Hair Loss Problem

[honeyen]

I unwillingly got my hair cut today, from half-way-to-waist length to shoulder length, due to serious hair loss problem. I thought maybe by shortening the length (less heavy) could ease the hair follicles (no scientific reference, simply my personal analytical thinking).

My hair used to be coloured and permed periodically, but I stopped all those 6 months ago. Unfortunately, every time I washed / combed my hair, still, I was scared by the amount of hair that fell off.

I have been using Kerastase Resistance products as recommended by the hairdresser, but still I don't see any improvement

Does anyone of you have the same problem? Any cure?

Thanks in advance.

Edited April 3, 2005 by honeyen

[donna]

I had that problem a while back. My hair was falling out like crazy. The only thing I could put it down to was stress. I had had malaria and I think that the hair loss was my body's way of fixing the things that needed fixing (like my liver and spleen), and not bothering with the stuff that could regenerate easily (like hair and nails).

I tried massaging my head daily for about 10 minutes to stimulate the follicles, but it didn't work.

I think that vitamin supplements may help, but aren't too sure of which ones. You could google it and find out maybe.

Honeyen, you were in Phuket after the Tsunami, is that right? If that is you, then maybe you have post-stress syndrome of some kind.

These are just my theories and based on nothing scientific, but they make sense to me.

Good luck.

[griser]

In America they sell a product called Rogaine for women, Its very affective at reversing hair loss, Its not a medicine man cure but a FDA regulated product approved for hair loss.

Not sure if you can get it in thailand but i'm sure you can prob order it. in america its over the counter (no perscription needed)

Greg

[chuchok]

Honeyen,

There can be many reasons why your hair can seem to fall out more quick than normall.As mentioned above stress can be a cause.

There are many over the counter (Normally prescription) solutions that you can use.A drug called Propeciea(Spelling) is one that works well.

I know hairdresser might know alot about hair, but there is nothing like popping down to a good doctor and get them to check it out.

[honeyen]

Honeyen, you were in Phuket after the Tsunami, is that right?  If that is you, then maybe you have post-stress syndrome of some kind. 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

No, I wasn't there.

Rogaine and Propeciea, noted.

Thanks.

[Elle_bkk]

Propecia is for men only, no serious doc should prescribe it for u if you are a woman (even if you are on the pill) .

Rogaine comes in 2% and 5 %. 5% makes face hair growing unwantingly and did not show improved results on women studies.

Stick to the 2% version and be sure of what you are doing because improvement may show (or not, depending on the origin of your hair loss) BUT once you stop, the regrown hair will fall as well. In all case you should stop during pregancy.

Pills (except propecia but they are for men...) do NOT work so do not waste your money on them. Though a good multivitamins pill will not harm .

Good luck to you

[Catbert]

You might try having your hormones checked. Sometimes an overload of Estrogen cause oilyness in face and scalp and that promotes hairloss. I had that problem some years back; products did not stem the loss. Once the hormonal imbalance was diagnosed and prescribed with progesterone (i think), hair loss stopped within 3 months.

Hope that helps. I had some insecurity issues with facing my hairloss and knows how it feels.

[honeyen]

You might try having your hormones checked.  Sometimes an overload of Estrogen cause oilyness in face and scalp and that promotes hairloss.  I had that problem some years back; products did not stem the loss.  Once the hormonal imbalance was diagnosed and prescribed with progesterone (i think), hair loss stopped within 3 months. 

Hope that helps.  I had some insecurity issues with facing my hairloss and knows how it feels.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Ah, could it be becuase I have been taking contraceptive pills?

Edited April 4, 2005 by honeyen

[donna]

Yeah. I think that the pill can cause hair loss.

Good luck.

[Elle_bkk]

quote=honeyen,2005-04-04 15:01:41]

You might try having your hormones checked.  Sometimes an overload of Estrogen cause oilyness in face and scalp and that promotes hairloss.  I had that problem some years back; products did not stem the loss.  Once the hormonal imbalance was diagnosed and prescribed with progesterone (i think), hair loss stopped within 3 months. 

Hope that helps.  I had some insecurity issues with facing my hairloss and knows how it feels.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Ah, could it be becuase I have been taking contraceptive pills?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

what pill were u taking and are u still on it?

Some pills are known to promote hair loss while others (like Diane 35) have POSITIVE effect against hair loss (but once u stop, u start falling hair... [)

[honeyen]

what pill were u taking and are u still on it?

Some pills are known to promote hair loss while others (like Diane 35) have POSITIVE effect against hair loss (but once u stop, u start falling hair... [)

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I had been taking Mercilon 28 till yesterday since May 2004.

Edited April 5, 2005 by honeyen

[Catbert]

Most pills are very low dose hormones and shouldn't have adverse effects if they were prescribed by a doctor in the first place taking into account your suitability.

If you had just bought them off the shelves then they might not have been suitable for you. I'm still on Diane-35 years after my hair loss problem is rectified; i've grown accustomed to the clockwork predictability of the cycle, so i've not gone off it long enough to see if the hair loss problem will return.

[KenB]

Here is a cure.

