how to help thinning hair (due to disease, PCOS)

[iluvmy67cuda]

I'm a usual stalker and occasional poster on here, and lately i've been on herhairlosshelp, because i found out i have Polycistic Ovarian Syndrome, and now im loosing my long hair (and im only 24!! omfg kill me!!!) It's tailbone length and i was finally getting it where i want it length wise, and it was looking really good,and it started thinning 8 months ago, and the last month has been 1000% worse, and i may have to shave and wear a wig eventually if it continues at this rate. I cant see a specialist until next month. So im trying to find out if anyone knows of anything natural/herbal/ or anything that can help induce hair growth? something to actually make hair grow? Rogain is so expensive and i've heard alot of women say that it doesnt work. Im willing to try ANYTHING to save my hair, i would literally rather die than loose it. I know it seems petty to most people especially my family, they keep saying 'its just hair', but they dont get it. IM A 24 YEAR OLD WOMAN! I CANT LIVE BALD! If you dont know of anything to help actually grow more hair, are there any good products to thicken the hair i have? (hopefully the doctor can give me a prescription or something to help grow back my hair, im praying theres something prescription that can help). I posted on herhairloss help, but i figured it wouldnt hurt to ask on here too, since you gals know the need too keep your hair long too. The length still looks good, although not as thick, its my scalp where the problem is, along my part, my crown and temples and all throughout now. I cant believe this is happening!!! i have enough health problems already, more than most people in their 50's! this is f#%#ed!

[<She>]

I'm sorry to hear you have such health problems, but I'm afraid I can't reccomend products as I haven't tried any.

But what I have tried are nettle rinses. I had hair loss issues several years ago and I was persistent with the rinses. I think it helped a bit to strenghten the existing follicules and roots of hair, and it darkened my hair a little.

If you would like to try this, I will give you the recipe.

[Arctic]

Have you checked out the Monistat thread? Some people seem to get amazing growth with that: Apparently Nizoral (or similar products containing Ketoconazole) might help too. Other than that, I can only think scalp massages, and very gentle handling to reduce breakage. Good luck! (And I remember you :flower:)

[susiemw]

Have you checked out the Monistat thread? Some people seem to get amazing growth with that: Apparently Nizoral (or similar products containing Ketoconazole) might help too. Other than that, I can only think scalp massages, and very gentle handling to reduce breakage. Good luck! (And I remember you :flower:)

get the insulin resistance under control... and you need to know that YOU can contol this.
and you can do that through your food choices:
first: skip the simple sugars and the starches. think of yourself as being "allergic" to starch and sugar. when you eat these things your body over produces insulin in response to the foods you are eating and you end up storing it as fat instead of using it as energy. that's why you probably gain weight easier than other people and have a hard time getting it off. As americans we eat a diet ridiculously high in simple starches/sugars.

when you go grocery shopping most of your foods should come from the outer 4 walls of the grocery store... almost everything in the aisles can cause you trouble with your IR (insulin resistance) unless your picking up some mayo (skin the miracle whip, they add sugar) or canned tuna watch the carbs on the nutrition label.

make most of your food choices from this list:
-meat, fish, poultry: preferably not breaded unless you
are breading it yourself.
-cheese (hard cheeses have less carbs than soft spreadable cheeses)
-eggs
-eat LOTS of nonstarchy vegetables and salads
-you might want to avoid most fruits in the beginning because they are full of natural sugars... you'll get your nutrients from the veggies.

avoid or limit things made with flour and sugar.
for breads choose breads made with 100&#37; whole GRAIN
(not 100% whole wheat)
avoid/limit starchy foods like rice (and when you do choose it go for dark rice not white rice), limit noodles (there is a japanese noodle called a shiratake noodle that is not starchy and you can eat as much as you want)

however, be careful, with making this change because women with PCOS who do this often bring their insulin resistance under control and will start to ovulate regularly so
if it's an issue: make sure you are using birthcontrol.

if you are an oat meal person skip the instant and start eating
the old fashioned long cooking kind... it gets absorbed more slowly and doesn't trigger the over release of insulin.

start reading the labels on your foods and count the
carbohydrates and keep track of how many you are getting every day. don't bother counting the carbs in meats (unless they are breaded... try breading with almond flour which won't trigger the over release of insulin, or parmesan cheese or ground up pork rinds), cheese, salads (but watch those salad dressings as some add sugar) and nonstarchy veggies but watch the starchy veggies like potatoes, carrots, peas
and corn.

