Females and Hairloss, how to cope.

[xlevelorx]

I guess I'm here mostly for support. This is my first open forum, so if I'm doing this wrong let me know.

 

I am 19, in college, and just recently started losing my hair. I have a bald spot forming on the left side of my head and a receding hair-line. My Doctor has recently informed me that I've lost 50%+ of my hair and it doesn't seem to be getting much better. I have been using Minoxidil for nearly a month and prescribed Lidex for just a week or so. My doctor took a punch biopsy Monday and I will receive the results March 14th.

 

My question, I suppose, is how do you deal with the appearance changes? I've been having a lot of issues coping and end up in tears nearly every time I brush my hair. How long, if at all, did it take for specific hair solutions to start working?

 

I know it's going to be a struggle the rest of my life. I just wish it hadn't started so soon. It'd be nice to connect to people with similar issues.

[Thehairupthere]

I as like many others on this form know what it is like to go through a situation like this, but for a woman they can be especially difficult. Minoxidil usually takes anywhere from 4-6 months to start working and by that I mean you would notice less hair falling out at the point, and possibly new hairs growing, but the process for growth can take closer to one year. The results from the biopsy will be very important if you are considering hair transplantation, as certain conditions can prevent you from being a candidate for the procedure. There are cosmetics that you can use to mask the thinness that work quite well, such as Toppik, and Dermatch, they simply color your scalp and give you the appearance of having thicker, fuller hair and wash away in the shower. Consult with a specialist once you have your results and if you are interested in this type of procedure you can ask them about it.

[EpilepticSceptic]

Do you have any clear photos of your condition from the top down ? I ask this because maybe your hairloss is not quite as bad as you think, and you might be able to pull off some styling changes that could easily mask it.

 

Concerning how to cope with how hairloss dramatically changes your appearence at a young age, I guess you could say I am an expert on that subject. My hairloss was pretty unique in that almost all of it occured from age 20 to 25 and then slowed down dramatically afterwards; however, what happened in that time period was quite drastic to change my frontal appearence. Not to sound conceited, but all thru my teens and til about age 21 I was constantly being chased by women exclusively for what they considered good looks. Pre-hairloss I was basically considered to be male model material which back then I bitterly resented because I felt it to be so superficial.

 

Anyway, it only took about 3-5 years for me to go from looking like a male GQ model to Richard Nixon! It was nothing short of shocking and I just had to swallow the bitter pill. As I look back now it was probably the best thing that ever happened to me because it turned me from a cocky, insensitive punk into an artist/writer/poet who needed to seek the deeper meaning in life. I suddenly looked age 35 even though I was only 25, and the superficial attention from women was completely gone.

 

I would recommend that you turn it into a positive instead of a negative. If that is you in that photo then I would say you look like a vibrant beautiful young woman to me; it's what your eyes say that really makes you beautiful IMO. Of course, at age 42 I could practically be your dad; but in my mind's eye I am no different than when I was 21, except much wiser and happier. I believe that the human body is just a suit for the soul anyway and something that we throw away like an old rag at death.

 

If we didn't live in a culture that was so materially obsessed then none of us would have any problems with something so completely meaningless and trivial (in the grand scheme of things) as hairloss. Imagine how a superior and bald alien race would feel about the people on this forum stressing out about hairloss ? I actually think hairloss is part of evolution to be honest, and there will likely come a time when ANY hair on the body is considered quite unattractive. We are just still in the dark ages today unfortunately.

 

 

 

I guess I'm here mostly for support. This is my first open forum, so if I'm doing this wrong let me know.

 

I am 19, in college, and just recently started losing my hair. I have a bald spot forming on the left side of my head and a receding hair-line. My Doctor has recently informed me that I've lost 50%+ of my hair and it doesn't seem to be getting much better. I have been using Minoxidil for nearly a month and prescribed Lidex for just a week or so. My doctor took a punch biopsy Monday and I will receive the results March 14th.

 

My question, I suppose, is how do you deal with the appearance changes? I've been having a lot of issues coping and end up in tears nearly every time I brush my hair. How long, if at all, did it take for specific hair solutions to start working?

 

I know it's going to be a struggle the rest of my life. I just wish it hadn't started so soon. It'd be nice to connect to people with similar issues.

[xlevelorx]

I have a sense of humor that I use to mask my insecurities. I joke about my hairloss as a way to deal with it... but inside it's difficult to deal with. Perhaps this is shallow, but I've never really been attractive. I was over weight for a very long time. I finally lost the weight and now my hair is falling out. I know it's awfully childish to say, but its "just not fair." I guess not much is.

 

I have my hair styled so you can't that it's more than thin, but the amount of hair I have is rapidly decreasing. I actually have a comb-over type deal with my bangs, ha.

 

 

The lucky part I guess, is that I'm in a happy, committed relationship, with someone who loves me regardless of how much hair I have. "When it gets bad, we'll go wig shopping together." I have a lot of support from my significant other. Just not very much from myself.

 

and Thehairupthere: I can hardly afford the treatments I'm going through now. Anything else is out of my price range. I'm 19, in school, and born to a lower-middle-class family. It's lucky our insurance even covers my prescription.

 

 

 

That was what it looked like when I started the Minoxidil. It has since gotten worse.

