I hate my hair!

[NamedForTheMoon]

I have a love-hate relationship with my hair. Sometimes I love it, but most of the time I hate it...

It's SO thin! :boohoo:

Sometimes I wonder if I should just shave it... You know how when you first started shaving, the hair was still fairly fine, but as you shaved it grew back thicker and darker? I wonder if that would happen with the hair on my head.

It's so thin, you can see through it to the scalp, especially in bright light or sunlight. It's really sad.

I don't want to use products to camouflage the problem. I want it to grow in thick and lovely, like so many LHCer's hair, here.

Any tried and true suggestions on what I can do to make it thicker? I'm already using the monistat cream to help it grow. That seems to help a little.

I've tried taking hair and nail vitamins, that didn't make any difference. I've tried Rogaine, I've tried Nizoral shampoo, I've tried Nioxin (That kit they sell for way too much at salons, claiming it promotes healthy hair growth), and not any of those have worked for me. Just thought I mention that before they were suggested.

[Fractalsofhair]

Get your blood work tested, and some people just have thin hair. How long are you planning on growing your hair? Try going for gentle products, and see a doctor about the thin hair. It can be a sign of more serious medical issues. With age, hair can thin, but you're only 32, so I don't think that's the cause. Damage can make hair look thinner. Make sure you're eating a healthy diet and are a healthy weight(being underweight can cause hairloss). Keep on using the monostat if it works! Henna is said to plump hair, I've never tried it though and it will color your hair a red color. If you just have thin hair naturally with no cause other than well, genetics or something like that, the best thing to do is to hide it, as best you can with products and such, like henna. You might also want to look into clip on extensions if your hair is REALLY thin, so you can do more styles on special occasions. Have you researched female pattern baldness? Is it recent or ongoing?

(Shaving won't do anything, it's that stubble looks coarser. And then you go thru puberty and terminal hair gets longer and darker. My legs still have white blonde fuzz on them and I'm past puberty and used to shave. It takes time for the stubble to go away though. Armpits, well I got older and well, the hair grew more as I finished puberty(Or went thru most of it)! Waxing can possibly reduce hair growth, which is not what you want on your head! If you stop shaving for 6 months or longer, your legs will return to a state not like before puberty, but much reduced in noticeably compared to moderate stubble(1 month stubble for most women) Waxing once does the same job. Or nairing once.)

[Natalia]

Im sorry its so fustrating :grouphug: I have very thin fine hair and am a natural blonde so i sympathise with being able to se your scalp all the time. To add salt to a wound i have been sheddingmassive amouts of hair for months :( . I dont hae any advice for you other than a healthy diet and patience. There are ways to work around it but they usually involve experimenting with various styles or using product. Have you thought about trying herbs like methi (fenugreek) or hibiscus? They can add a slight coating to the hair making it fel and appear thicker. I have them both to try but havent gotten to it yet. Good luck :D

[NamedForTheMoon]

I noticed my hair was thinning when I was about twelve or thirteen. I started puberty at eight years old, and had my first period at ten. Before that, there are pictures of me with thickish hair. Thicker than it is now, anyway.

I've gone to a doctor and they did a blood test and said that my hormones came back normal. They didn't want to do anything more than that, so I figured I was just stuck that way. Quite a few years later, I went to a naturopathic doctor, because my husband said that he was very good and that he had helped him when he was young to get over food allergies and he had helped numerous other people in his family with their medical issues. He diagnosed me as having hypothyroid, and put me on naturopathic medicine. I've been taking that for probably 6 or 7 months, now, but I've not noticed much difference in my hair.

Also, the thinness seems to be at the front of my hairline, mid-scalp where my bangs are at. I don't know if that makes a difference or not.

[HappyHair87]

Have you tried odorless garlic pills as part of your supplement routine?

Garlic can help stop extreme shedding.

[Mabel Grey]

Have you had your iron checked? I am not a doctor and see you have seen one, but sometimes, you still have to give them ideas what to look for. It is a very frustrating thing, waiting for drugs and all that stuff to work. Please give it time, it can take awhile.
Not sure what your hair type is but, could it be so fine that it is breaking off from wearing a hat or cap?
I have lived with fine hair all my life, and very thin too. I have tried all sorts of products, to avoid being called "Frog Fuzz" for the rest of my life. Somethings are working, most are changing my nutrition. Not sure what else, I can think of that would cause the breakage where you described. :confused:

[NamedForTheMoon]

I have tried both garlic (normal garlic) and the garlic pills, but I didn't notice any difference there, other than I reeked like garlic from my pores, lol. No one wanted to be around me anymore ;)

Before I went to the Naturopathic doctor, I had tried taking molasses and things high in iron, thinking that could be part of my issue, but I was scared of giving myself iron poisoning, so I stopped that. Plus, I didn't really like molasses very much.

