Feeling down today (TMI)

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Here I am right in the middle of menopause at age 47 (last period April this year), hot flushes at night in bed, don't mind the menopause part, am really loving not having periods- but- am feeling sad and a bit panicky that menopause can cause hair thinning!!!


Help! Advice please! And I bet this makes me a hair geek!

I guess I just have to grin and bear it - haven't had any thinning yet though. Maybe I'm worrying about something which might not happen for a very long time (fingers crossed).

Please don't laugh, I am serious.

[pink.sara]

I don't think menopause has to cause hair thinning in all women.

My mother went through premature menopause in her very early 40's and is unable to take HRT due to previous cancers, but still has a really thick head of hair.

It did grey faster as she went through the change but other than that is very healthy. She takes a multivitamin alongside things like black kohosh root and red clover to cope and eats lots of protein and fish so I think this probably helps also.

You also clearly have alot of hair to start with!

[Silverbrumby]

At a iii even with a bit of natural thinning I would still assume you'll have a great head of hair. My ponytail is around 2.8 with a ton of perimenopausal shedding but it seems to be settling down. It went on for about 2 years and yes, I've had iron, thyroid, vit D tests so it's not to do with any of those.

I'm now resigned that my hair isn't as thick as it use to be. I'm grateful that it still looks full and is healthier.

btw, somedays I'm not ok with it and rant and rave.

[Toadstool]

I went through surgical menopause two years ago and take oestrogen. My hair has not thinned in the slightest. If you are worried, you could take HRT?
My Mum didn't take anything, and her hair is as super thick as ever.

I hate the night sweats.

[Kiwiwi]

I understand your fear because it's a possibility.
I'd say look at the women in your family who've already been through menopause, how's their hair?

My mom is 61 and she has iii hair. Very thick and it grows fast :)

[IndigoOptimist]

My mum started going through the menopause at 38, and now - 10 years on - her hair is lovely. It doesn't grow very fast, but it never has, just like mine :)
Being 20, I can't really say anything more than that, unless I start going though extremely early onset menopause... I do remember my mum flapping about when driving the car and pulling over to peel every item of clothing off that she could because she was having a hot flush though.... it seemed funny at the time :s

[julliams]

I'm sorry I don't have anything to add about menopause but... you have some seriously gorgeous waves going on there!!

[Mesmerise]

Well your hair is iii thickness, so that puts you ahead of the curve even if you do have a bit of thinning :D. Still, I don't know that it HAS to happen. Yes, it can... and yes I see older women with thin hair... but not all of them!

That being said, my hair seems to have thinned and I'm not menopausal yet. I'm hoping that dietary change can switch things around a bit for me. I never had thick hair to start with so it's quite stressful!

[Madora]

I wouldn't worrry about hair loss. Just keep an eye on your diet and enjoy your lovely hair. I never noticed any change in my hair's thickness while going thru menopause but the hot flashes were a bit much.

[spidermom]

I think my hair went from crazy thick to merely thick; I can live with that.

Fingers crossed for you.

[swearnsue]

I went through menopause, had the hot flashes and night sweats. My hair is thicker now than 10 years ago. It has gotten thicker because of what I've learned on LHC. Ironic though, now my hair is thicker and it makes my head hot! But at least I don't have to put up with those periods anymore!

[proo]

I'm 53, 5 years post menopause, and my hair has never been thicker or healthier.
5" pony

[WickedLady]

I'm not sure what HRT stands for so i'm curious?




I went through surgical menopause two years ago and take oestrogen. My hair has not thinned in the slightest. If you are worried, you could take HRT?
My Mum didn't take anything, and her hair is as super thick as ever.

I hate the night sweats.

[dulce]

I started losing hair in my mid 40's,even getting a small bald,one inch spot in my center bangs ,and my hairline receded a bit.I have PCOS with the associated hormonal imbalance plus combining that with perimenopause hormones,my hair thinned.I was at thick when younger and went down to average thickness[now am 3.2-3.5 inch]I now just turned 60 .If I factor in the thickness of my bangs it's thicker than the 3.5 inch,near 4 inches. The thinning stabilized,it is still average thickness but lately seems to have slowed a bit in it's growth rate.I just cut back from hip to waist but plan to regrow to hip.I let it go silver and treat it really gently, and have a very healthy low carb lower fat diet due to my PCOS.My hair[in my opinion] still looks much shinier and healthier than most of the other older women my age who dye and perm,with age many[not all!] women's hair becomes more delicate and dry and suffers with adding heat and chemicals.. so if you are worried,make sure you treat your hair well and you shouldn't have a big problem.Some older ladies do dye and their hair looks great but I see a lot with dyed,dry,damaged,breaking hair[I was one of those],so just wait and see,your hair will let you know what it needs..I never took HRT[hormone relacement therapy]due to the health risks.

[Theobroma]

I'm not sure what HRT stands for so i'm curious?

Hormone Replacement Therapy. :)

[akilina]

I would probably fear the same too.
When my mom went thru it, her hair seems to have gotten wayyy more luscious, thicker, and it SERIOUSLY grows like a stinkin weed!

[Tisiloves]

My mum's going through the menopause now and her hair seems to be getting thicker (just as well, or she'd be bald in no time), and my Granny still had what must have been a 5" pony when she was 90, so I wouldn't say thinning was inevitable.

