Hello all - I'll try to keep this post short, though I have several questions to ask. I've been suffering with extreme hairloss, I've probably lost over half the hair on my head, over the past year or so. I've never had covid so I know it's not from that. When I talk to my doctor about it he says things like, happens when you get older, post menopause, here take this pill, etc.
I had him test my thyroid and iron and he says it's all fine. I've wondered about thyroid being the reason because I also take liothyronine and when I started with t3 supplementation he lowered my t4 from 100 mcg to 88 mcg and is totally freaked out by my TSH being so low. I asked him to raise my t4 back to 100 and he wouldn't based on that TSH.
My other question about hairloss is stress. This past year has been EXTREMELY stressful and I wonder if that has triggered some hairloss scenario. I saw a dermatologist yesterday and he said my hairloss appears to be health related, he specifically mentioned thyroid, and not old age or female pattern baldness. But he can't prescribe medication. Has anyone had an extremely stressful even and had major hairloss from it?
Here are the lab results from my last blood draw in August. Bloodwork was done around 8:00 am, on empty stomach and no thyroid meds were taken beforehand.
Serum iron 112 ug/dL (35-155)
Iron binding (TIBC) 325 ug/dL (250-450)
%SAT 34.46% (15.00-55.00)
Ferritin 76.7 ug/dL (13.0-150.0)
FT4 1.080 ug/dL (.700-1.530)
FT3 2.430 pg/mL (2.300-4.200)
TSH 0.180 mIu/dL (0.300-4.000)
I do need to point out that I'm supposed to take 5mcg of liothyronine twice daily, but I've only been taking it in the morning and my doctor was ok with that. I've since started taking it twice a day, for several weeks now, with no difference in shedding. The reason I dropped to once per day is that my FT3 was at the very top of the range.
I have PA so I self inject B-12 monthly so no point in looking at that blood test since it will read high. My last vit d test in 2020 was low and I've been religiously supplementing daily with 5000 units so I feel confident it is in a good range. (I've been low in the past and was able to bring numbers up with 5000 units per day). Folate was tested in 2020 and was within range.
Can anyone look at my bloodwork and comment or have any experience with stress related extreme hairloss?
Also, when I was first diagnosed in 2002 as hypothyroid, one of the reasons I was tested was because of really bad anxiety and panic attacks that seemingly came out of nowhere. Once on medication they completely went away. Now my anxiety is back, it's worse at night causing insomnia and it makes me wonder if it's under medicated thyroid or if it's just the constant stress that I'm living with right now.
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KristinCC
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Thanks for that link! I feel like I have a pretty good diet, but I am gluten and dairy free so I may be missing some nutrients there. I feel pretty good about my D and B-12 intake since they're prescribed by my doctor, but maybe I'll have to get testing on some others to make sure.
My hairloss is quite extreme. I mean, I'm not exaggerating when I say I can pull out excessive amounts all day. There's hair all over the floor, on my clothing, cascading down my arms like spiders. Where my office chair rolls around I can collect a wad of hair each day that looks like a little bird's nest. It's in my brush, the shower drain, my dog is inadvertently eating it and pooping it out. It's pretty bad.
I feel for you Kristen. Horrid when our hair is not what it once was.
Stress can affect just about all of us.
I don't know enough to comment wisely on your blood results, but as a trained aromatherapist, who worked in a secure mental hospital for 4 1/2 yrs, I can assure you some essential oils have a markedly calming effect. If you are interested, I can suggest some? As with everything, we each have preferences, so some oils will appeal to your sense of smell more than others. .... there are enough stress relieving/calming oils that I feel sure you'll enjoy at least one of them :-). They work well together also, so I made up blends for the patients to choose ...sometimes they had a favourite blend, and would ask for that, but every time before I used any oil or blend, I'd put a little on my hands, and rub them together about a foot away in front of the patients face, so they could inhale...and give their Yes first
I'm trying to give you ones that are a fair price and easily found. Please use Pure Essential oils.....synthetic ones are not a plan.
Bergamot...fresh and light. I used to wear it as a perfume when teaching in a school for emotionally and behaviourally disturbed children. Apparently the scent lingered, and staff felt the benefits too
Geranium...sweeter, yet works well with Bergamot.
Lavender...yes, it's all true...it is a calming oil
Those 3, if you like them, can be used happily together as well as on their own.
To keep a good balance, if you want to make a blend, you need 1 of what is called a base note....
Rosewood...again light
Patchouli...that's quite a strong smell, very popular with the hippies I believe
Ylang Ylang...that's another sweet one.
Cedarwood...as it says, smells of cedarwood
A good essential oil supplier should have sample bottles for you to choose from before you buy. Holland and Barrett... sells pure essential oils with sample bottles, though I don't know for certain that they sell each of the oils I've listed.
