Bad Hair Loss - would really appreciate your help.

[JJCH]

Hello,


I'm Rosie, aged 29, and I've been suffering with hair loss for around the last five years and feel I've been down every avenue, so would really appreciate if anyone could offer any advice as to my situation. I came across this forum recently so set up an account to post this, I shall try my best to make sense and include any and all info I can think of!

My hair loss started with just a little loss in volume but now I'm seeing my scalp, mainly on the front/top and sides of my head - I would say I've lost around 2/3 to 3/4 of my hair over the years - I started off with thick, half-asian kind of hair.

My mother experienced some hair loss but after menopause, and my grandmothers and aunts all have thick thick heads of hair.

I've been to see doctors several times about this, and had a number of blood tests done - things like thyroid, zinc came back all ok, my ferritin levels are around 50 and I'm deficient in Vit D so I've been prescribed those (1000IU a day). Drs have examined my scalp too for anything skin related and said everythings fine.

My life is pretty stressful, as I basically care for both of my parents (my father has Parkinsons disease and dementia) - I obviously make the best efforts to keep my stress levels as low as possible and I understand it can be a cause for hair loss but the stressors in my life aren't going to be diminishing anytime soon so unless theres anything medically/chemically that i can do?

I'd say my diet is good - I eat a lot of fruits and vegetables, drink quite a lot of water, I'm not vegetarian or vegan so I'd say my protein levels are decent too (I know that's all subjective so any advice here would be great!). I'm careful with my hair too and it's maintenance - it's not dyed, I don't tend to use any heat, use a sulphate free shampoo, a Wet Brush, brush gently, use silk hair ties etc.

Sorry for this post being quite so long but it's really starting to affect my mental health and I would be grateful for any comments or help. Many thanks in advance.

[Ylva]

Have you had your hormones checked? PCOS was something that came to mind. You mention that you eat a lot of fruit - that's a lot of sugar that's going to make PCOS worse if that is it.

[JJCH]

Have you had your hormones checked? PCOS was something that came to mind. You mention that you eat a lot of fruit - that's a lot of sugar that's going to make PCOS worse if that is it.

Hi thanks for replying - I forgot to say I have had my hormones checked because I thought it could be PCOS too, but apparently that was all normal. I also tend to eat lower sugar fruits like watermelon and berries. Thanks.

[MusicalSpoons]

Hmm, vitamin D deficiency is going to take a long time to correct at just 1000IU a day. That's kind of maintenance level unless you're out in the sun all day every day in a sunny country. I don't know enough to make any specific recommendations but I suggest you do some research yourself then you can make decisions you're comfortable with.

Edit: I should be more specific. It might be enough to drag you out of deficient, across the threshold to 'the bottom of what's apparently normal', but all that means is your body has just enough to function, not any to spare for non-essential stuff like hair. 'Not deficient' is by no means the same as 'optimal levels' or 'abundant'. Your body needs enough to correct the deficit AND have some left over to actually use, if that makes any sense.

[JJCH]

Thank you for commenting, yes that makes perfect sense. A doctor I've seen said something similar for iron, in that even thought I'm in the 'normal' range, she'd like to see my ferritin between 70-100 for healthy hair.

Is vitd deficiency a common cause of hair loss on it's own? Thank you.

[MusicalSpoons]

Thank you for commenting, yes that makes perfect sense. A doctor I've seen said something similar for iron, in that even thought I'm in the 'normal' range, she'd like to see my ferritin between 70-100 for healthy hair.

Is vitd deficiency a common cause of hair loss on it's own? Thank you.

Yep, definitely - and combined with suboptimal ferritin, that's two things right there you can do to give your hair the best chance :) and hopefully being able to work on Vitamin D and iron/ferritin levels might make you feel a bit better mentally as well, knowing they're something you can do to try to help it (as well as hopefully feeling better physically from the increased levels).

And, forgot to say in my first reply, but welcome :flower: I'm sorry you found us under less-than-ideal circumstances but I hope you find lots of good advice here :)

[lapushka]

Welcome.

I have to say my dad was deficient in vit. D and started to have some hair loss up top (very mild, he has a decent head of hair), but it's a lot better now. He has these ampules he needs to take every couple weeks. So yes, it can definitely do that. But consult with your doctor, you also don't want to be taking too much!

[Suortuva]

Welcome!

Maybe you will enjoy this thread:

https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=134545&highlight=Shed

[Kalamazoo]

Hello & howdy! Welcome to LHC! :waving:

As an emergency stop-gap measure, when I have felt like my scalp was showing through too much, I have used Caboki powder. It's a plant fiber mixed with mineral oxides. It adheres to the hair (I want to say "magnetically", but that's not quite the right word...) and really does a great job of making the scalp appear covered, instantly.