[Silverbrumby]

I appear to be the only one effected by this. I think I'll have to modify my advice here so that it doesn't appear the norm to lose volume with age. Thanks for all the answers.

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Thank you julliams - as do you.

Hmm, interesting replies. All my sisters are through menopause (Age 60 and upwards) and none of them appear to have noticeably thinned hair although they do say they have had some thinning. They do the usual damaging things though - heat , dye etc.
My mother has hair which is just beginning to look thin now . She is 88 though, guess it's allowed at that age. My Dad always had wonderful thick hair even into his 90s. Hopefully I have good hair genes.

[FrannyG]

I went through menopause from December 2010 (last period--I was 49) to December 2011(when it became official, at 50). It seems I went through peri-menopause straight to menopause. I did have a slight shed a few months before my last period, but it's all grown back now.

My ponytail circumference now is the same as it was before the shed--which is still considerably higher than it was when I first joined here.

So please don't worry. It's not a rule that women's hair thins when they reach menopause.

Your hair is very thick and beautiful. Even if you have a temporary shed, as I did, I don't think you'll have a big problem.

I should add, that it's common to go without a period for a few months, and then get it again. You might find that you aren't actually in menopause right now.

In any case, I hope you get through this smoothly. :blossom:

[Silverbrumby]

Now I'm feeling down... Sigh.

[xltorresx]

It doesn't sound like you have anything to worry about. Seems like you have very good genes in terms of hair :) Also you take great care of it too! All the men in my family are pretty bald, I may be in trouble lol.

I love how supportive everyone is on here! :)

[FrannyG]

Now I'm feeling down... Sigh.
Please don't feel down. I have found that menopause is a lot like pregnancy. Everyone comes out with the horror stories, but no one tells you about the majority of people who have very few problems.

I finished menopause eight months ago, and currently my hair is 33% thicker at the nape than it was six years ago.

There is no point in fearing the worst. Really. :blossom:

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Thank you FrannyG. Maybe it will not be too bad. And I am not assuming that my last period has come just yet. If your hair is an example of hair after menopause then I don't need to worry, yours is beautiful. So obviously not all women have this problem.Thank you all for your help and support, I do appreciate it so much!

And FrannyG, I love your Youtube hair videos, they are enormously helpful. I do hope you will make more of them.

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Now I'm feeling down... Sigh.

Don't feel down Silverbrumby, your hair is gorgeous, sleek and shiny. I wouldn't mind having your hair!

Sorry, am trying to work out how to quote a message in a reply thread...

[Silverbrumby]

Thanks. It's okay.

[Toadstool]

Now I'm feeling down... Sigh.
You're not the only one, Spidermom and Dulce mentioned some thinning too.
You say yours still looks full and is healthier. hopefully that;s it for the thinning.
Or you could take hormones if you want to? or perhaps eat foods that contain phyto-oestrogens?

[Silverbrumby]

My hair is whispy thin the last 3 or 4 inches. It's 2.9 at the ponytail but tapers off after 4 inches or so. It's a combination of thinning, shorter terminal with rapid shrinking of hair volume after 4 inches and frizzies. Sometimes the combination gets to me. There wont be any 'I've been on this site for 2 years' posts with flowing, silky hair cascading down my back. No dramatic before and after shots. I changed out my signature picture to reflect the hair I have to deal with most days not the hair on my best day.

edit: at least the whispy ends are getting past bra strap length finally and I had a trim back to a blunt fuller hemline in March '12 of 3 inches. This whispy thing is just how it gets when it's growing to this length. Short terminal.

[Sarahlabyrinth]

What foods contain phyto-oestrogens? Silverbrumby, your hair still has good thickness. Maybe you can see things about it that we can't.

[FrannyG]

Thank you FrannyG. Maybe it will not be too bad. And I am not assuming that my last period has come just yet. If your hair is an example of hair after menopause then I don't need to worry, yours is beautiful. So obviously not all women have this problem.Thank you all for your help and support, I do appreciate it so much!

And FrannyG, I love your Youtube hair videos, they are enormously helpful. I do hope you will make more of them.

It likely won't be as bad as you think. Thank you for the lovely hair compliment, and you are very welcome for the support. :blossom:

Thank you also about my Youtube videos. :flowers: I will make more when my hair is another couple of inches longer, and/or when I finally get rid of this migraine that's been plaguing me for over a month! :)


My hair is whispy thin the last 3 or 4 inches. It's 2.9 at the ponytail but tapers off after 4 inches or so. It's a combination of thinning, shorter terminal with rapid shrinking of hair volume after 4 inches and frizzies. Sometimes the combination gets to me. There wont be any 'I've been on this site for 2 years' posts with flowing, silky hair cascading down my back. No dramatic before and after shots. I changed out my signature picture to reflect the hair I have to deal with most days not the hair on my best day.

edit: at least the whispy ends are getting past bra strap length finally and I had a trim back to a blunt fuller hemline in March '12 of 3 inches. This whispy thing is just how it gets when it's growing to this length. Short terminal.

I don't know about your "short terminal" idea. It seems that your thickness has been improving at the nape, and with good care that thickness will likely move to your length, as well. That's how it happened for me. My hair was see-through from APL down when I first joined here. Now, I can go to waist length without see-through ends.

I did recently cut back to BSL to get rid of the temporary pre-menopause shed hair, but it's right back to being thicker again.