Hair regrowth with use of minoxidil (generic Rogaine) after trichotillomania damage?

[PixxieStix]

Well I've been away for a while, but I have carried on with my hair growth journey. There have been some bumps along the way, especially with being a trichotillomaniac, and while it is *mostly* under control, the last year had a few stretches of slip ups and discouragements, but I am now in a place to give myself some extra love and have my hair pulling under control again, and have decided after some research that I'd like to try minoxidil topical solution to see if I can't get some of the canopy hair to grow back. I haven't really been able to find any information on whether or not previous trichotillomanics have had any success in re-growing hair with this, but figured worst case scenario it doesn't work, best case scenario it helps!

My plan is to give it a full 12 months to see if there are any results, which I will document monthly in this thread for anyone else interested to see the progression (or lack thereof). If this does not help, I will be looking in to surgical alternatives to see if I am a candidate for hair transplants to thicken up the top, because while my hair is still thick (3.8inch cirumfurence on average), the top is not and I am quite limited as to the hair styles I can sport without showing off bald patches.

A little more background for those interested: I am 27 years old and have been pulling my hair out by the roots at the crown of my head since the age of 9, as well as eyelashes, eyebrow hairs, leg hair with tweezers, and even the hair 'down there'. Thankfully, I am lucky in that I don't eat it or anything, and my 'ritual' is quite simple in that I pluck the hair, remove the root at the end, and discard (head hair only, everything else just gets discarded immediately). It's still hard to keep the urge under control most days, but I learned a long time ago that self acceptance and forgiveness is key, and to never, never give up. I have a full set of eyelashes for the first time since 2006, which is a huge success, stopped pulling out my eyebrows about a year ago (still thin and sparse but I'll be looking in to ways to try and get those to grow back as well a little later), and found that just not shaving my legs eliminated the urge to pull any of those out, and while getting used to the strange looks for rocking short shorts and wedges in public took some getting used to, I am now perfectly comfortable with it.

While I will need to post a crown shot of the top of my head later this week, first I thought I'd share how far I've come since joining this lovely community!

http://i494.photobucket.com/albums/rr307/sakoria/My%20Hair%20Journey/Startinghairgrowth.jpg

http://i494.photobucket.com/albums/rr307/sakoria/My%20Hair%20Journey/comparison2012and2014_zps8d7a3595.jpg

My hair is currently a bit past waist, and looking through my photos it seems I really need a new length shot! I'll have to recruit my hubby's help later this week for that and the scalp shot since I can't get a decent one by myself.

So thanks for letting me share my update, and please, if anyone has any experience with getting their hair to fill in after overcoming trichotillomania (with or without the use of minoxidil), please feel free to share your thoughts and journey here!

[Larki]

I also struggle with trich - only head hair, since I was ten years old. At its worst, my part had widened to an inch wide and it took years to get the regrowth normal-looking. It's much better now in comparison to then, but I wish there was some kind of button I could press to just make it stop. It's horrible, it's like you can't control what your own hands are doing. You just look down and see the pile of hair on the floor and feel awful.

[Not Lynn Merely]

*snip*...eyebrows about a year ago (still thin and sparse but I'll be looking in to ways to try and get those to grow back as well a little later)...*snip*

I have no personal experience with trichotillomania, but perhaps I can offer suggestions for your eyebrows? You may have already heard this, being a long-time LHCer, but pure castor oil applied to your eyebrows every night (and along your eyelash line, too, if need be) may help you get your eyebrow hairs growing strong. You said you would put it off, but the castor oil thing would be cheap and easy to do now. If it would not cause you trouble, massage may help, too.

[PixxieStix]

I've used castor oil on my eyebrows before, with some slight success, and then I stopped and they went back to thin again. You are right though NotLynnMerely, I should start again until I figure out if it works well when done consistently or if I'll need some kind of serum. :)

[chrissy-b]

I haven't used minoxidil but I too have trich and have had success with using monistat. It's the best thing I've found for regrowth (without resorting to minoxidil). Not only does it help grow my hair faster and fill in thin spots, it also helps with the itchies. I've also had good luck with pure aloe vera with lavender essential oil. It cools the hot spots and any sores you might have. Not sure if it helps tremendously with growth but it certainly helps when I feel like pulling and lavender is great for healing the scalp.

I would be hesitant to use minoxidil because if it does work, you have to keep using it... forever. I'd exhaust all other options before going there. Although I've had good luck with oils as far as growth is concerned, it makes my pulling worse. If you don't have that problem, I would recommend Cocoveda from HennaSooq. It's amazing for growth. And castor oil does pretty amazing things for thickness. If it helped your eyebrows, it'll most likely help your scalp as well.

I've been pulling for over 30 years and when I can manage about 6 months pull-free I get full regrowth. I'm only mentioning this because I don't know how long you've been pull-free and I don't want you to think your hair won't grow back. Sometimes it takes a lot longer for the follicles to heal but there are very few people that I know with trich that haven't had full regrowth once they stop pulling. You're already through the hardest part!

