Help losing my lovely hair

[giffyp]

I’m 47 and had long hair all my life, over the last year it’s been thinning out falling out really bad I can’t even have hair extensions if it’s falling out, I’m so worried about it, I’m not going through the menopause, I’m taking biotin and vitamins…..anyone got any advice?

Are you 110% sure it isn't menopause or peri-menopause given your age? Might even be the start of it if you have no other symptoms.

Next stop would be bloods for thyroid and ferritin.

Absolutely no other symptoms….. 🤷‍♀️

Have you had covid in the last 6 months? Mine is coming out in clumps as is my young daughters. We both had covid for the first time in July

Mine thinned quite a bit with menopause. I’d no other symptoms either. And then having had covid end of June has really exacerbated it. I’m taking Viviscal now but haven’t been taking it long enough to notice much difference.

Mine too, I think it's perimenopause. Biotin is helping, but needs to be the 10,000 units strength. Will also be trying plantur to see if it makes a difference.

Yes I had covid in June 😳

Oh dear ….. could be then?

It’s quite common it seems although I wasn’t aware of it. Apparently the stages of the hair lifecycle change and more of the hair think it must shed. It can last for 6 months and often 3 months after covid recovery but does grow back normally. Fingers crossed!!

Have you had any blood tests done at doctors ? Thyroid, iron etc is what I would be asking for. Average age for women to go through menopause is 50, obviously this varies but the chances are you will be experiencing some peri menopausal hormonal changes like dropping oestrogen even if don’t have any other visible signs. Lack of oestrogen can cause hair thinning /hair loss. Peri menopause can start ten years before your last period. I found that my hair thinned and stopped growing as fast during peri menopause. It wasn’t drastic I just noticed it around my hairline. I started HRT patches as I was having a lot of other symptoms but not hot flushes strangely, and it took about 2 or three months for it to help with hair thinning but I get HRT is not suitable for everyone. Also one other thing to mention is if you’re dieting and not getting enough calories hair is one of the first things to suffer as it’s seen as non essential by the body. Hope you get it sorted soon.

@giffyp I would place bets on it being covid. I had a terrible shed 3-4 months after I had covid that lasted over a month. It will slow down, a good B-complex vitamin may help.

Could be covid related. Also a peri menopause symptom given your age, or just middle age connected, or thyroid. Might be worth a visit to the GP.

I'm only a few years behind you, in case it looks like I'm being rude re. age.

I have just swapped to Gruum shampoo bars and my hair has stopped falling out, I thought my hair loss was due to the stress of DH's illness but now I am wondering if it was related to the shampoo I was using.

Are you noticeably underweight at all?

Following. Same age with significant hair loss over the last six months or so. Bloody hair everywhere! Also had covid earlier in the year so praying its down to that and not permanent!

It may be Telogen effluvium, OP. When the body goes through severe stress or shock the brain doesn't care too much about hair as it's disposable, it concentrates on the parts of the body that are needed to survive. I knew nothing about this condition until I went through severe grief over an unexpected death. When I researched with the help of Dr Google I came across telogen effluvium. This was 2019.

It wouldn't be surprising that it may be an after-effect of covid-19. After all, not only is the body concentrating on fighting a virus, but with all the scary stuff we've been bombarded with for nearly three years, it might cause extra stress to the body if you're scared of having it. I've been through the menopause and didn't see any noticeable difference in my hair. I got covid-19 for the first time in July this year and about a month ago I've started losing lots of hair again, which was upsetting after my hair had been back in such good condition after the stress of 2019.

The good thing is that if it is this condition it only involves one hair cycle and the follicles are still healthy. It's shedding of the hair because the body isn't concentrating on getting blood to the follicles because hair isn't important (unless you're a Yak I suppose). The hair shedding will be back to normal when the next cycle of growing starts. I started using a B12 oral spray from Holland and Barretts which didn't need to be taken with food (that would have been no good as I wasn't eating). It did seem to help with the texture of my hair.

My dermatologist Dr Natalia posts a lot about hair loss

Have you considered Minoxil ?? VERY highly rated

Things like rosemary oil also help !

PRP is another option but expensive

I found Watermans shampoo and conditioner and nioxin pretty good, they won’t stop your hair falling out, but they’ll make what you have remaining look thicker. Texture dust is quite good too.

Maybe get your thyroid checked out? I lose hair by the handful when I am both hyper and hypothyroid. It is very alarming! Tends to come out from all over rather than patches appearing which is helpful as it just generally thins rather than leaving patches…but still….sometimes leaves me wondering if I will have any left

Don’t waste time. Same thing happened to me at 46. Get a referral and see a specialist scalp dermatologist or trichologist. (Scalp derm is better imo). I was prescribed oral minoxidil (same medication as rogaine) and spironolactone after having bloods, 10 days of hair fall (brush, clothing, shower, etc collected in ziplock bags to be counted) and 2x scalp biopsies to diagnose types of alopecia. So glad I didn’t faff around for too long. You don’t know if anything works for at least six months.

I have been having the same problem. My hair, already quite thin, is shedding in huge amounts. In the shower I gently run my hands over it while rinsing and handfuls come out and I don’t know what to do about it.

Me too. It's been really noticeable for the past 3 weeks.

I had Covid (fairly mildly) at the end of June
I lost my Mum very suddenly in July

Both seem likely culprits according to PP (am also hypothyroid and my thyroxin was reduced around the same time)

I'm going to ask my GP to raise my thyroxin back to previous levels and start biotin to start with - thanks to everyone for suggestions, I will bookmark for future reference

Covid mid July for DD and I too, mines been dropping out in alarming amounts for about a month, DD's has just started.

Happened to lots of people I know.

I had covid in May and my hair shedding increased rapidly in the following months. I was surprised though as my covid was extremely mild-I had a headache for about an hour and that was it! Very strange.
I would agree that you should get your bloods checked by GP including ferritin and thyroid bloods. I did and I'm now on iron for a low ferritin.
If it's Telogen Effluvium I don't think minoxidil will work. For me, the temporary hair loss alerted me to the fact that I probably have age related/menopausal baldness (I'm 48) and I also have an underactive thyroid so it's no surprise. I've just started minoxidil liquid at night but aware I won't see any difference for months. I'm also on HRT and thyroid meds.
Maybe think about a private derm apartment too? Would be useful for a diagnosis. I have one in December but I may now cancel as I'm on minoxidil anyway so not sure what else they can add at this stage.

Have you considered Halo extensions? It shouldn't damage your hair and will help your hair look thicker.

Mine too. The only things that have helped me are collagen gel supplements (also made my nails very strong) and this weird hair growth oil that I got off Amazon.