helpful and very knowledgeable and reassuring. Whether or not any of this is legit is unknown to me, but just the visit alone was well worth it, and it made me want to study to be a trichologist as well!
Since Sept. my hair hasn’t really gotten much worse, but it hasn’t gotten better either. Lastly I went to yet another dermatologist because now that I’ve been off the pill for several months (I didn’t notice the dread shed from going off it), I have really bad acne, and went to get that dealt with. Good grief that‚s a whole other issue I’m trying to deal with now (I just bought this book, The Acne Cure and am trying that out)! That dermatologist said low iron can definitely cause TE, but he wasn’t real knowledgeable about hair loss otherwise.
Oh and this week I just bought Murad’s new hair loss shampoos and scalp treatment. Nioxin was ok, but I never felt like it cleaned my hair thoroughly. The final things that I’m wondering about as the cause to this are location and climate, and water! I think I’m grasping at straws. I moved to LA from San Francisco three years ago, and with all the pollution in the air here, I wonder if that is causing this, or at least exacerbating it. The water here smells like chlorine when I take a shower, and I can’t install a chlorine shower filter since my shower head doesn’t come off, but if I move I will definitely get one. Since moving here 3 years ago and leaving all my friends behind, and now working from home by myself, things are different, so I wonder if being depressed and isolated and having too much time on my hands to dwell on things is the answer to all this, or if its just the low iron, or who knows. I’m lazy and should exercise! My hair has yet to grow back since I can’t figure out the culprit. Maybe it is AGA. I know how painful this is, and I want to make it my mission in life to find a cure for AGA and chronic TE, and all hair loss!!!!
Update: I wrote this 4 story years ago, when I first really noticed my hair loss. My hair loss has not gotten worse since then, and when I look at pictures of myself then, it looks like it might even be slightly better. It seems to go in cycles, where sometimes I shed like crazy, and then it subsides, and starts all over again. After being off ortho tri-clycen for a year, I went on Yasmin bcp to help with my acne, and also because it seemed like it could actually help hair loss. I stopped taking Lexapro, the anti-depressant, because it was causing really bad leg cramps. I moved from Los Angeles to Las Vegas, and the water here is has hard and chlorinated as that in LA. I am not depressed anymore, and had tried to put hair loss out of my mind because thinking about it was extremely stressful, and I realized I wasn‚t going to go bald overnight, so I wanted to see if forgetting about hair loss could cure me.
I had tried Rogaine for several months, but I saw no results at all, and luckily I don’t think it really caused any excessive shedding. I stopped using it without incident. Recently I’ve started taking a pill for excrutiating jaw pain (TMJ) and it is an anti-depressant called Amitripline. It’s been great for my TMJ, but I worry about its potential hair loss side effects. I’ve been considering buying the Lasercomb, or getting a job at a place that does laser restoration to see if that treatment has any validity. It’s still a struggle for me to eat more meat (to increase my iron and protein). Overall, despite losing half my hair, I feel lucky because it could be a lot worse (since I had thick hair to start with), and it’s only when I feel like my hair is shedding and thinning like crazy that I get motivated to try to find a cure. Luckily all of my skin care research has helped me cure my acne, and I started a website about skin care, and what I‚ve found actually works to achieve good skin. http://www.savvyskin.com
————————————————————————————————————-
Thanks for sending me your story Jeni! I encourage other women to also share their story, it feels good to put your story out there and have it be read by other women (you can read my story here) who are experiencing the same thing. We can all learn a lot from each other, it so much more than just finding treatments that work, we can learn how to be strong, how others have dealt with their hair loss situation and hopefully become better for it. If you want to email you story, send it to: women@womenshairlossproject.com
October 14th, 2007 at 4:16 pm
jen i just read your story. it sound s familiar?????so di you ever find anything that works for your hair loss? did you ever get diagnose with a condition?jsut curious? they cnat tell me exactly why im loosing my hair either? some think one thing and others think another, its like a vicicous circle really? i sussspect TE but i can be wrong since im no doctor? let me know if you’ve found anything that works????
good luck!
gyspy
October 14th, 2007 at 4:35 pm
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.
October 16th, 2007 at 4:49 pm
Hi Jeni - Thank YOU for sharing your story. It’s great to hear that your hair loss hasn’t progressed for the last 4 years and is stable. After dealing with hair loss for so long I just want the shedding to stop and to just maintain what I have, to know at least I’ll have this…soemthing. The constant hair loss shedding makes me feel so vulnerable, not knowing if there is an end in sight, or if that end will be me with absolutely no hair.
