only 24 and my hair is falling out!! need advice! please help.

neenee_is_me · 06-26-2006, 11:03 PM

what kind of doctor would i go to for help? is there a safe, over the counter way i can try to stop it? is there a good hair cut or style i can use in the interrum?
i used to have thick, thick beautiful hair. now i feel like i will be bald before i know it! as far as i know i am the only one who can tell so far. but at the rate it is coming out it won't be long...

smb820 · 06-27-2006, 12:04 AM

I am 26 and having the same issue. Mine happened very quickly and I could tell the difference right away. I am also searching for answers on a way to stop this. I spoke with my doctors and they say the taking met regularly should help.

ScaredSally · 06-27-2006, 02:27 PM

I am 32 I started losing my hair at 17 ... I ignored it (oh I WISH to god I hadnt) I am losing hair so fast I am looking into wigs ..

Go and see an Endocrinologist .. who specialises in PCOS these are the best type of doctor I have seen .. dont let a regular doctor ignore you and say its stress or some other bull**** ... if you see a dermatlogist/endocfinolgist have a pull test (biobsy) and a set of blood tests done .... PCOS hair loss is incredibly hard to treat as everyone is different ... there are pills you can take .. spirolactone, Flutamide, Propecia, etc ... and if you are catchign it early then you will have more luck.

StarMaiden · 06-27-2006, 03:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ScaredSally

I am 32 I started losing my hair at 17 ... I ignored it (oh I WISH to god I hadnt) I am losing hair so fast I am looking into wigs ..

Girls, listen to Sally. Hairloss from PCOS is INCREDIBLY difficult to treat and you need to deal with it ASAP.

I am 46 and wearing full wigs. My hair loss didn't start till my 40s but believe me, it is devastating at any age. I've gotten to the point where I am adjusted to wearing wigs and doing fine with it, and I actually really LOVE finding the styles and looking so pretty, BUT, I'd rather not have to deal with the problem. See a PCOS expert about this NOW.

Oh, and in the meanwhile....if you have thinning....keeping your hair well-groomed with an up to date style and great color will make you look good . People will respond to that and will assume you care about yourself and want to look well. They will see the pretty style, and believe me, they won't notice the thinning as much. I look at hair all the time now, and I am seeing that thinning hair is incredibley common, just incredibly. And I see women who let their hair go and they don't have it groomed and styled, and they just look sorry for themselves and sad and OLDER than they have to. I see women with seriously thinning hair who keep it styled and groomed and colored, and they look happy and healthy and like they have good self-esteem.

spirit0727 · 06-27-2006, 03:37 PM

You might also consider trying Nizoral shampoo. It is said to remove DHT from the scalp until you can get in to see a doctor. Try to get medical attention as soon as possible.

changkb · 06-27-2006, 04:05 PM

hey, i have the same problem. my hair began to fall out at the back when i was 16, it has never grown back. although the sides of my head where i also lost some hair is begining to get thicker, i find that a healthy diet of fish and cutting down on hair straightening and chemicals has helped alot.
i also use oil treatments on my hair, almond oil and a carier bag on my head for a few hours, not very attractive but i found the moisture helped my hair from breaking so atleast the hair i have is healthy!

guineapig · 06-27-2006, 09:34 PM

My idiot docs told me mine was just "hereditary" and to do Rogaine. My hair is so male-pattern loss it is pathetic. Hereditary hairloss in females is usually all over the head. Some took pity on me and prescribed spiro (did stop shedding, but IMO not b/c of heredity). Plus, if you saw my family...even my dad has a full head of hair at 60! I know now for sure that they were wrong; once I got my hormones under control from PCOS (DCI & subsequent pg, see sig), my hair stopped shedding and I think it might have even started to finally sprout some new ones.

Depending on the cause of your hairloss (and IMO PCOSers lose their hair b/c of either too much testosterone or unbalanced, excess estrogen) some drugs may help shedding or even reverse it. If you do have the "family" hairloss, there's DHT inhibitors (Propecia, Avodart, or saw palmetto). For PCOS hairloss, there's those same drugs plus estrogen-blockers, bcp, testosterone-reducers (spiro, cyproterone acetate, flutamide), and IR drugs
(metformin, Avandia, Actos, Byetta, DCI, chromium, diets, etc) to correct the underlying problem that is causing these awry hormones.

