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hello--my story at 31...
Hi everyone. I have recently come across this forum and wanted to introduce myself and share my story and concerns here to see what others think and how they may have handled their own situation.
First, I just turned 31. Around 6 months ago I noticed my hair thinning. Prior to that I have always had very thick hair all over, although I have always had high widows peaks (type II on the Norwood) it has never been anything I worried about. Then it seems like out of nowhere I started shedding all over and a lot of the hair coming back in was coming in thinner. It is now about 6 months later and starting to become more noticeable. When my hair is dry I can still hide it fairly well, but my sister has commented that my hair is “flatter” ( I have not yet told my family about what is happening).
A little family background: There is baldness on my father’s side of the family. Not everyone is affected by it, but my father and his brother are – my dad more severely than my uncle. There is none on my mom’s side of the family. Therefore, I guess I am genetically predisposed to MPB. I thought I was fine after I hit 30 and showed no signs of thinning or hair loss….
My initial thoughts (and my way of trying to fool myself into thinking it was a temporary condition): A couple of months prior to the onset of the profuse shedding I was finishing up some very challenging exams and coursework to complete my degree, while at the same time dealing with some very stressful situations in our condo building and with my work. My sleeping and eating habits were incredibly poor. I thought maybe that stress and my health triggered a telogen effluvium that I would recover from. In some ways I am still hanging on to this notion. Another reason I had this belief is that the onset was very sudden and there were no sign of this before that.
My other concern and what I believe may be a possible culprit is that for a while I started taking workout supplements - Creatine and Whey Protien. I have been off of it since I noticed the hair thinning 6 months ago. I am curious about something. Hypothetically, if these supplements somehow did trigger that genetic predisposition, then does that mean there’s no turning back? Once triggered there is no un-triggering even though I have stopped taking these supplements? Just curious.
Some other things that I have noticed that perhaps may be a normal progression of MPB but I will mention just in case. Occasionally I either feel itchy or have a tingling sensation on the top of my scalp. I have only really been paying attention recently so I can’t say if this has always been the case. I have noticed the shedding is more severe in certain parts of my scalp over others. While generally the concentration of the hair loss is the top of my scalp the worst part seems to be on the right side of my head where the top and side of my scalp meet. Most of the hairs that fall out regardless of thickness have a bulb at the end and some with a white bulb at the end. Also on some, it seems that there is skin or something that falls off with it – it is a little bit higher than the bulb. There have been times that I have noticed a lot of hair coming off from the side and back of my scalp and thinner hairs growing in those spots as well. Again, it could just be a part of the normal progression…
I have had my thyroid and iron levels checked – no probs. I have not taken anything yet. I did buy rogaine a few months ago and it is setting in a drawer untouched. I have thought about the hair laser thing, but haven’t yet wasted the money on it and probably won’t.
Well, the past month or so I have followed the herbal supplement craze. I got the B, saw palmetto, green tea extract, ginseng and ginkgo biloba. And I see reading around this forum that there aren’t many supporters of it. I have also been following stem cell research, and Regenica, and Aderans, and recently came across the MatriStem Micromatrix finds on the baldtruth. But who knows when and if any of these things will come to fruition. I am at a point where I am now considering HT. Should I try meds first? If so which ones do you recommend? I am physically fit and definitely in better shape now than I was in my teens. Most that see me assume I am 3-5 years younger than I am. I am not ready to let it all go yet. I know I need to act quickly. I feel I’ve already wasted a lot of time.
I can’t believe how devastating this experience has been to me emotionally. I cannot imagine what it would have been to experience this at a younger age than I did. To all of you out there who did and to those who are, I empathize with you and hope that a real cure becomes available sooner than later.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and I appreciate any feedback, and personal sharing, and any ideas or suggestions you can provide.
Take care,
-missingmyhair
First, I just turned 31. Around 6 months ago I noticed my hair thinning. Prior to that I have always had very thick hair all over, although I have always had high widows peaks (type II on the Norwood) it has never been anything I worried about. Then it seems like out of nowhere I started shedding all over and a lot of the hair coming back in was coming in thinner. It is now about 6 months later and starting to become more noticeable. When my hair is dry I can still hide it fairly well, but my sister has commented that my hair is “flatter” ( I have not yet told my family about what is happening).
A little family background: There is baldness on my father’s side of the family. Not everyone is affected by it, but my father and his brother are – my dad more severely than my uncle. There is none on my mom’s side of the family. Therefore, I guess I am genetically predisposed to MPB. I thought I was fine after I hit 30 and showed no signs of thinning or hair loss….
My initial thoughts (and my way of trying to fool myself into thinking it was a temporary condition): A couple of months prior to the onset of the profuse shedding I was finishing up some very challenging exams and coursework to complete my degree, while at the same time dealing with some very stressful situations in our condo building and with my work. My sleeping and eating habits were incredibly poor. I thought maybe that stress and my health triggered a telogen effluvium that I would recover from. In some ways I am still hanging on to this notion. Another reason I had this belief is that the onset was very sudden and there were no sign of this before that.
My other concern and what I believe may be a possible culprit is that for a while I started taking workout supplements - Creatine and Whey Protien. I have been off of it since I noticed the hair thinning 6 months ago. I am curious about something. Hypothetically, if these supplements somehow did trigger that genetic predisposition, then does that mean there’s no turning back? Once triggered there is no un-triggering even though I have stopped taking these supplements? Just curious.
Some other things that I have noticed that perhaps may be a normal progression of MPB but I will mention just in case. Occasionally I either feel itchy or have a tingling sensation on the top of my scalp. I have only really been paying attention recently so I can’t say if this has always been the case. I have noticed the shedding is more severe in certain parts of my scalp over others. While generally the concentration of the hair loss is the top of my scalp the worst part seems to be on the right side of my head where the top and side of my scalp meet. Most of the hairs that fall out regardless of thickness have a bulb at the end and some with a white bulb at the end. Also on some, it seems that there is skin or something that falls off with it – it is a little bit higher than the bulb. There have been times that I have noticed a lot of hair coming off from the side and back of my scalp and thinner hairs growing in those spots as well. Again, it could just be a part of the normal progression…
I have had my thyroid and iron levels checked – no probs. I have not taken anything yet. I did buy rogaine a few months ago and it is setting in a drawer untouched. I have thought about the hair laser thing, but haven’t yet wasted the money on it and probably won’t.
Well, the past month or so I have followed the herbal supplement craze. I got the B, saw palmetto, green tea extract, ginseng and ginkgo biloba. And I see reading around this forum that there aren’t many supporters of it. I have also been following stem cell research, and Regenica, and Aderans, and recently came across the MatriStem Micromatrix finds on the baldtruth. But who knows when and if any of these things will come to fruition. I am at a point where I am now considering HT. Should I try meds first? If so which ones do you recommend? I am physically fit and definitely in better shape now than I was in my teens. Most that see me assume I am 3-5 years younger than I am. I am not ready to let it all go yet. I know I need to act quickly. I feel I’ve already wasted a lot of time.
I can’t believe how devastating this experience has been to me emotionally. I cannot imagine what it would have been to experience this at a younger age than I did. To all of you out there who did and to those who are, I empathize with you and hope that a real cure becomes available sooner than later.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and I appreciate any feedback, and personal sharing, and any ideas or suggestions you can provide.
Take care,
-missingmyhair
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