When I first started to lose my hair 8 years ago I hoped and prayed it would ALL come back, I’m over that, I don’t expect it will ever return I just want to be able to look like a girl with “naturally” thin hair. That I can live with.
I call that “hair loss maturity.” Over the many years I’ve had hair loss I’ve become a lot better at coping and adapting to my thinning hair. It still makes me miserable, but I just deal with it better than I did back then even though I had MORE hair back when it all started. With that hair loss maturity I no longer have those early thoughts of “if all my hair doesn’t grow back how can I live.” I’ll live just fine, I don’t have that hair greed anymore. I just want to have enough hair to be able to style and look normal, without bald spots and bald streaks and parts popping out all over the place. Just enough thats all.
~Y
November 4th, 2007 at 3:14 am
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.
November 6th, 2007 at 7:46 am
Wow Jeni even though we have different situations I really feel I can relate to your hair loss story. I too was diagnosed with depression/anxiety before any of this has happened. I have been off and on anti depressants since I was 15 (Zoloft, Effexor rx) and I just turned 27. Currently I am on Wellburton and I don’t like it. I may try Lexapro too.
Before I became pregnant my doctor told me my iron was on the low side but not to worry. She said I could take supplements if I wanted to but I never did.
I wonder if anyone has heard of the supposed “new range” in diagnosing thyroid problems. From what my doctor and most labs say it’s .5 to 5.0. I have been doing some research and some studies supposedly are showing that for you to feel normal and not have symptoms your thyroid should be in the .3 to 3.0 range. Mine was a 4.28 and I have many symptoms of a thyroid problem but they keep sayings its “normal”.
November 7th, 2007 at 7:21 pm
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.
November 8th, 2007 at 12:30 pm
Thanks for the feedback Jeni. I just made an appointment with a new doctor for my primary care. I actually had the clinic that I currently go to send me blood tests from March, July and Sept. for my tsh. My tsh in March was 2.10, July 2.48 and Sept. 4.28. I am not a doctor but to me that sounds like a pretty drastic jump.
Also I went to acupunture for the first time for stress etc. the other day. I highly recommend it. I felt great when I got out of there.
Whether my sitution is something temporary or perminant it made me realize alot about myself. It sounds crazy but I am seriously considering going back to school now to be come a nurse to help others in times of need. There are just to many nasty doctors out there.
Oh and all of you rock!!!!!!!!!
November 8th, 2007 at 9:10 pm
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
November 28th, 2007 at 7:38 pm
I have read your accounts and I can relate. At this point I have lost at least 60 - 65% of my hair. The front and the crown is the worst. It’s difficult to style it, but most people can’t tell how bad this condition is for me. I grew up always having a very thick, healthy, very long, glorious head of hair. That started to change drastically. When I was around 18, I started taking anti-depressants and took them for several years after that. Also, around that time I was diagnosed with severe food allergies and dust allergies (for which I had to take allergy shots for the dust allergy.) I eventually quit eating most of the food I was allergic to and also got off the anti depressants. My hair never returned to what it was, but it became thicker over a 2 or 3 year period, to where it became actually kind of beautiful again. That is until about 6 months ago. Now, I had been off anti-depressants until about a year ago. I started on Wellbutrin XL. I found out that it (and most anti depressants) can causes massive hair loss in a number of women and it will continue even months after stopping the meds. Well, I stopped taking the meds about a month or so ago. I was feeling really good and not depressed and I really still need to take medication for depression, but I can’t deal with any more hair loss. So I don’t know what to do about my depression, since I can’t take medications. It’s been extreme hair loss and horrendous, which makes me even more depressed. I just wanted to share with you ladies that I have found through my years of going to doctors and research and trial and error, that for me, this unexplained hair loss has been caused by two things: severe food allergies (like milk and eggs) and also anti-depressants. By the way–about food allergies, I found out that the body attacks the hair follicles, killing them, because it thinks the follicles are a foreign invader or toxic. Instead it is the food that a person is allergic to. That is why the hair never returns, the hair follicles are killed.
Good luck to all of you! I wish you the best. *Hugs*
December 3rd, 2007 at 7:33 pm
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.
January 23rd, 2008 at 3:33 pm
Anne is right on!!
I have had the most help from my holistic Doc!! I was told by several other docs to deal with the hair loss, it could be a lot worse!
I am taking a Thyroid support with iodine, primrose oil and a lot of other natural supplements. Things are slowly starting to get better for me. all my Throid tests show normal, but body temp is low. Love my Holistic doc! She just keeps researching to help the hair loss……never has she told me to just deal with it!!
