Hair Loss - Help!

[quiger]

Hi Susan,

Good point. Now I just wish I had all their money to buy a good wig, lol.

Take care,
quiger

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[Rania]

I'm so sorry to hear about what you're going through.  Hairloss is so tragic and sad to experience. Unfortunately it comes both with the disease and with some of the medication. Methotrexate is a real "hair-killer", since it is also used to treat cancer. It is chemo therapy. But at larger doses then of course. Even Plaquenil can pull out the hair unfortunately.

I was very sad and down in the basement mentally when my hair started to fall out. I was still working, I was trying to date a man and I practically had a lot of good thing ahead of me. Or so I thought. Well, the hair went "bye bye", and I had to cut my hair to try to hide it. But since my hair is so thin, typical Nordic hair, it was not easy to hide.

Next step was to find a good wig. Fortunately, the social security system here support you with money to buy a wig if it is necessary because of a disease. And it was so for me. I picked out a couple of wigs, and they was too expensive for the ss system to cover it all, so I had to pay about 80 dollars myself. (If I did the math correct now, when "translating" the money unit here to dollars.) I was very pleased with my wigs, and I even believe I put out pictures of them here on the board, well the old board, last year.

Now my own hair is not falling off so easy, but it is still thin. But I don't have to wear the wig every day. I sometimes put it on though, especially if I'm about to sit in places where people might be sitting behind me, and might see how thin my hair is. In church by example, or in weddings, on shopping sprees (well, that happens just only once in a blue moon!!).

I wish you all the best and good luck with finding a solution that is best for you.

Rania 

[tsvales]

Thanks to all for your help.  I guess it's just a vanity thing.  You know, one more thing taken away.  I have always had very thick hair and these bald spots are really upseting.  I wonder if it is from the injection methotrexate that I am taking.  It is a higher dose than the pill so perhaps that is the cause.  I also noticed that I have lost most of my eyebrows.  I don't know when that happened, but they are extremely thin and I didn't pluck them that way.  I actually don't think I have plucked my eyebrows in a while.  Now, I know why.  All I keep thinking of is Joan Crawford with her hideous drawn on eyebrows.  Now, if only the hairs on my chin and above my lip would go away...........Geesh, I certainly have a bad attitude about this.  I am going to go to the mall and check a couple of wig places.  They have a wig store in our local hospital, I will check there too.  I think I will feel a little better about myself if I didn't have to look at these bald spots.  My hubby came home with a couple of scarves for me.  I am going to try them too.  I also am calling my hairdresser for an appt. next week.  Perhaps, she can work some magic.  LOL

Thanks again for all your support.  You are such a great group.

Take Care,
Sandi

[quiger]

Hi Sandi,

When I read about your eyebrows, it sounded so familiar. I had a problem with my hair and eyebrows falling out. It turned out, my thyroid was low. My eyebrows never did grow back but at least they stopped falling out and I still have some (but not much). If the doc hasn't checked your thyroid, he/she may want to do that. It could be a combination of the meds and thyroid problems. Forgive me if you have already addressed the thyroid issue. My memory is terrible.

Take care,
quiger

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[jangytexan]

Well,

I look like barbie (only the 1950's ponytail NOTHING else)  If I cut it I would look like a flower...did anyone every cut the pony off barbie?? Or am I just too old to remember?

I am vain especially about my hair as I had to give up on my body... Still I do the best I can and laugh over my hairdo!

Love to all and I am making light of a serious problem.  Like all of you money goes elsewhere so the wig thing is out...I do sew lovely hats I wear though.

jangy

[Kewanee]

I have long silver hair. I have had trouble with thinning and noticed alot of loss after shampooing especially.
My Doc. said take Biotin for it. I researched and found L-Lysine has had actual studies done and that it does help promote hair regrowth. I take both now.
I bought Nioxin Shampoo and treatment. I don't like the treatment, love the expensive shampoo. I also bought the very expensive Thymasilk, or something like that...I'd have to get up a check. I see no difference with it.
I think the vit. from the inside is the best way to go.
A little caution on wigs. If you ware them to often they will rub your hair off.
~Kewanee

[Zelia]

My hair is also thinning quite a lot and I don't take anything except eye drops and nasal sprays at the moment. So I can't really blame anything I'm taking. I always thought hair loss was due to hormonal changes we experience as we get older.  I'm in my 50's, and when I look around at other women my age or older I notice quite a few with thinning hair. It would be interesting to hear from the younger ones if they have this problem. I feel sure I've had Sjogren's since my 20's and my hair was great then. However, I expect the dryness of Sjogren's makes the condition worse.