Once you've made your choice/s, put a drop on your hands (1 of each if you are making a blend, but no more than 3 drops as you want it to be light and gentle for you and others.... essential oils are strongly scented) and rub your hands together in front of your nose, and inhale. If you're happy with your scent, now take your scented hands and move them over your head...you can take them through your hair if you like....although they are called oils they are not the same oily oil as cooking oils Once over your head, take them across each shoulder, and then around the air near your body.... and feel the benefits .
Suggest you retest thyroid levels 6-8 weeks after taking BOTH doses of T3 everyday
Test thyroid levels early morning and last dose levothyroxine 24 hours before test
Last 5mcg dose T3 approx 8-12 hours before test
Or day before test split 2nd 5mcg dose as 2 x 2.5mcg .
Taking 5mcg waking, 2.5mcg mid afternoon and 2.5mcg at 8-9pm
Test following morning about 8.30am
Folate was tested in 2020 and was within range
Obviously that test is now irrelevant as too long ago
As you have B12 injections it’s recommended also to supplement a good quality daily vitamin B complex, one with folate in (not folic acid) may be beneficial.
This can help keep all B vitamins in balance and will help maintain B12 levels between injections too
Thorne Basic B recommended vitamin B complex that contains folate, but they are large capsules. (You can tip powder out if can’t swallow capsule)
IMPORTANT......If you are taking vitamin B complex, or any supplements containing biotin, remember to stop these 7 days before ALL BLOOD TESTS , as biotin can falsely affect test results
I don't supplement either of those, but I eat a couple of Brazil nuts everyday. I know that may not be helping since I don't know what kind of soil they were grown in. I've always thought selenium supplementing was frowned upon, though I admit I don't remember why.
So strange. it is two in the morning here. Got up, weird first thought was I really have not had to tear a huge clump of hair from my hairbrush lately. Used to do that every couple of days And thought boy I lost a ton of hair on levothyroxine (Synthroid specifically). Walked into the washroom and thought the same thing about my hair catcher for my bathtub drain. Has been virtually empty most showers now. And thought yay NDT. Will add that neat little tidbit to my hate mail addressed to my GP, who refused to help me get off Synthroid. She would get a requisition together immediately no doubt looking for another source, it could not be the oh so innocent Synthroid.
Although it is right there in the package pamphlet (of course does not mean everyone who takes it.) Opened.my notifications and there was your post. About hair loss. So who knows, but if I had stayed on Synthroid I believe I would have very little hair left. And it is not from being undermedicated for me, as it existed when things stabilized.
The pamphlet says it is temporary. I had it the entire six months I was on it. Maybe that is temporary to people who do not care how utterly depressing it is to endure.
Whatever it is for you, all the best to you figuring it all out. And hopefully in a timely manner as I know how awful it is to watch happen.
Thank you for replying! I'm glad you've found what was causing your hairloss. Perhaps I will speak to my doctor about NDT. I don't really know anything about it. Doctors don't really prescribe it much here in the states. I've been on levothyroxine since 2002, but now that I look back, I have had recurring bouts of hairloss episodes over the years. Maybe it's been thyroid medication?
Who knows what your reason is, it could be so many things as you can see here. But a change in hormone decision could give some insight. But then again if you feel content with levothyroxine (and T3) in general, it is harder decision to cross off that possibility. Hope you get to the bottom of it soon.
My hair loss stopped with the addition of T3 (Armour) so hopefully yours will too with your additional dose. It took 6-9 months to fully stop though but my hair has never been the same as it was, though being older & post menopause plays a part in that I guess. The loss returns if my thyroid levels are out of balance or my calcium levels start dropping - but that's a whole other story! Hope the extra T3 works for you.
Yes it's an easy blood test to get. Your GP should be able to do it but I have had a thyroidectomy which is why I have problems with my calcium levels.
You have my full sympathy ! I am in the same boat. My levothyroxine medication has been out of sinc.for a while and I have no chance of getting T3 . My iron levels have been low for a while . My hair loss is increasing by the day. It is so upsetting - not many people take it seriously. I have just again had my levo thyroxine medication adjusted - would like to think it will improve! Have lived with varies issues since having thyroid cancer many years ago but moving to a different part of the country 5 years ago the Endocrinologist doesn’t seem to have a grip on things !
Thank you for replying! It is so upsetting, isn't it? My husband tries to be supportive and say it's not noticeable, but I know he's just trying to be nice. He can see all the hair everywhere as well as I can. I hope your new dose solves the problem for you!
I don’t really know an answer, but you are certainly not alone. I used to have such long, thick, fine curly hair, that couldn’t be contained. You know, the sort that would break hairbands. Any how, I have had a thyroid problem for 15 years now. And with that time, on and off hairloss. It is awful and I feel for you. My hair now, is half the length and thickness, and I have just come out of another yet period of loss due to having Covid in the summer.