January 24th, 2008 at 6:22 am
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
January 29th, 2008 at 12:23 pm
Hi Robin,
I would love to have the recipe for your hair tonic! I am always open to new things! By the way…would you mind giving your age? I am 49 and feel a lot of my problems are hormonal, just curious if you are experiencing some of the same things.
January 29th, 2008 at 7:15 pm
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
January 29th, 2008 at 7:26 pm
Anne,
I had to jump back on and say “YOU GO GIRL” the holistic doctors are the best approach… I say try this first, then go to the others. Holistic doctors arent all about prescriptions …. I admire you and Dito every thing you said! Love Robin
March 2nd, 2008 at 7:41 pm
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.
March 4th, 2008 at 12:13 pm
Spirit,
I have also been reading the research on ferritin levels and hair loss. I have actually read some reports that say that 70 is the minimum ferritin level for women trying to achieve regrowth, and heard from a trichologist that 125 would be optimum. The same trichologist also said that in the first 3-4 months of iron supplementation that it would not be unusual for your ferritin levels to drop even lower as your bone marrow begins to grab up all the newly available iron on your system. I think 6 months to a year was what he said it could take before you have a noticeable difference in your ferritin levels. I think that you should stick with the dosage that you are currently taking and give it a little more time. Getting from 18 to 40 in a few months is wonderful! You’re on the right path.
March 5th, 2008 at 10:08 am
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.
March 6th, 2008 at 8:38 am
Alice,
The first research article I ever read on ferritin levels and alopecia in women was in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology. Here is the link if you would like to take a look at it yourself.
http://www.nature.com/jid/journal/v121/n5/full/5602007a.html
I was impressed by how the researchers went about screening the study participants and generally how thorough they were in their investigation. The researchers found that women with AGA and TE have ferritin levels which fell “on the low side”, even though they were within “normal” levels. This article lead me to look even further for answers. Several articles later I noticed that many researchers were recommending 70 as the minimum for hair regrowth. Then I found an Australian trichologist who recommends higher levels. Here is his website.
http://www.hairlossclinic.com.au/
Check out the articles on his site. He gives great recommendations for length of treatment, etc. I would never hesitate to take copies of articles in to my physician to educate them along with myself. If you still aren’t getting the answers that you want, by all means get a second opinion!
I think it is wonderful that you are being proactive in preventing further hair loss! I ended up having to take a photo of myself in high school (my profile photo) in to my doc to get him to understand that this is NOT the hair that I was born with.
Blessings
March 27th, 2008 at 12:00 pm
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!
April 12th, 2008 at 12:22 pm
hi ive been loosing my hair for 19months now. about four months ago i went to see a derm and i had a biopsy done the results say that i have consistant telogen effluvium. does that mean chronic te? well my hair is still falling very weak and easly blucked. i uesed to have a head full of hair and now i barely have hair left. i cant straightened my hair like i used to cause it’s so very thin. iam so depressed about this iam very scared of going bald, im not far from it at all. ive been using rogaine for five months now but no results my derm also percribed me shampoo with steroids but no help. is there anyone who suffured from te and grow their hair back??
June 16th, 2008 at 3:03 pm
Hi,
I just turned 40 and noticed my hair shedding every where. I just wonder if hormome changes can do this to hair?
June 23rd, 2008 at 2:51 am
hello, it helps to read other womens stories, as it is consuming and tiring, watching hair fall out, noticing my scalp showing through, feeling rain hit directly onto my scalp,picking hairs off my arms all day…….and people will say, “your hair looks ok “, or “if you were really losing hair you would be bald by now ”
I have had hairloss for nearly 4 years, and i do think about it all day, but i try not to.
not knowing what is causing it is what causes most stress, and i do believe stress adds to the spiral of not recovering.
i have not tried anything topical as i firmly believe what needs balancing is something internal.(apart from natural herb shampoos )
i do believe docs in the field do cash in on our emotional states.
but , there is some good advice, Dr Kingsley first made me aware of ferritin levels, and it should be 70.
dr tony pearce in australia (i did an online consult)does very detailed blood work (even though he found nothing with mine), made me aware of copper levels.
i really want to learn more about adrenal fatigue.
so , do we just deal with it, thank God for everyday we still have hair, and thank God for what we are learning through this .
I try to.
It is supportive, for us to read eachothers stories, i know that.
from miriam
July 23rd, 2008 at 1:29 pm
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.