You don't have to watch the carb content of the nonstarchy veggies/salads/meat/cheese/eggs etc but count the carbs on everything else and keep your daily carbohydrate level to 60 a day and you'll be amazed at the improvement.

also I would suggest starting on saw palmetto as it will help
reduce dht and help with the hair loss.

If you've been told you are diabetic or "pre-diabetic" I would
recommend you add cinnamon to your regime as it has been shown to help regulate sugar levels.

good luck,

I know this is a stressful time for you but let me reassure you that you can get PCOS and insulin resistance under control very easily. You'll do great.
I'll try to post some more suggestions later. I have to take off for now.

susan

[neenerbabe]

Awww, girl, my heart goes out to you. I have PCOS as well, was diagnosed when I was about 20. My hair is thinner than it was in my teens.:( I haven't tried some of the newer treatments like Metformin, but I did go on the pill for awhile and that seemed to stall the hair loss, but when I went off it I had a terrific shed and lost a great deal, which is only now coming back though not as thick. The only thing I've seen that seems to make a difference for me is diet and exercise (when I can stick with it.) Eating healthy and getting regular workouts can help make your blood sugar more normal, which in turn affects your hormones and makes then somewhat more normal. Not a cure, but it's the one thing that has seemed to help me. I hope that you can find something that works for you! I totally understand what you are going through. Hang in there! :flowers:

[Ursula]

Are you under treatment for the PCOS?

I have PCOS (fairly mild) and while I haven't had hair loss, a combination of BCP and spironolactone do a very good job of controlling my acne. Other people get good results from metaformin, which treats the insulin issues directly. (Metaformin didn't do as well for me as spironolactione.)

These treat the causes of your problems. BCP stop you from ovulating, so the cysts can heal, and stop producing the extra testosterone. Spironolactione helps decrease your testosterone as well. And metaformin helps control blood sugar, which in turn helps with weight loss, and fat holds testosterone, so loosing weight also helps restore your hormones.

[sibylla]

I´m sorry to hear that you experience this!. With the Metaformine you have to make sure you're taking a B vitamin supplement. Met can cause a depletion of the B vitamins leading to hair loss. There is this other treatment Flav..something that is supposed to help with hair loss. My tip is to do at least 20 min a day of scalp massage and to allways cold shower your hair after washing. Holding a plastic bag filled with ice cubes is very good!Good luck!!

[Peggy E.]

I'm so sorry this is happening to you and it must, indeed, be a frightening, heart-wrenching situation for a young woman to face. In fact, losing your hair, for whatever reason, is a grave loss for anyone to go through.

You've been given a lot of good advice here from those who are familiar with your condition, which I am not. I am, however, familiar with health issues that wreak havoc with your body, self-confidence and sense of well-being. Those that can easily destroy your life by making your present day miserable and leave you looking into a questionable, if not downright frightening, future.

My health issues began when I was thirty, so I've lived a life that many would find difficult, if not downright impossible. But the thing is this: Life is a gift and no matter how bad we each might feel, how awful our circumstances, there's always something to remind us of this miracle.

Maybe the sunset on a splendid summer's eve, a silent brilliance of melting gems, washing up over the horizon and spashed across the deepening sky.

Or the soaring heights of a Mozart concerto. The perfect airlight meringue draped over the shimmering sweet-sour bite of a Key Lime filling, swimming within a butter-rich shattering crust. The birds' bright greeting-to-the-morning trills on the breaking of an April spring day.

On it goes, through the big, the little, the moments that all come together to make every day of every life worth the breathing in and out of it, through the pain, the sadness, the worry, the joy, the beauty, the pleasure - be open to it all, take it in and let it build your strength.

I do so hope you will be able to reverse the hair loss, for it has to be a painful experience. But, please, know that life is passed through but once and there's always, always something to live for, something that has blessed us with these beating hearts, fine minds, the ability to love and grow and care.