What I have learnt is my hairloss is telogen effluvium, and probably the chronic type. The thing is, no one really knows what causes it, but vitamins and stress are supposed to be involved. Triggers also start it off. Then the shedding tends to happen 3months after the event, which can last for up to 9 months before slowing down. Trust me it will slow down, and stop, and you will notice new hairs where it is regrowing. Sadly for me, I found the new hairs would shed too, before it finally stops. In TE, the growing phase of the hair follicle has shortened, if we can figure out how to lengthen it we are laughing!
I tend to think the whole thing about hair shedding is definitely due to thyroid problems and immune system (I don’t mean an autoimmune cause, but I think our immune systems are slightly out of whack .) However, I don’t think synthetic replacement of some of the hormones is enough to replace all the intricacies of what is missing. So I think the only thing we can do is try to reduce stress, (stop stressing about the hairloss- it will slow, you won’t go bald, and it doesn’t look bad to others - easy to say, I know, we notice it!) reduce illness, supplement/nutrient dense, get the thyroid balanced as well as we can, and believe the hair loss is a phase that goes through a cycle and have patience it will lessen and regrow.
Like you, I am now on combo, 88mcg of levo and 20mcg of lio. I hoped the lio would sort the hair loss, but it didn’t (because I was already shedding, and it has to go through a cycle.) like you, I thought I needed my levo to go back up to 100, but actually I feel great on my dose. But, I had being losing a lot of hair since August and it is now slowed right down.
What I tend to do when it happens, firstly, believe that it will stop! Secondly start trying to have a really healthy lifestyle, thirdly make sure all vitamins are good _ ferritin, b12, D, etc, then I do tend to buy some hair loss supplements, they can be expensive, and the jury is out wherever they actually help, they all claim to take several months before you see the effects, but TE, seems to go through cycles of hairloss that lasts months anyway. The thing is, psychologically, they make me feel better in that I am doing something proactive, and I tend to use a nice shampoo and conditioner. I have used ‘Forisene’ and ‘Hairburst’ and ‘L’Oreal Elive Dream Lengths’ shampoo range. The last time I had really bad hairloss was 2 months after my first AZ vaccine which lasted for months and months. I used Hairburst and Dream lengths and 18 months later I was thinking my hair had looked the best in years and length. (I am doing it again now, and know it will take a year or so, to get the length and thickness back from regrowth).
Interestingly, in the worse of my hairloss, my scalp would ‘prickle’ and you could see the strands literally drop out! That has also subsided.
I think the way to check if the anxiety is caused by too little or too much T3 would be by trying it over a few days as it has a short shelf life. I wouldn’t play with the T4. But, I don’t think I should be advising you to tinker as I am not a doctor!
Thank you for replying! I'm sorry you're experiencing this, too. Looking back over the last 20 years, I can say that this is not the first time this shedding has happened. The one time I pushed for some vitamin testing it was shown that my ferritin was low, right before menopause started and when I supplemented with iron, the shedding resolved. But it's never been this bad or this prolonged. And I totally know what you mean about the scalp prickle! I experience that as well. I wish doctors were more interested in looking for a root cause and not just offering drugs. I'm starting to look like Smiegel from lord of the rings! Arg!
My hairloss was just like you described. After a blood test revealed I was low in Zinc (below range), my Gp prescribed a Zinc supplement for a short period. This seemed to have been a real help, at the time I was also working on increasing my ferritin level.
My hair has not returned to its full thickness especially on the top of my head but the hairdresser recently commented that after approx 1 year my hair is becoming thicker at the back.
I now don't notice any excessive hairloss. During this time I have been on a T4/T3 combination and more recently NDT. I try to ensure that supplement consistently as recommended on the forum with regular checks.
I hope my experience helps. My hairloss was possibly one of the most distressing symptoms. Trying to manage all the symptoms associated with autoimmune conditions is stressful in itself.
Thank you! You're not the first person to mention zinc or NDT so I will definitely talk to my doctor about both. I'm glad you're seeing results 😊 It's so strange that hairloss is so hard. I also cope with several autoimmune diseases and with those I just get on with all of it, but the hairloss is just so hard.
All that I'm about to tell you is purely my personal experience, and is by no means any sort of medical advice. I had hair loss from extreme stress about 30 years ago but recovered; it took at least a half year. Then well over a decade ago, my opthalmologist had recommended 5 g of Omega 3 for dry eyes (this is a high dose). I did this for 1-2 months and saw some hairfall, so I stopped taking it. When the hair stopped falling (about 2 months) I resumed the Omega 3. The hair began to fall again, so I stopped taking Omega 3 for good. I won't even take a lower dose. I also noticed this with turmeric, so, as much as I would love its benefits, I won't take that either.
