August 2008

An Inventive Way To Comb Your Hair

by Y on August 29, 2008

I am just about to head out the door, but I wanted to make a quick post about my exciting new way to comb my hair. I’m always looking for new ways to avoid having to constantly be smacked in the face with the fact that I’m losing my hair every time I comb my hair after a shower. It is pure torture to just stand there and watch the hair fall like strands of spaghetti from my head. The darn hair is gonna fall whether I look at it or not, and when I’m going through a heightened shedding period I’d really prefer not to watch. I need CONTROL. I’ve done the “blind comb” where I’d sit on the bed with a towel around me and comb my  hair without a mirror, then I’d pick up the towel (not looking of course) and take it outside…shake shake shake.. and I’m all done! No hair loss. Crazy huh? Okay it gets even crazier.

I’m so frustrated with the fact that I’m still going through these shedding periods and I truly don’t have a lot left to lose. So about 20 minutes ago I was standing comb in hand, wet hair, and staring at the sink. It was like a duel out of an old western movie. I glanced at the toilet, I glanced at the sink and back to the toilet. The hair is gonna end up in the toilet anyways so why don’t I just shorten the trip! I squatted around the toilet and comb my hair, the hairs fell right in and I flushed them away. I don’t know if I lost one hair or 200 hairs!  Oh sweet harmony that felt good! I mean seriously, really liberating.

What makes dealing with hair loss so hard is the lack of control, the feeling of the inability to do anything to make those hairs stop falling out. The helplessness. These little things give me back control. And instead of watching my hair fall out of my head, a feel a sense of relief and I go out and enjoy myself at the movies. Whatever helps you get through the day. 🙂

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I’m 19 Years Old and Have Suffered Major Hair Loss and Thinning – Linda’s Story

by Y on August 28, 2008

Hi, I’m a 19 year old girl who has suffered major hair thinning. I’ve just discovered about this community/project a few days ago. Uptil now, this seems to be probably the most resourceful place I’ve seen.

I’ve been pretty desperate for answers.

As a child, my hair was extremely thick. However, as I grew up, my hair become progressively thinner. Two years go, I went on an unhealthy diet and I started to really notice that my hair was extremely thin (also, my hair was falling out like crazy). I thought that it was due to the fact that I didn’t get enough vitamins, so I started to eat healthily again. Unfortunately or maybe fortunately, my hair only stopped shedding like crazy, but no new hair grew back to replace those I lost.

It has been 2 years, and my hair is still quite thin. Most people can’t see it, but I definitely can – especially when my hair is greasy or when I tie it in a ponytail (you can see my scalp very clearly).

I’ve read as much as I could on women hair loss, and nothing seems to really fit my symptoms. I took a blood test and it showed that my levels were perfectly fine.

After reading as much as I could, there were really only 2 diseases that sort of fit my simptoms.

1. Hypothyroidism – my mother has that
2. Androgenetic alopecia – my hair is thin all over my head and my hairline is not receeding.

However, the only thing that doesn’t seem to quite “fit” is the falling of my hair. My hair does not seem thinner than it was 2 years ago. I do not lose an excessive amount of hair (contrary to the many testimonies I’ve read). When I comb my hair after a shower, I would loose maybe 5-10 strands. In some ways, my hair loss seems proportionnal to the amount of hair I have.

I often get depressed because of the state of my hair – especially when I see my friends with thick hair and get to choose different styles of haircuts while I’m stuck to one. I can’t confirm with 100% certainty that my situation hasn’t worsen. From what I can see, it seems to have stabilized. But sometimes, when I look at old pictures, I start believing that it did in fact get worse. Afterwards, I panick and can’t sleep at night.

Questions:
Does androgenetic alopecia have different “levels” of hair loss? I haven’t taken any medication to help, but I know for sure that I do not lose a crazy amount of hair. However, I am also certain that this is certainly not normal for a teenage girl to have so little hair (I now have less than 50% of the hair I used to have as a child, and from the top of my head, my scalp is pretty visible). From what I can see, I do, in fact, have new hair that grow, but not many.

I am so desperate for answers. Although you may not have any precise answers for me, I’d greatly appreciate your point of view on my situation.