You can hate your illness, you can hate what it is doing to you, but life is nothing short of a miracle to be celebrated every day we're graced with its presence!

[amaiaisabella]

I'm very sorry you are going through this. I have PCOS as well, so *hugs* to you.

If the hair loss continues at a dramatic rate, and I hate to suggest this, but maybe taking your length up a few inches would help make for a "thicker" look. I know you're really close to your goal, so make of my advice what you will, but I hope that you find a solution soon.

We really should start a thread for those of us with PCOS... is anyone up for it?

[neenerbabe]

Yes! A PCOS thread would be awesome! :)

[amaiaisabella]

Your wish is my command :)

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?p=207164#post207164

[iluvmy67cuda]

I was told i had it 5 years ago but had no insurance so couldnt go back. the only thing they had done was a ultrasound which showed ALOT of systs all over both ovaries. I didnt have a period for over a year, now have them off and on. I have horrible acne/too much body hair/bipolar/now thinning hair/cannot loose weight no matter what i do. I finally got medicaid because im going to be getting social security because of my panic disorder, so no i have a appt. august 12th to get all the tests, to make it official. Then they can figure out what meds i need. Hopefully once im getting treatment the hair will come back. I just CANT accept the hair loss, its the only thing i have that makes me feel womanly or pretty (i have major self image issues). I hope getting the meds and changing my diet, and starting to exercise will help this. I thankyou guys so much for your advice and support! I'll keep you updated.


Btw, do you think cutting bangs would make the hair loss less noticable? Or more? Im thinking of cutting some in to help since i keep my hair up so much, i can just throw a scarf on, and it would look 1000&#37; better with bangs, but down i wonder if it'd make it look worse? hmmm

[Ursula]

As far as treatment goes - Walmart sells spironolactone on it's $4 generic list, and has two types of the Pill (Sprintec and Tri-Sprintec) on it's $9 "women's medicines" list. So treatment may be affordable for you. When you see a doctor, it may be worth asking about starting with those treatments.

And since this is a gynecological problem, you can probably get sliding-scale coverage at Planned Parenthood, another way to save money when you don't have insurance.

(Although I have no idea why Walmart would do something as discriminatory as putting medicines only women use on a more expensive list than medicines for both men and women.)

[jojo]

Hi,
Have you been commenced on metformin by any chance?

I am writing a dissertation on PCOS and how metformin may help reverse the side effects associated with PCOS one of which being hairloss.

At present it is not licensed for use in the U.K for primary treatment for the disorder but I have read encouraging journals which suggest it may help by reversing insulin resistance which in many cases is the instigator.

I would be very interested in how this drug has helped (or not) you.

Anybody else who would like to give their experiences too would be great.

Thanks xx

[burns_erin]

As for natural things, though not being familiar with your condition you may want to be sure you check to make certain they are ok, you might try the articles section for herbs and essential oils. I favor Rosemary, Sage and Lavendar. They seem to help my bald spots. I make a tea out of Rosemary, (sometimes sage and/or other herbs, I have tried mint, basil, and parsley). I also use grapseed oil with Rosemary, Lavender, Sandalwood.

[Darkhorse1]

Hi there--I just did a search on your condition, and it seems to be that a side effect of PCOS is excessive hair growth. Do you think your hair thinning is due to stress from this diagnosis? And how you are feeling? If it's shedding due to stress, it WILL grow back.

I know a friend of my mom's, under lots of stress, was losing handfuls of hair. She got scalp massages and it helped stimulate the hair folicles and it grew back thick and healthy. Perhaps looking into that might help? It also may be a side effect of a medication you might be taking for your medical condition.

Since you have been recently diagnosed, I would consult a doctor before trying anything different to your body. My mother has an auto-immune disease, and she gets prescription rogaine. It has worked for her, but I would expect it is very expensive. However, as you are young, this might be covered under your health coverage for needs for self esteem/work/etc.

Good luck and hugs!!!

[Darkhorse1]

http://www.medicinenet.com/polycystic_ovary/article.htm

Some interesting information here.