As you read through this website, you'll find many, many things that people do, both to preserve the hair they've got, and also to grow new hair. Everybody's different, so some things will work for you, & some won't. Eventually, you'll build up your own routine of a combination of things that are compatible with your chemical make-up, schedule, lifestyle, scent preferences, hair type(s), etc.

Example: A lot of folks recommend sleeping wearing a satin bonnet, but I can't get it to stay on my head; so using a satin pillowcase, other satin bedding, & wearing a satin nightgown work much better for me. (Wearing a cotton undershirt beneath the satin pj's is good for avoiding getting overly hot & sweaty.)

Last year, I described my hair growth regimen: https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=150332&page=4 You will notice that I'm doing MANY different things! Sometimes, it works better than others; but now that the weather's getting hot & humid, I think I might be getting another growth spurt. (After my last growth spurt, my hair appeared not to grow at all for a while. I need many things synchronized to make any progress at all.)

It's tricky, getting all those ducks to all start quacking in the same direction, simultaneously!

Patience is key. Be grateful for what you've got. It could always be worse.

It's also worthwhile to look through the LHC Hairstyle Thesaurus, watch the YouTube videos for directions, & try out new 'do's. You might feel better about your hair if you just arrange it differently. https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=145554

[bparnell75]

I second the use of Cabooki. I use it almost every day as the hair over my ears is very thin. As for growing it back ??????? I do use biotin though it seems to help my nails more than my hair. If it is not genetic and your die is good it should grow back. My daughter sheds terribly with stress and the it grows back.

[truepeacenik]

I’ve nothing yet to add, but my empathy for helping with your father. We just lost my dad to Parkinson’s.

[lapushka]

I’ve nothing yet to add, but my empathy for helping with your father. We just lost my dad to Parkinson’s.

I'm so sorry, truepeacenik! My sincere condolences.

[ladycaladium]

There are a bunch of things that can cause it...I have hair issues due to deficiencies, autoimmune, and chronic illness.

Any deficiencies you are treating (I believe vit. D was mentioned) can take months till you start to see a difference in your hair. Also, some people do better at the higher end of the range than the lower.

As far as protein goes, although a protein deficiency is rare, they do happen even if you aren't vegetarian (yeah, one of my fun deficiencies/health issues is a protein deficiency).

If you had your thyroid checked, did they check just the TSH levels, or also the t3 and t4 levels and the antibodies?

[JJCH]

There are a bunch of things that can cause it...I have hair issues due to deficiencies, autoimmune, and chronic illness.

Any deficiencies you are treating (I believe vit. D was mentioned) can take months till you start to see a difference in your hair. Also, some people do better at the higher end of the range than the lower.

As far as protein goes, although a protein deficiency is rare, they do happen even if you aren't vegetarian (yeah, one of my fun deficiencies/health issues is a protein deficiency).

If you had your thyroid checked, did they check just the TSH levels, or also the t3 and t4 levels and the antibodies?

- Hello, thank you for replying.

I'm currently taking 3200 IU of vitamin D a day (I got it upped from the 1000 mentioned earlier), it's early days but I hope that maybe that might help over the next few months?

I'm not entirely sure what all of the blood abbreviations mean, other than what Google is able to tell me! But I got my serum testosterone, sex hormone binding globulin, free androgen index, HbA1c level, serum FSH, LH and TSH checked in my most recent blood test and they came out within the "normal" range - although I'm not sure whether "normal" is OK as far as hair loss goes. I can share my specifics if needs be!

Thanks again for your reply.

[JJCH]

I’ve nothing yet to add, but my empathy for helping with your father. We just lost my dad to Parkinson’s.

I'm so sorry for your loss, it's a really difficult illness to live and be involved with.

[JJCH]

Hmm, vitamin D deficiency is going to take a long time to correct at just 1000IU a day. That's kind of maintenance level unless you're out in the sun all day every day in a sunny country. I don't know enough to make any specific recommendations but I suggest you do some research yourself then you can make decisions you're comfortable with.

Edit: I should be more specific. It might be enough to drag you out of deficient, across the threshold to 'the bottom of what's apparently normal', but all that means is your body has just enough to function, not any to spare for non-essential stuff like hair. 'Not deficient' is by no means the same as 'optimal levels' or 'abundant'. Your body needs enough to correct the deficit AND have some left over to actually use, if that makes any sense.

Thank you for replying btw, and I've had my vitamin D supplements upped to 3200IU a day, so hopefully that might help a little more? The "normal" range was given as 75-200 and my most recent blood test showed 40.

[JJCH]

Thank you for people's more general advice/welcome and links to other threads etc - I'm making my way through them!
(And apologies for my delayed response, I've moved back home to shield with my parents and things are quite.. intense as you might imagine!)

Has anyone had any experience with Regaine for women/minoxidil scalp foam? One of my doctors who worked at a trichologists on Harley St recommended trying the 5%