Hair not growing. At wits end.

[SirVixofVixHall]

My hair, always fine and problematic, has now become deranged looking. I don’t want to crop it but I’m in despair as to what to do. The back of my head has hair that seems to grow. The top and sides won’t grown much beyond three inches. I don’t know if it falls out or breaks at that point. There are some longer hairs but the majority stay short. I’ve been trimming the back myself, but I don’t trim the shorter bits, they just don’t grow. Initially I assumed it was breaking as I’d had highlights, so I stopped colouring it. My hair is all my natural colour now but still not growing. I have been on HRT for six or seven months, I think my hair is slightly thicker but still not growing. My gynae thought maybe low iron levels could be to blame ? I have an under active thyroid, I think my levels need improving but it didn’t seem to improve my hair at all anyway . I am so depressed by it, it looks so awful and makes me feel hideous.

It’s a supplement, OP. Obviously do explore any medical avenues, however my blood tests were all tickety boo amd that was the only thing that worked.

It makes hair regrow/ grow faster.

Drinkfeckarsegirls - I googled, and there is the one you can buy from their website and then the professional one which comes from a salon, do you know if there is any difference ?

Sorry op, are you already on meds or is your tsh rising and they're waiting to diagnose? If you're on meds your tsh shouldn't be left to rise, they should be increasing meds as tsh increases. Generally on levo (with some exceptions like heart issues) your tsh shouldn't be over 2 and some people don't feel well until it's under 1. According to my endo the reason many people still still feel unwell on levo is because they haven't been on enough levo for long enough.

It's not usual to be given liothyronine and it's not easy to get. TUK was very helpful for me: healthunlocked.com/thyroiduk

PS. I can totally identify with what you said about carbs. When I was at my lowest ebb it was all I could think about. Then I went through a beef phase where I just ate huge lumps of beef. It was a strange time!

I had a lot of fluid retention too which meant I went up a dress size and was visibly bloated. My facial features changed and I was barrel-shaped.

Yes I’m puffy and like a lump of dough. Ugggh. I’m on levothyroxine but my TSH has been higher each time I’ve been tested over the past 18 months. Just slowly creeping up. This time last year I had more energy than I do now. I felt a bit bouncier in the new year when I started HRT but I have no reserves, if I do anything slightly more than normal then I’m quickly shattered. Like running on a virtually flat battery.

The ones you can get easily in shops has caffeine in it - you really want the professional one. I got mine from Amazon and eBay. I was recomened it by a hairdresser/ trichologist (he was not trying to sell it to me, they did not have it in the salon).
It took a month or so to see a difference in my nails and 3 months to see a change in hair but I have now a lot of regrowth (and no baldish patch near the front hairline!) and the other hair is griwing quicker then before.
It is pricey and after 2 months you’ll be like is it working but it really does.
I can’t say all my hair that fell out before regrew but my GP said said that is unlikely to happen.

The one I’ve used is in the white/ silver box amd the normal one is in pink box. I mean you could try the more easily available pink one (and cheaper) but I haven’t tried it so cannot recommend and that hairdresser was adamant the professional is better.

As I mentioned my issue was with falling hair and your seems to be slightly different but I don’t see why it wouldn’t stimulayed faster/ longer hair growth.

I will try it, I’m willing to give anything a try ! Did you get the shampoo as well ? I have to go back to my GP about my thyroid but they are generally hopeless and tell me my levels are fine unless they go really high. I’ve never seen an endocrinologist, I would see one privately but have no idea who to see ( my friend in Bristol sees one but still isn’t well ). My GP didn’t comment on my vitamin d level so I didn’t realise it was dire until I looked at some comments on another thread.

Have a look at TUK. There are ways to get better There is helpful info in the Anthony Toft book (or you can get his Pulse article for free) which might help you get more help from your gp. For some reason they often think that your tsh needs to be within range when that range is normal for people before they're diagnosed (which is in itself not without controversy).
You can also ask for endo recommendations in your area. I wouldn't bother seeing one privately at this stage (your gp is a better place to start) and certainly not without a personal recommendation. Pm me if you have any questions, I'd love to help if I can.

I did ask my GP if I should see an endo, she said no. So I politely left it there ..I hate going to the Docs, I get really stressed. I’m going to get my levels tested next week and then think of how to proceed depending on what they say. I’ve become used to being so tired, my pre baby self seems like another life. I can hardly remember what it was like to have energy !

I did laugh at the beef. I don’t eat meat, but I have had patches of craving beef. Which is weird as I can barely remember what it taste s like -I’ve been vegetarian for decades. Very kind of you to offer advice, I know I need to try and get to a better place with my thyroid. I think I’ve pretty much given up hope of ever feeling normal.