I'm pretty certain that my iron levels were checked by the naturopathic doctor. He gave me supplements for Iodine and something called Thyrostim. Those are for the hypothyroid, and last time I went to see him he had me cut back on my dosage because he said my thyroid was starting to regulate itself.

Before that, though, he had given me supplements for magnesium and calcium citrate, or something like that, I can't quite remember. I think it was for relaxing the muscles because I had an issue with both my hip and my shoulder being out of place. I remember it caused me to run to the bathroom quite often.

Next time I see him, maybe I should ask specifically about my hair. I never have asked just specifically about it, I had hoped that the thyroid would take care of the problem, but then maybe I'm just not being patient with it.

I forgot to mention that I don't have any split ends, so I don't think it's a breakage problem. Although, before the Monostat, I did shed quite a bit more. But I think that was normal hairfall, not breakage.

I'll see if I can find a picture or two (of me) that illustrates what I'm talking about.

[AmyJorgensen]

Well, just don't shave it. I am sure it won't make it thicker. Try to embrace your hair and look at the upside. You may not have as much weight pulling on your scalp in an updo.

[rovylern]

I feel your pain! My kiddo and I both have very fine, thin hair, too. I can tell you from experience that shaving mine didn't make it any thicker...it just made it harder to grow out!

[NamedForTheMoon]

Here's a picture in which you can clearly see my scalp through my hair. Bleh. Granted, it's not as bad when my hair is clean, but it's still enough to make me uncomfortable. I had washed my hair the day before.

http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk197/NamedForTheMoon/untitled.jpg

You may ask, "Why on earth would she allow a picture to be taken when her hair is in that state?" It was christmas morning... I wanted to open presents rather than shower and do my hair first, lol.

[rags]

Umm, my hair is thinner than yours - or at leasts it looks to be! I wish it were a bit thicker, but I generally like it okay. My scalp shows all the time. :shrug: If I have short hair, my scalp shows and I hate the shortness of it, so I just put up with it.

[Mabel Grey]

Here's a picture in which you can clearly see my scalp through my hair. Bleh. Granted, it's not as bad when my hair is clean, but it's still enough to make me uncomfortable. I had washed my hair the day before.

http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk197/NamedForTheMoon/untitled.jpg

You may ask, "Why on earth would she allow a picture to be taken when her hair is in that state?" It was christmas morning... I wanted to open presents rather than shower and do my hair first, lol.

Not to down play what you are going through, but I was thinking it would be much worse. Can you wear it pulled back, till you can see the doctor, so as to not see you scalp at the part? Maybe, trick yourself a bit?
I feel you frustration and pain. I am glad you tried the molasses, and also that you stopped.Good Luck with this and let us know how you are doing. But, please don't shave it. Especially, if you want long hair. YOU are taking the right steps.

[NamedForTheMoon]

Hmm, maybe I focus on it a bit too much. I have seen worse cases than mine, where some women have really long hair, but the top of their scalp is just completely bald, or they only have a few strands. I guess I should stop complaining and worrying about it.

In any case, I'll look into my nutrition and definitely ask my naturopathic doctor about it, next time I see him. Thanks for all the helpful suggestions. :)

[Melisande]

When your medical checks are cleared, I would recommend you try some of the recipes on this site - and don'[t give up easily. It really takes time unti you see a difference.

Try taking MSM, fish oil and vitamins. After months of taking it, I started to see results.

Check out the essential oil for hair loss discussion. I have used the recipe for nearly two hears now, and my hair grows much stronger and looks better - shinier, healthier.

Catnip and cassia are other solutions to add volume. So is a mixture to mist your hair with - distilled water, some drops of oil and keratin and wheat protein make my hair look much fuller than it actually is.

Try to minimize hairloss by super-gentle treatment - I'm sure you do this already.

Good luck.

[Michele]

I so relate. My hair is probably a lot like yours, when i don't wash it, i have scalp showing everywhere, esp. in the bang area.
Sometimes it get's me really frustrated, i hate my hair too! Lately i've been wondering if i just should accept the fact that I will NEVER EVER have thicker hair or just keep trying this and that etc.