Thank you,
Linda

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Dear Linda,

Thanks for writing me and I’m sorry to hear that you are struggling with this. First things first, stop.. take a deep breath, let it all out and take a moment to reflect on how lucky you are that your hair loss has stabilized for the past two years. Losing 5 -10 hairs after a shower is remarkable, you’ll be the envy of all my readers 🙂

Having said that, I do understand your concerns and pain in having to deal with less hair than you had before. I must state upfront that I am not a physician and cannot provide medical information or diagnosis, anything I write is really just my opinion and knowledge gained from living with hair loss myself for the past 9 years (yikes that sounds like a lot). With that disclaimer out of the way I can continue on. [click to continue…]

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Hair Envy – A Female Hair Loss Nightmare

by Y on August 12, 2008

So I just read a story on The Bald Truth website that sparked a touchy nerve for myself. The guy wrote he had “hair envy.” Oh my, how I can very much relate. I find I’ve lost countless seconds, minutes and hours of my life lusting after other women’s hair. If I ever witness a crime, I won’t be able to offer much other than a complete description of every hair follicle, of each woman who was in the room. Color, length, density, soft, dry… whatever, you name and I’ve taken note of it.

I am frequently absent from conversations of the company I am around because I’m too busy having wandering eyes for women’s hair. In the past it wasn’t uncommon for an entire day to be ruined because I saw what appeared to be a 90 year old woman with crazy, rich, silver, thick hair that could surely land her smack right in the middle of a Pantene commercial. How unfair! I started losing my hair at 21 and she STILL has ALL her hair. But as my mom always used to say “Life isn’t fair.” How true. Nine years of hair loss has shown me how unfair life can be to people, and I am talking about more than hair. Mental note to self… I got a raw deal, no two ways about it, no one should ever lose their hair at 21 or 30 or 40 for that matter. But, be thankful that I have my health, a wonderful partner, a great family and a pretty darn good life aside from this “hair thing.”

I never appreciated my thick hair when I had it, I wish I had. Everything we have can technically be “on loan” so we have to try so hard, even on those days when the shedding has us scraping the floor, to appreciate what we have today. I am reminded of the song “Everybody’s Free” by Baz Luhrmann. In the song he says, “Don’t worry about the future. Or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind, the kind that blindside you at 4 p.m. on some idle Tuesday.” and then he goes on to say “Do one thing every day that scares you.” and I’m thinking, uh I DO.. I SHOWER and COMB what’s left of my hair. 🙂

Just for kicks, here is the video of the song “Everybody’s Free!”

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Thyroid Hair Loss Success Story

by Y on August 11, 2008

This Story was sent in by Angel, you can visit her profile page on the network here.

Hi. I wanted to share my story. It may help someone else. I had my fourth child in April 2007. I had a major hair fall after stopping breastfeeding. At some point after that it really started thinning, but I guess I really didn’t notice until my mother made mention of it. I started back on Desogen (low androgenic) pill for about 3 months and my hair fall was normal. I then had decided I no longer wanted to use synthetic hormones and stopped. After that, my hair starting falling out in droves. I went to an internist to have my thyroid checked. I was told that all my labwork was normal. I would just find myself in tears some days b/c it just wouldn’t stop. One day, I was speaking with a friend of mine who has been a raw food dieter for about 10 years. She had been having some problems with her skin and told me that she had been seeing a natural pharmacist. I made an appointment to see him one day (I also am a pharmacist). I went with my labwork and about 5 days worth of taking my oral temperature (regular thermometer) which averaged 97.4 degrees—optimal 98.8-99.2. My thyroid panel that my internist ran was only a TSH level and a total T4. He gave me a list of labs to have done at my second doctor’s office (my ob/gyn), which included Vitamin D, B12, DHEA-S, Free T3 and Free T4. The pharmacist that day muscle tested me (sounds crazy, but it works!) and put me on a couple of supplements like Vit D, Iodine/Iodide and a couple of things for adrenals. His gut feeling was, even though my TSH was normal, my temperature was too low and for some reason my thyroid was not being utilized appropriately. (I also complained of fatigue and low libido). [click to continue…]

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