I'm about to try He Shou Wu (Fo-ti) since I can't use oils on my scalp anymore. I read that it is proven to help sprout hairs in damaged follicles. I've been going through a pretty rough patch lately and want to hurry my growth up and monistat long-term gets pretty pricey. I just ordered it and I can check back after a couple of months to update on my progress if you're interested. And congrats on getting your pulling under control. I know how hard that is. You should be really proud of yourself! :flower:

[diddiedaisy]

I'm a former sufferer. However, after a large bald patch appeared on my crown when I was a teen, I stopped pulling it out at the roots and would snap the ends off instead after making a little knot. I would then keep the snapped off knot to play with. It kept my hands off my hair temporarily. I did this for about 25 years. I've been on the wagon for about 5 ish years now. The urge still comes back when I'm stressed but I can control it now.

I think you see how it grows back with good nutrition first, maybe with some msm thrown in. It has worked wonders for my shedding. These things take time though and patience is required.

Your hair looks great on the pics by the way, and you have a great pony circumference. Good luck with staying on the wagon.

[Gertrude]

know nothing about trichotillomania, but it must be so hard. On the minoxidil side if your hair roots are permanently damaged after the pulling minoxidil doesn't do anything. But it can stimulate hair regrowth, and you wouldn't need to keep on using it if the thinning is not due to female pattern baldness.

I don't have shares in it, and it's a real drug with real side effects and hard on scalp skin , but I used minoxidil on my eyebrows after my dermatologist suggested it. Not trich, just years of over epilating. I didn't think anything would regrow, and certainly the majority of my eyebrow follicle roots are kaput, but I did get regrowth. Since stopped it , no falling out.

I would think just natural regrowth and gentle hair care will see you through without minoxidil. No doctor and don't play one on TV.

[McFearless]

Gertrude, Did you experience any side effects from using minoxidil?

[fiðrildi]

First of all, congratulations for overcoming trich! :flowers:
I am a former sufferer too, and I had a very similar ritual than you, so I know how difficult it is :flower:
I have never used minoxidil, so I can't help you on that.

Your hair is so beautiful!! It looks so thick, so I wonder how much thicker it will be after all of the hairs have grown again... :magic:
I'm still growing out the previous damage, and I have some locks of hair that are growing at the crown. They like to stick out and behave frizzy, so it must look funny from the back! :p
I just let them grow, I've got patience, so I had never thought about the possibility of taking that treatment. Hopefully someone can answer to your questions :)

[purplevickie]

Hi, I'm a newbie here and am fascinated to read this thread, as I too am growing out trichotillomania damage. @PixxieStix your lovely long hair gives me hope! I pulled for 20+ years, from age about 11 to 32, with just a couple of no-pull breaks of a few months in my early 20s. I had cognitive behavioural therapy all last year (2013) and when it finished in February this year I just stopped pulling. I still have the urge to pull and I do play with my hair a lot, but it's completely controllable, which is a huge relief.

I'm loving these forums as a nice place to lurk and find out new ways to look after my hair and make it look its best while it grows back in. I had it chopped to just above shoulder length in June and it's now somewhere between shoulder and APL, but the short re-growth is only about ear-length so ages to go before it evens up. I used to have BSL hair for a brief time in 2008/10 when the pulling was much less, but it was quite thin and I didn't really know what to do with it so it got chopped. I bitterly regret this now, of course!

[Gertrude]

Gertrude, Did you experience any side effects from using minoxidil?


Other than localised stinging I had no side effects. I did put vaseline underneath my eyebrows and dabbed the minoxidil on very carefully with a cotton bud. So I used very little of what would be a normal dose. I have low blood pressure issues and they weren't affected by this small local application at all.

It did work. For me, just a data point. Castor oil has no effect whatsoever for me.

[purplevickie]

I also struggle with trich - only head hair, since I was ten years old. At its worst, my part had widened to an inch wide and it took years to get the regrowth normal-looking. It's much better now in comparison to then, but I wish there was some kind of button I could press to just make it stop. It's horrible, it's like you can't control what your own hands are doing. You just look down and see the pile of hair on the floor and feel awful.

Larki, did you find your regrowth was a different texture to your normal hair? And do you remember roughly how long it took to grow normally again?

I'm expecting mine to take a good long while as the follicles must be so damaged... but am worried it might take the full seven years or so to fully replace my head of hair! That said though, I am already starting to notice that some regrowing hairs seem softer and less damaged in the last inch or so than in the lengths, so perhaps it won't take so long.

[McFearless]

Other than localised stinging I had no side effects. I did put vaseline underneath my eyebrows and dabbed the minoxidil on very carefully with a cotton bud. So I used very little of what would be a normal dose. I have low blood pressure issues and they weren't affected by this small local application at all.

It did work. For me, just a data point. Castor oil has no effect whatsoever for me.

Thank you!