Anyway, I wasn't sure I was going to post this, but what the heck, see that scalp showing, blah. I usually try to hide it with a "smart" part and sometimes when I'm feeling really self conscious about it, i use Toppik. That's a coloured powder you sprinkle on. Oh well...

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=3246&pictureid=42112


It's not that I'm really shedding a lot, it's just so thin everywhere :(:(:(

[brok3nwings]

My homemate has hair like that. thin and fine she washes her hair everyday and if she dont it looks thinner. But i must add two things: first she says she has it like that for a long time, second, i dont really thing it is health issues. I believe her hair is looking really healthy and shinny. i look at it many times and think "the hair is really shiny!"You should make sure if there isnt any health issues and if there isnt i think you should embrace it cause thin hair can also be very beautiful! But most of all, i feel sorry for your frustration...

[Kirin]

For someone born with thin hair, and had it all her life (though I admit, it seems thinner now that I am older), I can give you some advice.

First, pretty much nothing you take internally, or put on your head is going to grow you more hair. Stop wasting your money. Genetically speaking, unless you are suffering massive hair loss, what you have is what you are stuck with. Rogaine and the like will only help grow hair that is lost, not make "new" hair come in where it never was before. You can spend a fortune on all this and more, and not gain one extra strand of hair. Stop draining your wallet and frustrating yourself!

Next, I often find the "tried and true" LHC advice on gentle non washed hair care is, frankly, not possible with hair this fine and thin. Its just not. It *may* be better for your tresses, but its a disaster for your self esteem. Excessive hair oil shows up immediately on fine thin hair, and plasters it in clumps showing "hair cleavage" where the scalp shows through miserably. Whats worse, the "updo" to "hide" oily hair, actually showcases it on fine thin hair. Pulling hair back is like a neon sign saying "Hi folks, I didn't wash my hair!". Pulling it back and up also makes you look like you have less hair, and looks like you slicked it back with axl grease. No fun.

This may go against the grain of LHC wisdom here, but these are my tips and what has worked for me.

Wash hair daily with a gentle mild shampoo.
Condition ONLY the ends, not from ears down, but lower, don't get any on your scalp.
Use a good leave in light conditioner, again on ends only on towel dried hair. Scrunch it into the ends.
Air dry hair fluffing upside down often and working fingers at the roots for "lift". If you have a hair drier with a cold/cool setting, you can use this too.
Mousse and gel can be a godsend. Find ones without alcohols and you should be fine.
Alternatively, use non heat rollers for air drying your hair, especially at the crown and the bangs.

Long lustrous hair is not worth it at the cost of your self esteem. There is no "law" that you can't use products for styling to help with the individual problems with your hair. Fine and thin hair often does not play by the same rules, and requires often special and different treatment. There's no shame in this.

Remember, there is no "hair police" that is going to show up at your door if you decide to wash daily, or use products to help your situation. It took me nearly a year to figure this one out, save yourself the bad hair days and unnessesary costs.

If you wish to see a doctor to be checked, I wouldn't argue with that. There possibly could be a medical reason for the thin hair, however, if you've always had thin hair (except in your very young days) its likely, that is all you are going to get.

[NamedForTheMoon]

Wow Michele, I think you might be my hair twin! When my hair is clean, it looks just like yours (only yours is a bit longer, I had cut my hair a few months ago to get rid of a perm. Incidentally, I had gotten the perm hoping it would make my hair look fuller and thicker. Nope, it didn't work very well) . You know, maybe we should make a thread for Thin Hairs, if there isn't one already, that has all sorts of hair do's and styling tricks.

Broken, thanks for your insight. My hair really does look healthy, it's just thin. The only reason I'm considering looking into my nutrition is because I am overweight and want to change that. I figure if I eat better, it will help my hair in the long run. Plus, I'm also a Barista for Starbucks, and I drink WAY TOO MUCH coffee! lol! Sometimes I wonder if the caffiene in my system isn't hurting my hair. I should try going off the caffiene and see if that helps, but sometimes it's impossible, working where I work, because we constantly have to taste test our products to make sure they're up to standards and so we know what we're talking about when we talk to our customers.

Kirin, thank you so much for your advice. I do spend a LOT of money on my hair, trying this and trying that, hoping to find the next best thing. It really is frustrating. But I am coming to the conclusion that maybe that's just how my hair is, and instead of hating it, I should embrace it and try to do the best I can with it.