Zelia

[quiger]

Hi Zelia,

I know genetics can play a big part too. Today I saw a lady in the waiting room who must have been in her late 70's and her hair was much thicker then mine. There are so many factors that can contribute to hair loss. Mine started with thyroid problems. I just hope it stops before it gets too noticable.

Take care,
quiger

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[irish]

Quiger, I have had the thinning hair off and on for several years now. I did not realize how thin my eyebrows were until our youngest son got married. We had the family picture taken with boys, wives and grandkids and for some reason the photographer had the brightest lights I have ever seen and the light was bouncing off the lens of my glasses. I told him I would just take my glasses off and I go without them a lot at home.(until its time to eat--I need them to see my plate lol) Anyway when I saw that picture I almost died. It is just terrible. I am so pale and very thin eyebrows0just yukky. I have always had such thick ones and had to pluck and never needed eyebrow pencil. Never again will I take my glasses off for a picture.

It was very interesting to see that my thyroid is so screwed up. I imagine that is some of the reason for the thinning hair. I think a lot  of people with autoimmune have thyroid problems long before they are aware of it.

Hope you are not melting. The HUMIDITY is really terrible today. I get more house bound in the summer. Just can't take this heat. Hugs Irish

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[quiger]

Hi Irish,

My eyebrows are so thin too. I have to use eyebrow pencil when I go out. I do have them colored when I have my hair done so what there is of them is more noticable. I know, some people don't think we should do that but, too bad, lol. The hairdresser does it all the time and I have never had a problem. I used to have such nice eyebrows and hair, and now they are both thin. I know a lady whose eyebrows fell out completely because of her thyroid and they never grew back. At least mine aren't that bad. And do you know what really stinks? The hair on my head and my eyerows have thinned and yet I have more above my lip. I go through more hair remover than ever before and have to do it more often. Now that's just not right. 

The heat and humdity is still bad here but I see that it is all over. It's stifling to go outside so I try not to. Stay cool.

Hugs,
quig

[irish]

Quiger, Did you hear me howl when I read your post about the hair above your lip?  I just hooted. Why? Because last night I had the magnifying mirror and was looking at all the hair that is growing on my face. Even a little brush on the chinny chin chin!!! Yikes--I hate this part of getting old.

Everybody still thinks I have a lot of hair, but I sure know that it is thinner and I can feel it plus there is more in my brush and on the bathroom floor. My hair is so dry and just brittle almost. I like my mostly salt and pepper hair the best but it gets so bushy and the only thing that settles mine down and gives it more body is to color it. I do it myself.

So, it seems that hair is important. Now I have another question. How many of you sjoggies are having lots of problems with skin tags and moles etc. I have had skin tags since the mid 80's and had them removed--one time he zapped 65 and charged me for 50. Wow!!! Like how can he keep such close count!! The next time he zapped over 100 of them. I haven't had it done in years as insurance wouldn't pay for it.

I have a bunch and I mean a bunch of these hard skin protruberances that come where ever skin surfaces touch. They itch like crazy at times and if you run your hand over my skin I feel like an alligator in those areas. And I am talking large areas. I can't wear very low necks, I am also getting all these strange things on my face also. I think it is very good that husbands and wives age together. That means our vision goes and we don't see the imperfections!!! I have had a long hair growing on my face 2 times that my husband has not told me about. When I found them I almost died!!

So gals, on the way to the Golden Years grab the hair color, Nair, tweezers, Compound D, Preparation H, Polident, Gold Bond Powder and the corn pads. Cripes, no wonder we don't work----we don't have time. Irish (Did I miss anything?)

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[quiger]

Ha ha Irish. You are so funny. I don't have skin tags yet and hope not to. I think the skin cancer I deal with so much is more than enough.

Keep up that great sense of humor. It helps all of us.

Hugs,
quiger

[loisellenatkins]

     I was rather vain about my hair.  I always admired Katheryn Hepburn and thought it was a cool hair treatment with her up sweep.  My hair turned gray early but it turned a beautiful silver was flashy in my younger years. It was double thick and to below my behind.  Four years ago 3/4 of it fell out. Rummey said it was stress, SJS combined with the meds.  It was so bad I burned out a motor in my vacuum.
    I cut my hair in a bob and it has come back almost as thick as it was. Now I am just happy to have hair.  Why did it come back, I got my stress and SJS under control.