new thread
I'm not sure if anybody remembers me, but I used to come on here between 4-7 years ago.
I used to have a glorious mane that was thick and vibrant, and I took great pride in it.
Much to my misfortune, I've traded my regular visits to this board in favor of frantic visits to hair loss forums.
Yes, I've been losing my hair for awhile now and in that time all has seemed bleak. It pained me to come on here and see everybody's progress pictures while my hair was regressing.
However, I've been doing endless research, and it's become more and more apparent to me that I likely don't have Male Pattern Baldness.
I've probably lost 60 percent of my hair volume, and the texture of my ENTIRE head of hair has changed over the years, including the sides and back. All of the hair is really fine and brittle. Despite how much hair I've lost, I really don't have any bald spots. I do have a bit of a widow's peak, but I've had that since I was 18 and I'm 27 now, and I do have one very small spot on the right side of my frontal hair line that has receded slightly, but that's the extent of it, it hasn't receded any further in the past 16 months.
I guess the first red flag should've been the most obvious thing, that I'm 27 years old, 6 ft. and 126 lbs with the inability to gain weight. Obviously something must be wrong, but that wasn't my method of thinking. First of all, I've been this way my whole life and it's always been downplayed by my Doctor who rather than to test me, insisted that I'd start to put on weight by my mid 20's. Secondly, as soon as someone hears that a male in his 20's is losing hair, the typical slogans appear - "It's Hereditary", "It's your destiny", "You better sell your soul to the makers of Propecia", "You should just shave your head" etc...... along with people throwing out the percentages and the odds aren't in favor of a post-pubescent male who's experiencing hair loss having something other than MPB. People really need to be more careful about tossing these rehashed statements around because it just might cause someone to live in a needless hell for several years when they could've went to the Doctor and gotten tested and had it treated right from the beginning.
The thing is, when I first noticed that I was losing hair, I thought perhaps that there was an underlying cause, but everybody steered me in the way of hereditary hair loss and whereas I was inquisitive before, I then became very sensitive to it.
Anyways, I haven't been to the Doctor yet so perhaps my optimism is a bit premature, but I plan to go in the coming weeks and want extensive testing done. I won't settle for a 2 minute hair evaluation and a prescription to Propecia, which is the paranoia I've had that's kept me out of the Doctor's office until I've discovered my new found hope.
I hope to be able to post my Progress Pictures within the next year or 2, because that would mean that I've found a solution to this problem that's been bogging me down for nearly 2 years now!
(Please note, I hate the way that my hair looks and don't like taking picture of myself these days, but I'm including a picture just to give you an idea. The first picture is how I present myself, and to those who aren't aware of how much hair I used to have, they might not notice that I'm losing hair and just think that I have lousy hair. The Second Picture is a little more candid, and reveals the extent of my hair loss. My hair is this thin throughout most of my head.)
Hello, I don't remember you as I didn't hang around on the boards then (I'm a long haired female who likes giving support to long-haired men, I hate the discrimination..)
Anyway, one of the first things you should have check is your thyroid. I had a similar problem a few years ago, and turned out I had an overactive thyroid. It will also explain your inability to gain weight :-)
Good luck at the doctors.
I can second that comment about being sure to have your thyroid levels checked. For most of my adult life my thyroid has gone through periods of severe overactivity, then back to normal again, which did a real number on my hair (and my weight).
The fix is pretty simple actually, if it turns out to be that. They can administer a microscopic dose of radioactivity in pill form, which collects naturally in the thyroid, effectively killing off part of it and reducing its activity level. Took a couple of years to have its final effect but it did the trick for me. Good luck!
If you don't mind my asking, what was the extent of the effect that it had on your hair? Was it a general thinning throughout with shedding? Or did you experience any recession? Also, was any miniaturization present in the hair follicles?
First of all, remain calm, and stop panic!
To give you a boost, and i think bymyself, and i mean it... your hair looks great in the first pic!
Everyone with Long Hair is stuggeling with hairs that come out. It is absolutely normal that if you wash your hair, let it dry, and comb it out... that you loose and amount of... lets say 40 or 50 hairs. Some people experience more, and some less.
If you struggling with the thoughts that you losing hair, it could be verry, verry, verry stressful... and stress is also a major thing that increase the loss of hair.
Maybe you have a reducing hairline, but that would not say that you are going bald. On the picture, where your hair hangs loose, it looks great, so don't listen to people that say.. cut your hair
What you can do is as follow...
Take Brewers Yeast. (Here in the Netherlands it is called Biergist) I am taking it since i let my hair grow (i was 17, now i am 21) it is full of Vitamine B and good for your hair.