Thanks, everyone. :)

[rags]

My hair has thinned some as I've gotten older, and I've had some run-ins with meds that have made it thinner; but it was always somewhat thin, even as a child, and baby baby fine.

I second almost everything Kirin said except one thing - I can wash only every other day most of the time. And yep, got a big bottle of mousse right on the vanity! Though I don't use it all the time - maybe once a week or so.

Mine is a i, not a i/ii. I have a 1.5" pony, but you know what? I still kinda like it! :D

[Kirin]

Kirin, thank you so much for your advice. I do spend a LOT of money on my hair, trying this and trying that, hoping to find the next best thing. It really is frustrating. But I am coming to the conclusion that maybe that's just how my hair is, and instead of hating it, I should embrace it and try to do the best I can with it.

Thanks, everyone. :)

You're very welcome. Embracing what you have is hard when you see a bunch of luscious thick heads of hair around you! I fought for years teasing, using curling irons and the dreaded perms! Perms don't work, and are so brutal on fine hair, ugh!

For up-do's there are some out there! Just stay away from severely pulled back ones, it will make you really conscious about how thin and fine your hair is. One of the best up-do's for me, is a double pony. I make one high on the head, almost over my ears on the top of my head and just slightly back. I let that fall or make it into a topsy. (A topsy is making a pony, pulling the hair band holding it out slightly, slipping your fingers under and pulling the tail part up and then through on the other side of the band), then make a second lower pony to contain all the hair.

Pulling the hair up higher on the head I've found, gives a fake "fullness" to the top. This only works though on clean hair, on my oily fine hair, it will seperate out and show lots of scalp.

Another is a "sock bun". Actual socks don't work well for me, however at Sally's they sell sock bun inserts. You make a high pony, and thread the tail through the center of the doughnut. Arrange hair to cover the doughnut, then use an elastic to secure the hair around it. Makes a "BIG" bun, instead of our usual marble sized one LOL.

[longhairedfairy]

You have dark hair and light skin. Your scalp will show because of the contrast in color no matter how thick it is. It's the same with mine. If it seems abnormal to you and you are really worried, however, then by all means go see a physician or nutritionist.:flower:

[jivete]

I have fine, thinnish (2.5" circumference) hair and you can see my scalp too. One thing to keep in mind is if you hair was lighter or your scalp darker, it wouldn't be so noticeable. But with the dark hair and light scalp, it's going to be more obvious than if your hair was blond.

I have noticed there are a lot of people who's scalp shows through. Even people I know with decent thickness (3" pony tails) show scalp. So as long as it isn't health, I wouldn't worry about it. I think people notice super thick hair and notice really thinning hair, but normal hair doesn't really stand out. So other people don't see it at all.

[Babyfine]

I've had fine, thin hair all my life and it is slightly thinner now that I'm older.
I agree DON"T perm it- I used to perm to get volume but I always had dryness and breakage- my hair is so much nicer now that I don't perm.
I shampoo with a mild non-sulfate shampoo every two-three days and condition from the ears down only. I use Nioxin scalp therapy only on the scalp.
Harsher shampoo were very hard on my hair and made it look frizzy and damaged. I have "scalp cleavage" all the time for updo.s and ponytails, if I don't brush or comb my hair out thoroughly before I arrange my style.
I

[Michele]

It's so nice to know there are more thinhairs around!

Funny thing is.. I never really noticed my scalp cleavage before, and thought it had gotten worse over the last year. But if i look at older photos, i see it's already thin there.
Since i became more conscious about my hair and how to take care of it, and indeed, seeing all these thick haired people on LHC, i suddenly got aware of this 'problem' and it started to bug me.

But accepting my hair for what it is, sounds like a good plan, I'm going for it ;).

[kdaniels8811]

There is a fine/thin hair thread, you would need to search for it but it is there. My fine/thin hair was helped by nutrition - I started eating a LOT healthier, lots of veggies and such, and drinking a half gallon of water a day and Henna! which does wonderful things and makes my thin hair look much thicker! see photo! I was surprised when I saw the picture, my hair looks like that and I really did not think anything of it! So maybe it is not as bad as you think, though by that statement I do not mean to downplay the fact it bothers you.

If you are at all interested in a reddish tinge to your haircolor, check out henna and indigo mixed together, it is wonderful for conditioning and adding thickness and shine. Check out my albums for examples of before and after and good luck! Let us know what you try and what works for you.