In the meantime, over the last 10 years, I experienced a receding hairline which I do attribute to age. Along with receding, I was getting triangular inroads of skin at my temples. In 2019 I started using Pycnogenol, I think for better vein health (I have varicose veins). Since then, my hairline has come forward a little, and the triangles have been covered over with fine baby hair. I recently switched my iron to Now brand iron, which seems to have boosted the effect a little. I was very surprised (and pleased) to have this effect. I can't say for certain that it is caused by Pycnogenol, but it started to happen about a year after starting on it (and I didn't change any other of my supplementation; that's why I think it's Pyc.) . The standard Pyc. dose seems to be 150 mg, but I suffered terrible dizziness with that, and only do 60 mg a day. Around this time I had considered asking about thyroid medicine (my tests are fairly normal), but I never got around to it.
Again, these are only observational anecdotes. But I do feel so strongly for you; I remember how emotional I was about seeing my hair coming out in clumps. So I'm telling you what seemed to cause hair loss and hair growth for me. I wish you the best of luck and hope that you find something that will work for your body.
Thank you for taking tge time to respond! That's interesting about omega 3. Isabella Wentz talks about adding that supplement to help with regrowing hair from thyroid hairloss. I guess it just highlights how different we all are and how hard it is to figure out. What works for one person may not work for another. I'm glad you were able to see some unexpected results with pycnogenol!
I too have hairloss above my temple/receding hairline, but only on my left side. It was more than receding, I actually had a bald patch. It seems to be slowly growing back, but I have another bald patch in the back, also on the left side.
I do think at least part of my hairloss is from extreme stress and I'm happy to hear that your hair recovered. Hopefully mine will too 🙂
Kristen. I can relate to your stress . My blood tests were all high or lowe depending on what the tests were for a couple of years now. My son is a medical professional and has had to deal with psoriasis since he was a teenager. He developed a diet for himself that has all but cured all autoimmune diseases he was afflicted with. It consists of fresh veggies and fruit processed in his food processor. ( and a turkey sandwich on seeded wheat bread ) that’s it! Then I came down with chronic hives, I changed my diet. It seems we both have histamine intolerance. So first I , take my Armour thyroid, then the blood pressure meds, selenium and kelp for thyroid. Then nothing red. No tomatoes or tomato products. No canned or processed food like cookies or chips, canned foods are loaded with histamine. ( frozen peaches or mangos are good)Cereal is oatmeal or grape nuts. Coconut milk and raw sugar that’s lunch. No coffee, or only one cup with milk and a scoop of collagen protein powderNo acidic juices. I know it’s hard but if you can focus on the things you CAN eat , you’ll figure out how to cook for yourself instead of waiting until you’re sick, and trying to get help. After a couple of days. You will feel better and be able to sleep. Get a free app that tells you the things that are low in histamine. You will be surprised at how much better you will feel. Try to eat as much protein as possible and if you get an iron skillet to cook your chicken and beef in, you will increase the iron in your blood so you’ll feel stronger. I take a womens multi vitamin( Garden of life brand, ( Amazon) and look at a lot of UTUBE videos that give me good ideas as to what to eat. No alcohol allowed not even wine ( high in histimine) I wish someone had told me these things 10 years ago. It would have save me a lot of sleepless nights. You would be surprised at how much info is on UTUBE. It’s free too you just have to watch a few commercials. LOL
Thanks for your reply! My husband has histamine intolerance and he struggles with his diet despite all the research he's done on it. He did lose quite a bit of weight when he started it due to cutting out all the processed foods, so I guess that was something good to come from it though he still struggles to pinpoint all his triggers.
I've been following the autoimmune protocol diet for a couple of years. It seems to work well for me as far as keeping all my stomach problems mostly at bay from PA and gastritis. I've been wanting to add a probiotic to my regimen and you reminded me about that with your message, so thank you 😊
I don't know whether this could be relevant but I have Hypothyroidism. I been recently informed not tested though, as yet, the link between gluten intolerance and thyroid malfunction.
Here is a link but explore all other links possible and get a test.
There could be many reasons for your hair loss, my doctor said that through times of stress i.e. job change, losing a loved one or pet, or losing your job etc. hair falls out like a waterfall.
keep your hair lost in a bag or something and how long for that amount of hair to be lost. show it your doctor.
As I said there could be other reasons but anything is worth exploring.
Thank you! That might not be a bad idea to collect my hair loss for the doctor to see. Sometimes I think he thinks I'm just being dramatic. I think he would be shocked to see the amount.
When I got diagnosed with PBC in 2016 I went gluten and dairy free and I felt so much better right away.
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