Gradually losing my hair

parting

I am 33 and I am worried about my hair thinning. The parting at the front is showing my scalp more and more as time goes on. Today I was in a fitting room and was shocked when I saw the front of my head underneath the bright lights, so much of the scalp was showing through! Actually this is something that I'd noticed before. But today it just seemed to be a lot more than say even 6 months ago or whenever was the last time I was in that place.

I have done searches online for hair loss but it seems to only lead to product pages or people looking for your money.
I used to buy those regaine tablets sometimes but you are supposed to keep on taking them and they are so expensive and I just can't afford them now anyway. Then again if I knew for certain that taking them for a year or so would help my hair to get its thickness back I would find the money. Just don't want to be paying for something if there is no guarantee that it's doing any good. Does anyone know if it's worth it?
In my case the loss is gradual rather than a lot coming out at once. I know a certain amount of loss every day is natural especially as we get older so I am not looking for miricles. But at the same time it is depressing to think that my hair is getting less and less and how will it look a year from now... I thought my hair was the one part of my looks that I could rely on.

Does anyone out there have any suggestions for me?

petes

Quick question. Are you male or female?

parting

sorry, forgot to mention that. I'm female.

hullaballoo

I've got the same problem and, to be honest, I'm at a complete loss too. There are some hair strengthening shampoos and conditioners on the market that aren't any (well, much) more expensive than your run-of-the-mill stuff. I'm not one to vouch for their efficacy.

You can try massaging your head when you're washing your hair - apparently follicles react well to stimuli. Other than that, hair regrowth medicines would appear to be the only option. Talk to your pharmacist about what's right for you in that respect.

Edit: I'm male, though, so I've no idea whether the symptoms can be treated in the same way.

star-pants

Are you on any medication at the moment?
I know my mother's hair has been thinning over the years but the majority of that is due to the tablets she's on. She can't take the likes of viviscal or anything but they do seem to promote them in the health shops.

As Hullaballo said - perhaps see your GP or chemist & ask what they recommend.

parting

No I am not taking any meds and haven't been on anything since roaccutane in my teens.
To be honest my worry is that this could be hereditary because my mam's hair is a lot thinner now than it was when she was in her 20s. But then her hair was never very thick anyway. Plus she has a thyroid condition, is overweight, eats a bad diet. Whereas I'm the total opposite, have naturally quite thick hair, I'm normal weight and fussy about eating natural foods.
It's just hard to pinpoint what I could be doing wrong.

star-pants

I would go to your GP then -- see if he/she can find anything that might be causing this.

Permabear

This post has been deleted.

cafecolour

From the male side, I can say that the Regain liquid stuff - that you put on your head, not the pill - has significantly decreased my rate of hair loss. It is a bit of a pain of the arse tho.

Johnny Utah

I'm sorry to hear that OP.

I've read before that roaccutane can cause hair loss.


You should visit hairlosstalk.com, it's probably the most informative website on hairloss that I've come across. Any product info on that site is presented in a completely unbiased format- I know myself that the hair loss industry is full of con-men and snake oil salesmen.

Visit the forums there too, there are some which are dedicated to female pattern hair loss, where you should get some specific help.




Best of luck.

Ann22

Have a routine blood test done. My hair got a lot thinner over the years too, I'd bloods done, found i was massively low in calcium. Don't know if that caused it but it's not as bad as it was. I first noticed it thinning along the hairline after using two permanent hair colours within a few weeks of each other. I've very sensitive skin so that may have triggered it off. I only use Loving Care now-the temperary one... as you put it into dry hair. If your hair is due a wash when you put it in, the film of oil on your scalp protects it. I would be lost without Charles Worthington's volomising mousse too, it thickens it up... though to get best benefit I have to blow dry which leaves it dry looking. I used a couple of courses of Nourkrin too...very expensive though I think if you can afford it it helps.

parting

This is such a great board, people are so nice and helpful. I'm glad I posted now. Maybe I should have posted under my regular user name but being female I decided to create an unreg name for this thread, I don't know maybe I am a bit embarrassed about it or something.

Starpants - I think I will mention it to my gp and see what she says. Just thinking there might be something wrong as I do suffer from fatigue a bit more than I should for someone my age.

Ann22 - Asking for a blood test is an idea. And thanks, that sounds like good advice about hair colour, although I don't colour my hair, it will come in handy to know that for when the time comes. I also used to buy those Nourkin pills(I said regaine in my original post, I meant Nourkin). I might look online and see if they are available cheaper, I did feel they worked a bit at the time, just wish they were more affordable!

Johnny Utah - Thank you for the support and for that site recommendation. I will defo go on there for some more advice.

cafecolour - I will look into the liquid stuff, maybe my doctor could prescribe it if I ask..

donegalfella - Thank you. I will google for that. I didn't think of a dermatologist but that's another option for me to explore.

hullaballo - That's a good idea, I wash my hair every morning anyway so I could try taking a minute to massage the scalp.