[NamedForTheMoon]

Where are your albums, kdaniels? I looked at your profile, but didn't see a link. EDIT - D'oh. I'm a real dweeb sometimes. I found them, lol.

I use henna already, I just recently had a bad experience with a home highlighting kit, and then in a panic I dyed over the mess with black hair dye. But I plan on removing the chemical dye and then going back over it with henna, and then just sticking to henna.

By the way, does anyone think that thin hair and bangs are a better idea or a worse idea? Especially when trying to grow long hair?

[Roseate]

Poke around LHC, you will see plenty of members with beautiful, long, thin hair. You can search members by hairtype, give that a try and check out our loverly F/i members.


I have thick, coarse hair, and let me tell you, there are some advantages to what you've got:

A heavy updo will never give you a headache.

Your hair probably dries pretty fast, like under 2 hours, right? No cold wet back for you!

You can do much more exciting updos sooner- the thinner it is the shorter it can be to twist around itself. I was just being jealous of.... was it rags or paper? on another thread because though we are about the same length, she can do about a billion more updos than me.

You can get some serious soft-and-silkiness going. Even at its most moisturized, my hair is... coarse. Think horse's tail.

I'm not trying to bash my own hairtype, either... just saying, every type has its ups and downs.

[Fractalsofhair]

Oh gosh, I thought it would be worse! My hair gets like that somedays. My grandmother had literal bald patches and well, balding, and that's what I thought you were talking about! Just try to comb your hair over the thin patch, and be gentle with your hair. I have a TON of fine hair, and if parts of it clump in odd ways, even I get bald spots.

[Deborah]

I agree with whoever said that dark hair and light scalp skin cause the scalp to show sometimes, even if the hair is thick. Don't let that worry you.

As to the bangs, I'd vote no. It just removes more of the hair from the general thickness.

[Kirin]

As for bangs, actually they helped my "thin look" a lot. I had very heavy 1960's bangs cut in and had the hair angle cut around my face. Makes a huge difference, at least for me. This may not work for everyone, and yes my ponytail is thinner, but my hair looks thicker and more cared for.

I will stay with the optical illusion over a thicker ponytail lol.

[Michele]

As for bangs, actually they helped my "thin look" a lot. I had very heavy 1960's bangs cut in and had the hair angle cut around my face. Makes a huge difference, at least for me. This may not work for everyone, and yes my ponytail is thinner, but my hair looks thicker and more cared for.

I will stay with the optical illusion over a thicker ponytail lol.

I second this. Well in the picture it sure looks bad. But normally i wear my bangs straight and not side swept. If i wear my bangs straight the scalp isn't really showing :)

[SpecialKitty]

NamedForTheMoon - for what it's worth, I think your hair is very pretty. Sure, it is fine and thin, but that is what you've got so learn to love it. To be extra sure it's not a medical problem, you should go back to your doctor and have them check iron, thyroid, and hormones. All can affect hair. Also, I know you're doing the Couch to 5K program - exercise really helps with overall health, including hair and skin health. And you probably already learned this with your recent dye experience, but fine and thin hair can't withstand too much dyeing, styling, and manipulation. Henna would probably be fine, but try not to mess with your hair too much (no heat styling, chemicals, less brushing). Take good care of yourself!

[NamedForTheMoon]

I second this. Well in the picture it sure looks bad. But normally i wear my bangs straight and not side swept. If i wear my bangs straight the scalp isn't really showing :)

Hee, I'm the opposite. If I wear my bangs straight you can see the scalp, but if I side sweep them you can't see it as much. :)

Thanks for the advice, SpecialKitty. I'm also considering a lot more raw food (I'm following the Raw Food Diet thread) in my diet, and I'm hoping that will help out, too. :)

I plan on doing henna this weekend. I love henna. :)

[whichypoohs]

....they used to say that Brewers Yeast and Kelp are good supplements, along with regular INDIAN HEAD MASSAGE which you can do yourself x

[Angel_Abby]

How about some vitamin E? I take a capsule twice a day (you have to take calcium twice anyways-- may as well throw in an E, too? LOL!).

My nails(which are usually brittle and dry) are looking amazing and my hair is improving as well. I used to shed ALOT (we're talking gobs of hair here) and while I have thick hair now at 29-- one of these days its going to shed and not grow back! So lots of E, switched to a BBB and a horn comb and cut out the chemicals and heat. All of that in conjunction with my vitamin E is leading to some seriously healing hair! (And my skin looks good too!)

:)

BTW, that scalp pic wasn't bad at all... And I like your color!