And a extra Vitamine B complex could also do no harm.
Also Sex plays a major role in reducing hairlines and baldness. If you have allot of Sex, your body is making a substance that is called DHT. DHT ensures that your hair follicles are shrinking.
It is proved that drinking Green Tea, your body blocks the production of DHT. Same for Zinc supplements.
So cut back Sex, take Zinc supplements (25 to 30mg would be enough) and instead of drinking coffee, soda, take Green Tea!
Try to make a regime for your self, it would ready do something to keep your beautiful hair.
A good regime would be...
In the morning before you have breakfast, take Brewers Yeast, a Vitamine B complex, en brew a strong cup of Green Tea.
At noontime, when you have lunch, also take Brewers Yeast, and after lunch also take a cup of strong Green Tea.
Dinner... yes again take Brewers Yeast, and the Zinc supplement. And before going to bed, brew 1 or 2 strong cups of Green Tea.
I'm doing this for years now, and it works pretty well for me. My hair is healthy, and no big deal on shedding.
You should try it :)
Maybe you can ask Absalom for some other tips! He has experience with MSM and Biotin, also great supplements to improve hair growth.
Take it easy, stay safe.
Regards,
Vincent
Hey, Vincent, I can't remember of having seen you here before, but what a great mane, and a good bunch of advices ! I wasn't aware for the green tea (luckily, I began to drink tea recently, not always green, but often anyway), nor about sex (sex is good, anyway, I wish I had more... :D). But I guess jk has worn his long hair for a long time, so he's probably aware of his usual shedding.
Jk, welcome back ! Sorry to hear about your problems. I don't know you, but I think your hair on the picture is not too bad. The hairline seems thin, I agree, but not so much receeding in my opinion (you seem to have a big forehead, also. Like me, by the way :()
I agree with you : too much people think only about hereditary Male Pattern Baldness, while the cause can be another thing. Let us know about the opinion of your doctor!
Maybe you can stimulate your scalp by massage and good brush if your hair allows it ?
Good luck !
Vivien
Hello Viv!
I was posting here a few months, maybe a half year ago. This is my new user acount ^^
Yes, Herb tea's will some good for your Hair. Every Tea has is own working.
Green Tea is good for blocking DHT, if you brew it right. If your water is cooking, 100 degrees, just let the water to cool down for 5 or 6 minutes, till it's reached 70 degrees. Then put the Tea bag in for 10 minutes.
If you put your Tea bag of Green Tea in water what is cooking, than the benefits of Green Tea are going dead, so than you have nothing more than water with a taste.
For full benefits of your Green Tea, cool down your water for 5 of 6 minutes, then put the Tea bag in, and let it in for 10 min.
Nettle Tea... This Herb Tea is full of Silicium.
Silicium plays an very important role in the growth of beautiful, healthy, strong nails and Hair! Especially the production of keratin, a main component of hair and nails, is supported by the presence of sufficient Silicium.
So, if you are drinking 2 or 3 cups of Green Tea, and 2 or 3 cups of Nettle Tea a day than you have a good basis.
For brewing Nettle Tea... same way as brewing Green Tea, but let the bag in for 15 min instead of 10.
You can also rinse your hair with Nettle Tea after washing it and massage it into your scalp. Great for dandruff problems! Don't wash it out :) Since i rinse my hair with Nettle Tea... do that for a year now, i don't have dandruff anymore.
Herb Tea's can do allot for your hair!
About sex, well... i have my own thoughts about it ;-) Too much sex will ready do no good for your hair. It will increase the making of testosteron in your body, and your body convert testosteron to DHT, and DHT will kill your hair follicles.
And sure... there are allot of things that causes mpb. It could be in the familly, or stress, but every little bit that you are doing could help. Experience the benefits of herb Tea's can do no harm.
Oh, believe me, I've been fighting this every step of the way, but I've been fighting it as MPB.
I've been taking Brewer's Yeast in powdered form for about a year now, have been doing regular scalp massages to increase the blood flow, have been taking Procerin (Saw Palmetto which blocks DHT) for 2 1/2 years etc...., but it's still gradually thinning out, even on the sides and back of my head which is really a sign that I have something other than genetic hair loss occurring.