And of course *sigh* Rogaine and hair transplants...although I really don't think the former helps in PCOS and the latter is $$ and requires good donor hair and a relatively good control of future shedding, otherwise you just keep moving the same hairs around.

Find you a good doctor, one that takes womens hairloss seriously...if anyone tells you it's "cosmetic" then leave (most RE do this to me). If anyone tells you it's hereditary w/o even hearing your history then leave.

And get your thyroid checked, too, it can cause hairloss and seems to be common with us PCOS!

DollFin511 · 06-27-2006, 10:27 PM

My problem with hair loss started as soon as I hit puberty - my hair used to be so thick that if I got a perm, they had to use 2 solutions, but now it is so thin and fine - but it has stopped getting worse at least.

neenee_is_me · 06-27-2006, 10:35 PM

my endo told me that met would help with the hair loss. i have been on it on and off (due to pregnancy) for 1 1/5 years. during pregnancy it stopped falling out and didn't seem as thin. but since having my son it seems to be falling out even more. i guess i will let my endo know that the met isn't helping with that symptom. i will have him to blood work again. last time it was done (a year ago) my hormones weren't incredibly out of whack and my thyroid was fine. also, no women in my family have hair loss and the men don't get it till they are pretty old.
thanks to everyone for your time and help.

PeacefulAngel · 07-01-2006, 11:03 PM

Neener!

My hair's been falling out for years. Hang in there honey. I hope your doctor can help.

Do you think your hormones changed while you were pregnant with Samuel? Have they done a hormone panel since?

Do you think I will ever learn to spell?

I love you!

neenee_is_me · 07-03-2006, 07:10 PM

hey julie!
yes i think my hormones changed when i was pregnant--for the better. but since i've had him my symptoms are back all over again. i haven't had a panel yet because i was nursing when i went to my endo's last and that messes everything up too. i go back on the 13th of this month and will get bloodwork then. hopefully he can help me out with some ideas for the hair.

PeacefulAngel · 07-04-2006, 01:19 PM

I hope so too sweetie!

Kimmy26 · 07-07-2006, 08:32 PM

My hair has also started thinning, and very quickly. A guy told me two days ago that it looked liked I was going bald on the top of my head. I thought I was the only one that noticed, and then he said I know your not though because you have such pretty curly hair, it must be the way you have it parted. If he only knew, I thought! Sometimes I am scared to wash my hair because so much comes out.

Joenie · 07-15-2006, 02:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kimmy26

My hair has also started thinning, and very quickly. A guy told me two days ago that it looked liked I was going bald on the top of my head. I thought I was the only one that noticed, and then he said I know your not though because you have such pretty curly hair, it must be the way you have it parted. If he only knew, I thought! Sometimes I am scared to wash my hair because so much comes out.

Hello I am new to this thread so let me intro my name: I am Joan.

Ok here is my situation. I am TTC#1 and currently on Clomid 50. Ever since i stopped taking Spiro back in May, I noticed my hair is thinning faster than I can ever remember.

I must say that the thing I hate most is when I am talking to anybody, they stare on my head rather than look at me in the eye. It's embarassing, humiliating.. you name it, I have felt it. I no longer no what to do and im not sure if Rogaine really works. I am planning to talk to my PCP the next time I see him and ask if hair transplant is an option.

I have had this thinning hair since I was 15 ( oh yeah.. that was 16 yrs ago). So im really bothered and worried about this thinning hair.

Have a great weekend girls.

R0xyg4l · 07-15-2006, 03:41 PM

I haven't experienced any more than normal hair loss (at least I don't think so)... But I did notice that when in the shower while my hair was longer it seemed as though I noticed a lot more casual hair loss than now that it's a little shorter & layered there has been a big difference. I hope this helps! This post has been really interesting to me because I have a lot of family members that are female that have hair loss, some is an overal thinning and some is completely hair loss and on the top. I just hope that with early treatment it can be prevented for myself. Thank you for your knowledge ladies!