To think my hair is serious cause for concern

[sociallakwardme]

I have always had thin hair. Never took much notice of it. It's thick enough at the sides.

People started commenting that my hair had got thin at the top of my head. Mainly my ex. I didn't take too much notice.

Then my parents expressed a concern. I presumed it was because of stress and it would grow back now the stressful situation is over.

But just now I've seen a photo of the back of my head and I'm really shocked!

The back of my head looked quite bald!

I took two photos. One with flash and the other without.

I'm really concern so made an appointment with my GP.

Does this seem like normal thin hair to you? Or actually so thin it looks abnormal?

I am 25 and a healthy weight. Eat a balanced diet. This hair loss seemed to start a year ago. Three years after I gave birth.

Good idea to see the GP.
Do you have any other problems e.g. Tiredness?or illnesses?
Could possibly be some sort of anaemia /Thyroid issue.

I think you should have :

*Full Blood Count,
*Iron Stores,
*B12 & folate,
*Thyroid Function blood Tests to begin with & then take it from there.
Good luck OP

Get your Iron levels checked, specifically the ferritin, which I think needs to be at least 70 for hair growth but preferably 130-150.

The doctor can tell you you're Iron level is 'normal' but it's the ferritin number that's important.

Good luck, I think thyroid is another thing to check.

Iron Stores bloods gives you a reading of ferritin.

I think that looks like fine but normal hair. Not someone going bald.

The flash will make you look 10 times more bald so I wouldn't bother looking at that pic. The one without a flash you can see some scalp but it doesn't look too bad.

Maybe others will disagree though.

Thanks for the replies so far.

I know what I need to check for and have a GP appointment booked for Monday. Hopefully the GP is helpful as they have you out in 10 seconds flat there.

My AIBU is does it seem like a medical issue or just normal but thin hair?

I just took a picture of the back of my head for comparison, and I would have to say that I think you are experiencing hair loss. Sorry :-(.

Your GP would be a good point of call. Thyroid and iron tests for starters.

My hair started getting really thin after I had DS. I went to the GP and had blood tests, turns out I'm deficient in B12. I'm getting regularly injections of B12 now but sadly my hair hasn't really thickened up again.

Don't be sorry. I specifically asked for opinions. I genuinely want them as it's hard to tell yourself.

Loads of people will have thicker hair than me. My hair is fine and always has been. Would be interested to see if other people with fine hair have scalp showing through too.

I will see what the doctor says. It is impossible to know what could be the cause if it's a medical condition without medical tests.

Yes, I'd be worried (sorry OP).

Not in a "you must be dying" way, but it may be a symptom of a (fairly easily treated) underlying problem that needs attention. Good luck with the GP - don't worry about it, but do follow it up.

I have very similar hair to yours ! Had it for a long time and never had any specific tests, though I had plenty of bloods done when pregnant and no specific issues came up.

If you want to cover it up, try the Nanogen powder from Boots. Works very well, looks very natural!

Also, once I realised you could see my scalp I became a lot more aware of other people's hair as well! I started to see scalp on a good few people when I never had before.

Do you shed a lot when washing/brushing?

I would be concerned - it looks more than a little thin, to me.

Stop saying sorry! I'd MUCH prefer people were honest.

I have very similar hair to yours I do wonder if I'm just unfortunate and have bad hair. I can afford nano ring hair extensions so could use them to cover it up.

If I was older I wouldn't be so concerned but I'm only young.

My hair doesn't seem to fall out when washing or brushing.

Weirdly it's not that thin at the bottom or sides. Just bald at the top.

I would never have even noticed but other people told me.

I cut my hair short and it seemed to get better but when my hair grew it seems to have got worse.

I don;t suit my hair short at all so wearing it short isn't an option.

I have lost 6 stone since 2013. Don't know if that could cause it.

Firstly have a hug cos it is crap. I had this a year ago. My iron levels were ridiculously low and my b12. My iron levels are still low it takes a very long time to build them back up but get everything checked through a blood test also get your thyroid checked.

Finally it is stressful and stress doesn't help. I bought Dr hair thickening fibres which you sprinkle on your head and it acts as a cover up. It's expensive but last ages. Available from Amazon just helps with confidence and stops you worrying.
With the iron tablets I was advised to take l-lysine tablets 20 minutes before than have the iron tablets with orange juice and cut down on caffeine. All this will help your body absorb if that's what it is. Please feel free to PM me.

Have you tried Biotin supplements? Have a look.

Honestly that looks much thinner hair than you would expect at 25 even if you had thin hair if you see what I mean.

I agree you should see your GP as it looks like some kind of hair loss that is out of the ordinary for your age group.

If you were 50, I'd say don't worry about it but that's not the situation.

If your parents are commenting, that implies that there's been a change that they have noticed, rather than this just being "how your hair is".

sorry to say it looks similar to hair loss I had after stress from a serious injury.

mine grew back - no intervention other than recovery and biotin.

Is it possible that you have a hidden stress that might be causing this? Some people do just plod on and their stress emerges in physical ways.

I think it's perfectly reasonable to see the doctor for this btw. I hope you find a solution. It might just be low iron or something very simple. Best wishes to you.

I have lost 6 stone since 2003 Weight loss can be a symptom of underlying issues, unless you intentionally lost weight by following a calorie controlled diet?
Do you think you might be low in iron? There's no harm in trying supplements.

I don't think it looks that bad. I can't see any actual bald patches. Some people do have less follicles on their head. Perhaps just keep an eye on it? Take a photo a week for comparison?

I recently had this due to a highly stressful period this year. Stress can really mess with hair. I think what happens is that the normal hair cycle is messed up. Usually we have the growing phase, the resting phase and the shedding phase. Times can vary from person to person (some people have a long growing phase and so can grow their hair longer than others). In periods of extreme stress many more follicles can go into the resting phase. Then, when you think the stressful period is over (usually three months later) the whole lot will go into the shedding phase - hence suddenly noticing thinning. If there are any hairdressers on here and I have got this wrong please feel free to correct me!

Me personally, I had general shedding and also a patch of alopecia areata which is now growing back. This all happened after the stressful period was over and my blood tests were all normal.

If it is stress give your body and mind chance to recover. But I agree that seeing the doc is a good idea too. Hope it resolves or you get clarification as to what is causing it

I think it looks like definite hair loss - I have it too. See your dr.

This article is interesting regarding stress and hair loss:

www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2016/03/why-stress-makes-your-hair-fall-out/471771/

This happened to me a few years ago when I lost several stones in weight (sadly regained now). It was on a VLCD (which I would not recommend). Unfortunately for me, I was (am) a lot older than you are, and when I saw the dermatologist she told me it was female pattern baldness and there was not a lot to be done. I think in your case, with you being so much younger (I was in my 50s when this happened) there will hopefully be something they can do.

I found that having my hair a lighter colour helped - I also used to use this:

www.toppik.co.uk/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIo976lYqO1QIV4b3tCh0D-QwNEAAYASAAEgLsAfD_BwE

although I have to admit I don't bother so much now. Mine wasn't so bad at the bac - but awful on the top. I worked with teenagers so you can imaging how I found out about it. Also my mother told me (whilst at the same time telling me that her hair was just as thick as ever).