Also been thinking of changing the type of shampoo to something with no chemicals in it. Again another expense. But lately I've just been using whatever not really caring what's in it, could be doing more harm than good.

Thanks for all the replies.

Ann22

Sometimes Boots does 3 for 2 offers, if you've a few euro spare you could stock up on Nourkrin if you can't get it cheaper online.

Westfalia2

Hi OP,

Someone posted a similar thread not so long ago. I suggested trying the supplement MSM; I don't know if it will lead to hair regrowth but it has definitely stopped any of mine falling out and it's growing like a weed! It comes in powder form and you can get it in good health food places.

Ann22

Westfalia2 wrote: »

Hi OP,

Someone posted a similar thread not so long ago. I suggested trying the supplement MSM; I don't know if it will lead to hair regrowth but it has definitely stopped any of mine falling out and it's growing like a weed! It comes in powder form and you can get it in good health food places.

I might try some of that. I was reading up on it, meant to be good for inflammatory conditions too. I suffer with my neck. Have you noticed your hair thickening up at all? Another thing, I see there's sulpher in it, does it cause bad wind by any chance?

Saffy09

Hi parting.....just read your post. I had the same problem a few years back. And like you it is something that appears to run in the family but mine had become very noticeable. I was devastated and tried every lotion, potion and supplement on the market. Eventually I saw an advetisement for a trichologist. They are a type of scalp specialist. I started going to see this lady on a weekly basis and she did treatments and then I started using a product at home myself. I found it brilliant and my hair was thicker than it ever was. Even within a few weeks I could see the new hair growing which helped the scalp appear less visable. When this new hair started to grow a bit I could see my hair thickening up. I have had to go back once since for a different type of treatment. The trichologist advised me on shampoos, different techniques for massaging my scalp, supplements and foods so I thought it was money well spent. There are not many trichologists around but I am in Galway area and this one is based in Galway city. I think it was worth every cent and would defo suggest giving it a try. Hope thats of some help. PM me if you like for further info. Best of luck with it anyway, I know how upsetting it can be,x.

Westfalia2

Hi again OP,

Regarding the MSM, no I didn't notice any unpleasant side effects! The supplement does act as a detox so you might feel a bit headachey when you start taking it; drinking lots of water will sort it out. Yes my hair is thicker because it's stopped falling out. I've never really had a problem with hair loss - I started taking it for overall health maintenance and just happened to notice that the usual pile of hair wasn't coming out in the shower/on brushes etc. Maybe you could try taking it in conjunction with some of the other treatments suggested? My hair is probably growing twice as fast as it used to; bit of a pain as I need to keep getting it cut.

The brand name I take is Solgar and it's in powder form. It's pricey at €20.95 for a jar but it will last you a couple of months. They recommend taking it with half the strength of Vit C - i.e. if you're taking 3000mg of MSM take 1500mg of Vit C with it.

Best of luck with it.

E

4Xcut

parting wrote: »

I have done searches online for hair loss but it seems to only lead to product pages or people looking for your money.

While the internet can be a very useful tool for finding information, it can also be misleading, especially with medical issues.

Firstly, you should have a look at diet/lifestyle. If there is anything you have changed since this started happening it might be causing this. After that, or perhaps straaight away if it is happening at a quick rate, you should consult a proper medical pratitioner. The other option that might be helpful is talking to a proper hair dresser - not someone who gives a great cut, someone who has been doing it a long time and may have come across similar.

cafecolour

parting wrote: »

cafecolour - I will look into the liquid stuff, maybe my doctor could prescribe it if I ask..

I'm just talking about the stuff you can buy off the shelf in boots.

renraw

I take viviscal (€60 a month) in boots for the last 8 months. Hated clogging up the shower tray to say the least and noticed my hair thinning. The viviscal has worked miracles, serious...in the last 2 months i noticed that the hair is stronger and regrowth is also taking place. It actaull does wat it says on the Tin. Im a 30 year old male and got so down with the thoughts of losing my hair and just happened to see an ad in boots. Get the extra strength as it is brilliant [/COLOR][/B]and like yourself I had to find the €60 every month but it is worth it. regain i used for a few months as well, but that was crap.

Im using the maintenance now and it is soo worth it. You have to keep taking it because the results could take up to 6-12 months. Another of my friends started taking it about 3 months ago and already we all see a difference. Stick it out and I guarantee you'll notice the difference. as your a female, your heair will ngrow ba ck twice as fast as mens. Come back to me in 6 months and you will be smiling. I can only imagine how a girl feels at losing her hair when men like myself freak out over it soo much.