Female hair loss, anyone? :(

Little_Ole_Me

Tiddlywinks wrote: »

Don't make assumptions about this - it took me ages to raise the issue with my OH - that had nothing to do with how he would react but everything to do with how I felt as a woman!



With respect, having a mass of untamed hair is not really comparable with losing your hair.

That is how I feel, it has everything to do with how i feel as a woman. I mean hair loss isnt supposed to be a womans issue is it if you see what i mean

Little_Ole_Me

Tiddlywinks wrote: »

Firstly, I know how I felt when this happened to me and it can be absolutely devastating... Have a look at this site, it deals specifically with this issue and has a forum of

I am not a medical expert but I will just share what the medics and snake oil traders told me and let you know what worked for me... My doctor was really unsympathetic and I had to push for a referral.

The dermotologist said that even when testing normal for iron / B12, if you are in the middling count then take supplements anyway as some of us need more of it to maintain hair growth especially as we get older. I was testing in the middle for both and had thinning at the temples. He also said that the supplements can take 3-6 months to work so keep at it (but don't exceed the dose on the packaging as you can OD on iron and that is dangerous). Taking vit c also helps the body to absorb the iron apparently.

The derm also recommended using Rogaine - the extra strength one for men, he said that with female pattern hairloss you need to go for the big guns! Again, this can take months to work and can have side effects - the above site has loads of discussions on this. I took the plunge (after waiting for months worrying about the possible "shed" of hair that can happen) and it has worked to a certain extent.

I also saw a trichologist (Philip Kingsley practice in London) who charged me £400 but really only said the same as the derm - so don't waste your money on this kind of advice. They recommended the tablets and their own version of Rogaine. The one good thing that I did get from them was some shampoo (for dry, itchy scalp) which helps if you have a reaction to the Rogaine. You can get it from QVC or Salon Expert cheaper than from the PK site.

I really do understand how this can impact on your life - just remember that you have to keep living and enjoying life and try to park this by dealing with it in the best way for you. Really, really good luck!

Please PM me if you want to talk more off-line.

Thank you so much for this - very very much appreciated. It is so nice to hear from someone that understands. I will have a look at the website when I get home. Thank you xx

Snuggles

Little_Ole_Me wrote: »

As someone said above, your hair problems have little corrolation to mine. I would love to have a full head of unruly hair, than half a head of nice manageable hair! Attitudes like this actually make me not want to tell people.

Please don't bother to post again, as this subject is highly sensitive to me, and I really do not need your judgements on a subject you seem to know nothing about, as I am depressed enough as it is, and it took me a long time to pluck up the courage to even start this thread. I am actually in tears at work again because of this thoughtless post. Thanks a bunch

OP don't be put off by one person's tactless (and somewhat bizarre) comments. A couple of years ago I started to lose a lot of hair, and although it got better (I think it was due to stress), I can well remember how dreadful it was to be constantly worried that I was going to end up with bald patches etc. I think most women really can appreciate how this would affect you, so don't feel you can't talk about.

Good luck x

paddy's_mum

Firstly, I made no accusation against anyone. I was simply bewildered as to why you would not confide your worry to the person closest to you. If it's making you depressed, is there not a case to be made that your husband ought to know so that he can perhaps share your worries and offer his help and support? I know how upset I would feel if I found out that my husband had been keeping some important medical or personal issue from me. I'd feel pushed out.

I'm sorry if you felt under attack in any way. Clearly, I didn't do a very good job of trying to get across my point which was that hair doesn't define someone, nor illustrate their value as a person, any more than the loss of a breast does.

Perhaps if you would re-read the last paragraph of my post, you will be able now to see what I was getting at.

There was no intention whatever to carelessly upset or wound you and I apologise unreservedly for your distress.

Tiddlywinks

paddy's_mum wrote: »

Firstly, I made no accusation against anyone. I was simply bewildered as to why you would not confide your worry to the person closest to you. If it's making you depressed, is there not a case to be made that your husband ought to know so that he can perhaps share your worries and offer his help and support? I know how upset I would feel if I found out that my husband had been keeping some important medical or personal issue from me. I'd feel pushed out.