***JK, i do sympathize with you, and I don't know if there is a more shocking feeling than when ur taking a shower and getting hair wrapped around ur hands and draping down ur body! Especially if you are a lonh-hair lover, as I am. I am a 35 y o female with very long hair (almost past my butt now), but for a while I was losing massive amounts of hair. My part was noticably WIDE. It was discovered that I had thyroid cancer. Now, before you panic, that's not the cause of the hair-loss. BUT...a malfunctioning THYROID can definitly cause hair loss. There are many syptoms of a poorly functioning thyroid (google if u wish) for example, a hyperactive thyroid (producing too much hormone) can cause weight loss, and headaches. Underactivity can cause a person to feel fatigued and cold when others around them feel warm. Please have your Dr check your thyroid functions. Blood test for T3, T4, TSH, and Thyroglobulin should give you a sure result. In conclusion, I have been taking thyroid hormone replacement pills since 1997, and I have long, thick, healthy hair...that always gets compliments. Good luck brother!!!
Thanks to Vincent mentioning DHT I decided to look it up further and found this wonderful page http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=248793 I would recommend anyone interested in the mechanics of hair read it, it is relatively easy to understand (unlike reading a research abstract, although towards the very end it starts to seem like it).
Enjoy, take from it what you will.
Hi jk,
Well I'm not sure if I knew you back then as I became involved with this board back in 2005.You certainly were around in the early days though which is cool.I'm sorry to hear that you are dissatisfied with you hair as the first pic looked fine to me.Since I don't have a side by side comparison of past and present its hard for me to judge if you lost as much hair as you claim as 60% certainly is a lot of volume to loose.My own hair is fine like yours appears and I'd love it to be thicker than it is too.Luckily I never felt it has thinned a lot over the years but certainly it does lack serious volume.I'm hoping you are being way too critical of your own hair and its just the way your hair is based on its type.I do hope you are willing to show some more pics of your hair so we can put your worries to rest my friend:)
Mark
Well, thanks for the compliment but it's hard to feel good about my hair when I keep losing volume and it feels so brittle.
Here's a picture of me from 2003 just as my hair was starting to thin out, before it really impacted it. You can see the ends were starting to show some signs of wear, but I really didn't notice that I was losing hair until 2006. I had attributed my loss in volume to hair damage before that.
Thanks for posting that pic jk as your hair really is fantastic in that shot!I was wondering though is your length still the same today as it was in 2003?Your current pic is mostly a head shot so I can't tell.However, from what I see of your hair today it still looks great but I understand being concerned if you are feeling like its thinning out.The brittleness, I'm sure,can be solved with some haircare product and supplements can help your overall hair health.Please keep the faith my friend as I'm confident you will get through this.Cheers
Mark
My hair isn't nearly as long, but it's a few inches below shoulder length. However, my ends are practically non-existent nowadays.
JK,
Wow! Seriously, what a beautiful amount of hair. Great lenght, and thickness.
I wish my hair whas thick as yours then.
Take care my friend, you sure will find a regime that work for you. And pls. dont try to stress, cause that will do no good :)
Greets from the Netherlands,
Vincent
jk, if the photos are both current you look pretty good to me. You probably don't want to be told that but your hair on top is a lot better shape than mine. But I'm almost twice your age which probably has something to do with that : )
I wouldn't worry about your weight. It may be normal and also, a lot of guys would kill to have your weight problem. I don't weigh much more than you but I'm a few inches taller and I seem to be okay.
Anyway I am not trying to imply that you should do nothing; I think you should still explore various actions and continue to get information so you are informed but try to not worry about it too much in the process.
Rob
Jk!
Yes - I do remember you from 2004.
I am confident that you will find a professional that will spend the time to help you identify your needs and find a regimen that works with your body chemistry.
BTW, I do think your hair still looks very nice!
All the very best to you!
- Oren
Hi jk,
I wish there was something I could say to help ease the pain and hurt of what you're going through; but it sounds like you've been grieving over this issue for long time now, and all I can think of to say is that I hope you continue to get as much professional advise as possible to help you out, and that the situation improves greatly for you.
Personally, I don't think your hair looks all that bad right now. But, I realize that in the pic you showed of yourself from several years ago, by comparison of course I can see less volume now than when you were younger.
Regardless of whatever the medical outcome may prove to be, my best to you!!
- Ken in San Francisco
People make you feel guilty or self absorbed if you express any concern over hair loss if you are a man. But if you are a woman test must be done, solutions found. The truth is that unusual hair loss can be a sign of some being arye.
Dr. Oz speaks of this in this segment of the Oprah show. At about the 6-1/2 minutes mark, he talks to a woman who has hair loss and the results of her tests.
People make you feel guilty or self absorbed if you express any concern over hair loss if you are a man. But if you are a woman test must be done, solutions found. The truth is that unusual hair loss can be a sign of some being arye.
Dr. Oz speaks of this in this segment of the Oprah show. At about the 6-1/2 minutes mark, he talks to a woman who has hair loss and the results of her tests.
Good luck to you and please let us know of your results.
Bruce