[Ursula]

Hi there--I just did a search on your condition, and it seems to be that a side effect of PCOS is excessive hair growth. Do you think your hair thinning is due to stress from this diagnosis? And how you are feeling? If it's shedding due to stress, it WILL grow back.

The hair-growth thing is a two prong problem with PCOS.

You get both thinning or receding hair on the head and increased hair growth elsewhere - legs, arms, and face.

So the thinning is almost certainly PCOS, not stress.

[girlcat36]

Make sure you are not anemic. My hairloss has not been caused by PCOS, but other medical conditions. I have had luck with a scalp massage oil that I make with rosemary, sage, thyme, lavender, cedarwood, and tea tree Essential Oils.

[Darkhorse1]

I would still make sure you identify the cause before trying to treat it. Massages can't hurt obviously, but can be expensive. The OP stated she has other medical problems, which can contribute to hair loss.

I really feel bad for you and hope for the best! ((hugs)))

[iluvmy67cuda]

See thats the thing, i also have SEVERE stress constantly and i have a panic disorder. So its probably a combination of the pcos, stress, meds, and just insanity LOL. i cant wait to to to the dr. on the 12th and start on meds. Hopefully some of this will be reversable.

I was on metformin a few years ago because they said i was borderline diabetes, then another doctor took me off of it without even doing blood tests. This is what happens with no insurance , and doctors NEVER listen to me anyways.

But good news, is i have medicaid now, and just today i FINALLY got my approval letter for social security, so i'll have my medical from on now. So now i have the chance to get things straightened out. When i go to the doctor im taking mom with me, so if they wont listen she can make them! LOL (sad i know, 24 and taking mom w/ me to the doctor) LOL

[feralnature]

iluvmy, I am BiPolar too and am on SSDI because of it. The meds I take affect my body and hair in all sorts of ways. My doc and I have worked for years trying to find the right med combo. I am also very sensitive to sugar and carbs. Many things you said sounded very familiar. The body image issues, the panic disorder.

Know that as you go through life, you will over-power these demons and you will be the master of your destiny. Twenty-four is so young and you are just now starting on your journey through life. Embrace your uniqueness and enjoy the gift that being BiPolar gives you. You are undoubtably an artist or writer or musician of some sort. A thinker or philosopher. Your hair is in temporary jeopardy right now, so be it. You can thrive despite set backs to your outward appearance. You know deep inside that you are WAY cool and groovy! :)

[Darkhorse1]

I believe the meds for diabetes can cause hairloss---seeing as diabetes is found in people who have this condition.

I also am a panic disorder sufferer, and when I was highly, highly stressed, I lost A LOT of hair. It freaked me out, but it does grow back. Even if you lose hair due to medication, when you stop the drug, it comes back. So, deep breath, and see if you can play around with different styles while you wait for your drs apt.

[ilovelonghair]

Have you checked out the Monistat thread? Some people seem to get amazing growth with that: Apparently Nizoral (or similar products containing Ketoconazole) might help too. Other than that, I can only think scalp massages, and very gentle handling to reduce breakage. Good luck! (And I remember you :flower:)


This helped me a lot! In januari I started loosing a lot of hair in a few weeks time because of a traumatic event. As you see in my signature picture I had much longer hair. I cut it so it looks fuller at the bottom and I used Daktarin (same thing like Monistat) a couple of times a week. My hair started growing back and the thickness is really starting to grow back nicely.

You probably have medical care and that might help as well. Of course taking really good care of your hair helps too :)

I hope your hair will grow back soon, I can so understand your distress.

[sipnsun]

Don't feel bad about taking your mom! I know when I go to the dr. I get a little nervous. It's always good to have someone else confirm your symptoms so they will take you serious. Good luck!

[jocelyn anne]

I am sorry to hear that. I also still searching on solutions that can me too.

[belix]

I have pcos as well and lost alot of hair last year from it which resulted with me just shaving it off entirely. i regret it alot :( :(

[belix]

But now that my hair is growing out now, I've noticed that my bald spots were filling it when I decided to take MSM again followed with biotin, b12 and applying castor oil to that spot/all over my head.