[bina]

definately check out your hormones:

during pregnancy, a beautiful thick head of hair ( i have hair like an alpaca any way); after giving birth, it fell out by the tons.... it took a while for my hormones to balance out again, was told this is normal so maybe the pill is the cause, or the affect? stress, diet, pollution (bangkok etc), humidity, dryness (a.c. in offices etc).... just head hair, or all hair (in which case that is a 'disease' but eventually goes away also

you might want to trly in the health forum? i remember someone posted once about his thai wife losing lots of head hair when she came to england/america whereever and everyone discussed possible thoughts including stress, diet, environment, hard water, etc etc

[sbk]

honeyen, seems like a silly question to ask as you have probably already considered this, but have you done anything to your hair lately? Color, chemical straighteners etc can also make it seem as if your hair is falling out. The hair is really dry and brittle and breaks off. Check the hair that comes out to see if it has roots or not. If there are no roots then it is breaking off, not falling off. I have colored my hair for years (prematurely gray ) and my hair breaks off regularly. I have found that oiling my hair (coconut oil smells the nicest) helps alot. I rub oil in my hair and leave it in overnight (hubby isn't really thrilled by the smell as he has been surrounded by the smell of coconuts his whole life but oh well!) then wash it out in the morning.

[honeyen]

have you done anything to your hair lately? Color, chemical straighteners etc can also make it seem as if your hair is falling out. The hair is really dry and brittle and breaks off. Check the hair that comes out to see if it has roots or not. If there are no roots then it is breaking off, not falling off.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Used to, but I stopped all that 6 months ago. It's falling off, coz I see the roots This is even worse than breaking off.

[sbk]

Have you tried seeing a dr? I know seems drastic but there is most likely some underlying health reason for your hair to be falling out by the roots. From a dr website:

A number of things can cause excessive hair loss. For example, about 3 or 4 months after an illness or a major surgery, you may suddenly lose a large amount of hair. This hair loss is related to the stress of the illness and is temporary.

Hormonal problems may cause hair loss. If your thyroid gland is overactive or underactive, your hair may fall out. This hair loss usually can be helped by treatment of the thyroid disease. Hair loss may occur if male or female hormones, known as androgens and estrogens, are out of balance. Correcting the hormone imbalance may stop your hair loss.

Many women notice hair loss about 3 months after they've had a baby. This loss is also related to hormones. During pregnancy, high levels of certain hormones cause the body to keep hair that would normally fall out. When the hormones return to pre-pregnancy levels, that hair falls out and the normal cycle of growth and loss starts again.

Some medicines can cause hair loss. This type of hair loss improves when you stop taking the medicine. Medicines that can cause hair loss include blood thinners (also called anticoagulants), medicines used for gout, medicines used in chemotherapy to treat cancer, vitamin A (if too much is taken), birth control pills and antidepressants.

Certain infections can cause hair loss. Children may have hair loss caused by a fungal infection of the scalp. The infection is easily treated with antifungal medicines.

Finally, hair loss may occur as part of an underlying disease, such as lupus or diabetes. Since hair loss may be an early sign of a disease, it is important to find the cause so that it can be treated.

Can improper care of my hair cause hair loss?

Yes. If you wear pigtails or cornrows or use tight hair rollers, the pull on your hair can cause a type of hair loss called traction alopecia. If the pulling is stopped before scarring of the scalp develops, your hair will grow back normally. However, scarring can cause permanent hair loss. Hot oil hair treatments or chemicals used in permanents may cause inflammation (swelling) of the hair follicle, which can result in scarring and hair loss.

[kat]

Once you rule out underlying medical reasons, I've read that kelp tablets are supposed to help stem hair loss. You can buy them at GNC.

[honeyen]

Once you rule out underlying medical reasons, I've read that kelp tablets are supposed to help stem hair loss.  You can buy them at GNC.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Thanks Kat, I'll definitely give it a try By the way, how have you been? Haven't seen you since the wedding dinner last year!!! Maybe we could catch up sometimes in May? Take care.

[kat]

El Tel: Perhaps their hair migrated to your avatar's head.

Hi honeyen! Definitely give me a call when you're in town.

Edited April 30, 2005 by kat

[IsaanAlex]

Honeyen,

It could be stress; my sisters hair started falling out at about 33 after she got promoted at work and worked crazy hours. It stopped after she stepped down.

It could also be hormonal.

I would highly recommend visiting a competent doctor. I don't know which type of specialist you'd see though. Dermatologist?

In the meantime though, don't listen to anyone who advises Propecia as Propecia's active ingredient is Finasteride, same as Proscar...and it has been advised that women never handle cut Proscar pills as it fooks up the genitals of unborn children

IA

Edited May 11, 2005 by IsaanAlex

[cmsally]

A friend of mine had a bad hair loss problem starting a few years ago.

She tried about everything, nothing worked.

She found an article in a magazine about applying kaffir lime and som boi ?? (its the pod thing you put in scented water and pour over Buddha images- from a kind of acacia tree I believe). She started applying this about 4 months ago and she says it has worked unbelievably well. I won't see the evidence until end of year as she is back in USA until then but she seems ecstatic.

Must be pretty good as she is 58yrs old and in perfect health so her hair loss seemed to be maybe a mixture of genes (Asian descent - seems common for many women of Chinese descent to suffer the same) and hormones.

[The Philosopher]

If your hair falls out don't worry if your soul and your heart are still young.

[The Phoenix]

Are you getting paranoid, Honeyen?

Anybody and everybody would die to have hairs like yours.

Not talking about the rest of you...