After 16 years on thyroxine only,I found much improvement,firstly on T3-only for 2 years,followed by several years on NDT.
The only thing I am disappointed by is that on thyroxine,I did not suffer from thinning hair.Since then,my hair has got thinner & thinner.I am now 70 so is this likely to be more of an ageing problem-post-menopause etc than T3?
Do you have any recent blood results to share? Sometimes thinning hair means you are under-medicated; quite often it means vit B12 is too low ...
Thanks FP.My stats are good re thyroid & supplements including B12.
I may be imbibing a little too much T3-see "Tired Thyroid"for her take on this if interested.
She suggests upping the T4 by adding thyroxine & lowering the NDT but I get ectopic beats & tachycardia.
Who cares why your hair is thinner - thyroid issues / being a senior / post-meopause; you can't do much about it if you've checked out other vitamin related issues ( folate is important for good hair growth) Maybe it's time to consider one of these beautifulbetsy.co.uk/
I've had very thin hair for many years now and I just pop something like this on - they are undetectable although must be carefully looked after - and every day is a good hair day. The only thing you have to be careful of is that initially you need a hairdresser on board so you can cut it in - don't wear it straight out of the box - and to you, it will look like way too much hair. That's because you've had too little hair for a while...go with it.
This is an earlier response I gave, can't find it now but originally posted on another thyroid forum five years ago so here it is
My mum lost her hair whilst she was having chemotherapy and when it didn't grow back and she was left with very diffuse loss it was pretty awful for her. I know she had an issue with her thyroid but by that time she'd had so much surgery for recurrent cancer she told the medic to eff off when he wanted to leave her with what he described as a 'necklace' scar to 'put it right'. Go, mama. When she died ten years ago, my own hairloss took off. I had an awful couple of months just watching it fall and chasing charlatan after charlatan on line who promised results for hairloss. At that time, only with the benefit of hindsight, my TSH was 2.97 and rose over the ensuing years. I'm now officially hypo, I know I'm Hashis and whilst my GP thinks I take T4 I self medicate NDT and T3.
Not all of us thyroid folk go through this. You may find kindred spirits among the people on heralopecia.com/ sometimes it's good just to know you're not alone. Mine is androgenetic alopecia, a matching pair auto immune disease to go with Hashis, two for the price of one what a lucky bird
I couldn't wait for my hair to grow and doubted that it would. It was one of the most challenging times of my life to continue working with my hair falling out and my scalp increasingly visible. Again with hindsight, the stress of losing my lovely Ma probably kicked off a Hashi's episode - I thought the constant lump in my throat was grief. I didn't want to wear turbans, seeing them as uniquely for cancer survivors. Now, I wear them often when I'm off duty, but that's a whole other story. At the time I had a turbo charged position involving steering people through professional qualifications. I went to see Chris Watts in Kent. I have tried her website this afternoon but it appears down at the moment. There's an article here about her salon
trichocare.co.uk/news/their... and she is on facebook but that seems more to do with conventional hairdressing. The website gives the stories of many with various types of hairloss including before and after photographs.
I have a hairpiece about the same size as a boy's yarmulke, which I tape on to my shaved head, where the hairloss in worse.It is undetectable and the tape ensures I'm not worried on a windy day. Some might say that I gave up; I say I got my life back and it enabled me to continue in a role I loved until ready to wave it goodbye.
Continuing to work in a role I also love as a public speaker of sorts, I've never looked back. There are many, many mistakes people make when biting the bullet and choosing a wig, from trying to replicate their own hair to not having a wig cut in. They don't have to be majorly expensive to look good. simplywigs.co.uk/ You can buy eyebrows on here and they're good - or have your brows tatooed on. Don't let alopecia win ! Take charge !
What you're going through can only truly be understood by another with significant hairloss. Women advised that they have cancer are more frightened of losing their hair than they are of dying - it's such a brutal thing to lose the hair on your head. Sometimes it's easier on your pysche to deal with it and move on, than fret endlessly, not want to leave the safety of your home, count the hairs on your comb and sit sobbing wretchedly, spending money on rubbish supplements and hair treatments, all of which I've done.
PM if you'd like. This is a tough time but hopefully lots to think about. You are not helpless in this, unless you let alopecia win.
Not sure if Chris Watts is still doing her stuff but there are still solutions out there, just knowing where to look... this looks good and has excellent reviews on heralopecia.com thehairconfidante.co.uk/home/
Fabulous reply.Many thanks Rapunzel.
