New here, but wondering what thread I belong in. D/t hormonal oilness/hairloss>>

[EggLover]

I have to wash 6-7 days a week. I know. God knows I've tried everything to NOT have to do this. So while I desperately want to get some length/health, I realize I'm not like most here.

LONG LONG LONG story short:

48 yo female with female pattern hair loss since my early 30s. Was on topical minoxidil and oral spironolactone for years, except the spiro tanked my testosterone too much. The little bit of testosterone was apparently still being converted to DHT because the thinning was persistent even on spiro. Had some bad bouts of telogen effluvium 2021-2022 d/t grief of losing a child. Decided to go off spiro and all hell broke loose. NONSTOP daily hair loss!

Since my hair loss seems mostly related to excess DHT, I made the difficult decision to bite the bullet and go on Musely's dutasteride/minoxidil combo. I researched for months and finally decided I want to keep the little bit of hair I have left. I do wash daily still, but within 4 days the hair loss was at least 50% reduced and still is a month later. Most days it's 50-70% less than it had been. Also I **think** I see baby hair around the temple/sides!

I've may another decision: I want longer hair, even if it is thin. I currently have layered short hair and I hate it. It makes me feel unattractive, frumpy, and like a "victim".

Okay, what thread should I join? Is there a place for me here? My hair is 2a/b, fine, thinnish, and I have to wash frequently d/t extreme oiliness of the scalp. If I try every other day, the oil (which is hormone containing) just seems to make the hair loss worse and I lose more than if I had just washed daily.

[lapushka]

Welcome!

[momof3mary]

Welcome EggLover! I also need daily washing due to an oily scalp. I can do every other day if I don't mind scratching my scalp all day the second day and looking like I smeared vaseline in my hair. I'm also growing from very short. I don't know how short you are but please come join us in the Buzz to Chin thread. We would love to have you there as we all commiserate together.

[baanoo]

EggLover, I’m sorry to hear about the loss of your child and all the other struggles you have endured! I’m glad you’re here. You’re welcome to join in to any threads that feel right to you.

[EggLover]

Thank you kind baanoo!

[EggLover]

Yes, you get it. It's beyond frustrating...not only is it a pain and detrimental to gorgeously healthy hair (lets be honest...washing everyday isn't great for the length), it's also frustrating because so many people believe you're just not doing something right or haven't given your scalp time to "adjust". UGH!

Yes, I do believe 90+% of people can get by with infrequent washing, there are those unfortunate ones (like us) that have to. I hate it, but have accepted it. I'm all about scalp health and I just have to get that hormonally induced oil OFF or else the loss is even worse!

[shelomit]

Howdy, good to meet you! I'm afraid I don't have specific thread recommendations as our hair is rather different and my memory is rather poor. So many condolences on the loss of your kid <3

[lapis_lazuli]

Welcome to LHC We do have a daily washers thread, so you're definitely not alone: https://forums.longhaircommunity.com...ad.php?t=81604

There's also a search feature in the top right corner which can be used to find threads of certain topics, or what I do is type site:forums.longhaircommunity.com + keywords into Google, which works better IMO. But yes, feel free to chime in anywhere you like

[EggLover]

Thanks Lapis! I'll definitely use this feature.

[embee]

One thing I found (back before I went NW/SO) was that I could really cut how much product I used. I put a squirt of the shampoo in a large plastic cup and added warm water, mixed well, and poured over. Really concentrated on the scalp. Did the same thing with conditioner/rinse. Was surprised I didn't need a lot of product nor did I need to "scrub". Scrubbing caused many issues of tangle tangle tangle. Used a brush (plastic) which pretty well took care of the scalp and made sure things were not knotting up in the length.