I'm sorry if you felt under attack in any way. Clearly, I didn't do a very good job of trying to get across my point which was that hair doesn't define someone, nor illustrate their value as a person, any more than the loss of a breast does.

Perhaps if you would re-read the last paragraph of my post, you will be able now to see what I was getting at.

There was no intention whatever to carelessly upset or wound you and I apologise unreservedly for your distress.

Although I can see you have apologied and do not want to dredge this up I need to say that I also found your post thoughtless - no, hair does not define you BUT it is part of society's expectations of how a woman should look and so it does impact then on how a woman sees herself.

You need to understand that it is not about just being brave and being bald and beautiful... it is about the possibility of spending every day of the rest of your life looking different to how others expect you to look and feeling terrible because you can't comply.

Your attitude (although I accept you meant well) sums up how people THINK they would feel in the situation - but I can assure you that the vast majority of women would not just think "oh, well... my hair doesn't define me so s0d 'em).

Little_Ole_Me

I agree with you Tiddlywinks. It is easy for any one of us to think we know how we would feel in any situation, but to be there is totally different. It really is quite soul destroying.

There is no way I could be brave enough to bare my head without any concealment in public, no way. Even if the house was on fire i would grab a hat!

Thank you for your apology Paddys Mum. I have spoken to my OH about my fears etc, he is lovely about it and assures me he will love me even if I go totally bald. He has paid for tricologists appointments for me. However, I would not show him my head without any concealment, as I want him to find me attractive, a sexual woman. There is nothing sexy going on with my barnet right now, believe me! It is me though, I mean if I showed him the true state of my hair, I feel sure he wouldn't bat an eye lid, but after all our years together I still want to look attractive for him, thats not so bad is it? The only person I have shown the state of it, apart from a doctor/tricologist, is my best friend, and her face did not match what her mouth was saying, iyswim, she was saying 'oh its not so bad, you can cover it' but her face looked horrified.

Mrs_P_Pincher

Beware of GPs and consultants come to that who will tell you that your blood test results are 'normal' just because they are within range.

I had significant hairloss for years and it has been fixing low ferritin (stored iron) and Vitamin B12 levels that has reversed it.

If you are low in these your body will use what you have for essential functions and treat growing hair as an optional extra.

It would be worth going back to the doc and getting a copy of your blood test results and checking them. You are entitled to a copy under data protection because they are your data.

PM me if I can help any further.

Mrs P P

Tiddlywinks

Mrs_P_Pincher wrote: »

Beware of GPs and consultants come to that who will tell you that your blood test results are 'normal' just because they are within range.

I had significant hairloss for years and it has been fixing low ferritin (stored iron) and Vitamin B12 levels that has reversed it.

If you are low in these your body will use what you have for essential functions and treat growing hair as an optional extra.

Absolutely agree.

This is just want the dermatogist said to me - he recommended iron and B12 supplements even though I tested in the "normal" range - he said that some of us just need an extra boost. He also said that it could take many months to rebuild reserves.

bagginslover

I know you said you have had hormone tests, but have you had any further testing for PCOS? this would involve an ultrasound scan of your ovaries. I have been diagnosed with PCOS, and my hormone tests came back 'normal' but my scans showed the classic signs in my ovaries. The doctor explained to me that all people are different, and so different people operate on different levels as normal, even though my hormones are in the normal range, I obviously need a different level for me to be normal.

While the PCOS has caused me to become hairier in other areas, my head hair has thinned quite dramatically. I am lucky that I have thick hair, and it's thinned evenly all over so it's not obvious to others. I can tell though and I too feel quite down about it. It might be worth going for a second opinion in case there is something your GP has missed or misread.

Zoetoes

Mine has been thinning for a while, every time I wash it it's coming out and the thinner it gets the more it needs washing!

I have now been told I have polycystic ovaries.

I completely understand what you mean, I had really thick hair and it's bothering me a lot.

For me it's my hair and my teeth that I want to keep!