Edited February 16, 2011 by xlevelorx

[wb280]

orx, i feel for u girl, its tough. Being 34 and losing my hair for the last decade was traumatic to me and to think that can happen to 19yr yo girls, thats a damn bitter pill to swallow. Thank god for concealers, as i was able to mask my loss for the better half of the decade. I was losing so much that concealers had no native hair to cling on and i simply looked weird. Right now, after my HT, though i lament the density ( mind u, i have a few more months of growing and thickening ), at least i have some hair where it used to be really really sparse so i can use concealers again. You might want to consider using it but here's the rub. To apply concealers to make it look good, there is a certain style. To make it simple, u can only mask the scalp so any hair which is drooping down will not be able to benefit from concealers. Hence, if u have longer hair, the tresses will look thin.. If u are really determined to mask your hair loss, u might have to sport a much shorter hairstyle and drizzle concealers over your scalp. Just my 2cents

 

Anyway i am sorry again to hear of your hair loss. You can garner support from all of us here in this forum, we will be happy to share our opinions and ideas and most importantly, a listening ear

[RCWest]

I was over weight for a very long time. I finally lost the weight and now my hair is falling out.

 

How drastic was your diet? Harsh dieting can trigger hair loss for sure! Also, women can suffer from hairloss caused by PCOS or hypothyroidism. My aunts hair thinned like yours because of low thyroid. I also have a lady friend from school who has PCOS and her hair has thinned dramatically because of the hormone imbalance it causes. Get these things checked out!

Edited February 19, 2011 by RCWest

[xlevelorx]

How drastic was your diet?

 

My diet wasn't drastic at all. I lost 35lbs over a few years. It wasn't a "biggest loser" type weight loss and I still maintain a healthy amount of calories every day. When I was younger I struggled with eating disorders so my Mom's first reaction was asking me about my current "diet"

 

But to be honest, I'm the healthiest I've been in a long time. I consume the correct amount of calories daily and exercise 4-5 times a week. Which I guess is part of the reason this hair loss is so frustrating... I wasted so much time being young and stupid.

[Storm]

xlevelorx, argh i read your story and made me feel so frustrated for you because I went thru a similar situation. I've been losing hair steadily the past 10+ yrs (i'm 29 now), and it never really bothered me the first 5+ yrs because i have otherwise very thick hair. But everything that fell started falling from the front! So incredibly frustrating. Then the past 5 yrs the thinning accelerated and became too obvious to ignore. I spent thousands (which at times i didnt have..) on minoxidil, the regaine/rogaine type shampoos, gallons of herbal/medical tonics like Neril, and lots of herbal treatments that my mom swore would work. And which obviously didnt

 

Was so depressing because my 'Patch' was right at the front. And the past year i realised it was spreading because the front bit (surrounding the Patch) was getting thinner. I just did a FUT from Dr Pathomvanich in Bkk 3 days ago. 981 grafts. He was absolutely brilliant. Obviously its a long road ahead now waiting for the transplanted hair to fall out and then wait for my hair to start growing out. But just looking at the dense packing he's done is cheering me up.

 

But i know just how ure feeling. Its incredibly frustrating, esp as a young female, to have to agonise over your hairline, thinning hair, 'patches' etc. And the worst thing is that just like yours, mine was more obvious and became worse when i lost weight (healthily). SCREAM!

 

I got tired of living on side parts and increasingly conspicuous side combovers. I was so so sick of not being able to use a head band, comb my hair straight or do a side part. To some these are 'little' things, but if you're a chick in your 20s, not been able to use a head band or comb your hair back in 10 yrs, and you spend loads of time trying to creatively think of ways to style your hair, that was too much for me.

 

So hang in there. hugs. Dont know what more i can say to help other than you're not alone. In my case nothing else helped and i didnt want to waste more money on other things and decided to do the HT. And ironically the HT cost is a fraction of what ive spent on other things, including herbal gimmicky stuff. If you decide this is for you, only if, and then when you can, i strongly recommend you do your full research and find a good surgeon to help. I'll keep uploading progress pics on my blog so hope thats an inspiration for u to work towards

[xlevelorx]

You know, you're the most relevant person I've had contact me on here.

I'll go days even weeks being okay with it and pretending it doesnt bother me... but it's getting increasingly worse. I thought I was having regrowth but my girlfriend informed me "it's probably just breakage" and pointed to a spot I should probably start treating.

 

Every where I go I see bald women and want to cry. At the rate my hair is falling out I'll have a large, noticeable, spot by the age of 25.

 

My doctor will tell me Thursday whether or not treatment will even work and why exactly my hair is falling out. After that I don't know what my plan is. I know there's no way in hell I will be able to afford a HT any time soon if ever.

 

So I guess I'll just hold my breath and hope for decent results.

 

Thanks for commenting, you've helped.

[Storm]

x, keep us posted of what your doc says.

 

i bought a beret over lunch. SIGH!

[ThinandDropping]

Hi Xlevelorx,

 

I'm a woman and I used to have a lot of hair when I was young. Then I started losing hair after my children were born and it never stopped dropping.

 

I used to have beautiful shoulder length hair but now it has to be cropped short so that it doesnt drop so much. Even so, if I touch my hair, strands will just fall off. I despair whenever I wash my hair because so many hair strands clog up the draining cover.

 

Your photo doesn't look that bad but I would suggest you keep your hair short. Have you tried any of the hair restoration tonics? Did they help?

 

I tried many types but with zero results except that my bank account has gone down very significantly. YOu know how those consultants talk you into buying this program and that, and poor me, so frantic and still vain about my looks, agreed to those programs. I even tried 2 courses of oxygen treatment to revitalise the hair follicles but nothing grew out of it. Some of my follicles have closed up, meaning no more hair production while the baby hair that struggle out are so thin and pathetic that a touch will knock them out of their base.

 

I use a concealer or thickener like Biothick which camouflages the bald spots and it works fine. So I don't look so terrible with thin hair and scalp showing through. This is only when I go out for functions, like my son's wedding. I couldn't look awful, had to make him feel good about his mum who used to be very glamorous at one time.

 

Cheer up. Whatever you do, keep your spirits up. Your personality is more important. It's what comes through that is beautiful and makes you look and feel beautiful. People will forget about your hair when your personality sparkles through.