I have had 3 meltdowns since 2011(extreme response to extreme stress due to highly-sensitive nature/genes/bla bla)each hyper anxiety-state tipping me into a depression with accompanying hairloss!!
My stats are good re thyroid replacement & supplements.
Gonna play with the hair piece idea!
I remember seeing a woman who worked on hair and make-up for a news channel being interviewed and saying that even young women newscasters have 'hair supplementation' and BTW Kay Burley didn't stop at a facelift, either! The problem is, it makes us civilians look like we have hair issues even when we don't...
This is sortable. I do worry especially with young women facing loss of volume and just putting up with it - it's so damaging to the psyche and if there's a solution - even whilst your own hair is growing back in...go for it and save yourself a whole lot of angst. Best x
A new friend has let me know twice recently that my grey hair is ageing me.There's no way I am dyeing my hair!The chemicals !I already use only DeadSeaMinerals shampoo & Eucerin calming treatment for the itchy parts of my scalp-recommended for scalp psoriasis.Your idea is much more appealing!
Hmm, your new 'friend' is being rather unkind. I've been grey since my 20s, and it has always attracted criticism/incredulity. While initially I had highlights or dye, advancing health problems and several incidents of exposure to agrichemicals made me more concerned about what hair chemicals could do to the body. I use the Dead Sea Minerals shampoo too, as the least toxic I could find. I think it exacerbates my own hair loss though, just because combing hair after washing is more difficult than with an ordinary 'poo, however careful.
I gave up on hairdressers long ago - too expensive and too judgmental. Rapunzel's links about hair pieces look encouraging, but I have to confess the jargon baffles me. Now that I'm post menopause my hair is whiter and thinner. I think it is aging me prematurely, but most of the time I just put up with it. Being chronically ill I don't have an active work or social life, so I don't feel the pressure I would otherwise.
Hi Hillwoman-sorry for the delay in replying.With regard to Dead Sea Minerals shampoo.I am surprised you find it increases difficulty in de-tangling after washing your hair.I have not noticed this,in fact I find the opposite.I occasionally use their scalp mud-pack overnight.A bit of a faff but very cooling/calming for my scalp.
Conditioner is very helpful to make brushing out easier,but like you,I avoid any extra chemicals.Instead,I have discovered de-tangling brushes!Mine was £2 in Wilco's & has made such a difference I have thrown my previous brush away.
I go to a walk-in "everything £12" no-nonsense hairdresser for a trim every 3 months.I run out of energy mid-afternoon & haven't been out in the evening for longer than I can remember,so I won't be spending any more time,cash or energy on my hair than that.
My new friend spends £100 every 6 weeks on a cut & colour at a brand chain.I haven't mentioned to her that I can see her scalp showing.Even if I was rich,I'd still be a scrimper!
I don't think it is age related and I have a relative in her 80s with thick curly her ... lucky woman. When my hair was thin she told me I was using too many expensive hair products grrrr! Mine was caused by my levels being off and low ferritin and vitamin D. Ferritin needs to be over 80 for hair growth. My hair has now been growing back for over a year and it looks ok but not as thick as it once was. I am 60 btw Do you have any blood results to share with us?
I have started eating more meat & I need to up my iron supplementation.Thanks for the reminder.
My thyroid & vitamin stats are optimal,but since my last tests I have dropped iron supplementation too low.
I had hair extensions done at Lucinda Ellery they specialise in hair replacement for women. It is very pricey but I have watched young women have a special hair weaves done and you really cannot tell the difference. There were also a lot of older women who have it done. It is not like a wig and you just have it adjusted every 12 weeks so the initially cost is but pricey but the maintenance is not so costly. I am sure there are cheaper salons about but just look at some of the videos on her website the transformation is amazing. I felt a bit of a fraud mine wasn't as thin. I have also been a member of heralopicia but there were never many people on there so I left. Just to add I was losing 200 hairs a day for over 2 years but my hair still grew back once my levels and ferritin was increased. I now lose only 3 hairs a day ... yes I still count them.
I am so grateful to you!I have had an increase in palpitations(tachycardia & ectopics)& fatigue as well as hair loss.Ferritin is the first thing I need to fix.This got me onto iron in the first place.As usual I have got complacent & not been consistent with my iron.The same thing happened this summer with my sinus problem.I stopped being consistent with my Sinugator-result:-a sinus infection that lasted a month.Using it daily,I avoided my annual sinus infection,only to suffer the usual month of pain & lack of sleep this summer due to complacency & laziness.
I took Spatone when my Ferritin was low and I also ate pate twice a week.
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