Treatment and diet

Hi everyone-- I was diagnosed with AA a few years ago.. a few spots came up, none larger than a ritz cracker. I was responsive to the steroid treatment, but they kept happening, so I eliminated gluten from my diet, and started clean eating along with exercising and had great results. Then I stopped eating clean, and stopped running regularly and the spots came back. I still wasn't consuming gluten, which I thought was the true trigger to the AA spots, but I guess not. The treatments are more often than not successful for regrowth, but really who the hell likes getting shots in their scalp?! In any event, has anyone found and tricks that kept their loss at bay? or at least reduced the frequency of the spots? I'm finding new areas at least once a week, and I'm starting to fear the worst (for me)-- total hair loss. HELP!

xo, 

Gina

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Permalink Reply by fitblondebrit on June 22, 2015 at 6:47am

Hi. My diet is clean, to the extreme. No sugar or dairy, no meat other than chicken and fish. No grains other than quinoa and oats. The only beverage I drink is water.. And I'm a complete fitness freak. Excellent for all over health, well being. I'm 54 . However I don't believe my diet and fitness regime helps my hair much, if at all....I highly recommend clean eating for its many benefits .. but don't think one of them is great hair..

Permalink Reply by Pam D. on June 24, 2015 at 10:26am

Short answer...no. I was diagnosed 3 years ago w/AA. Had shots, hair came back, fell out again, had shots, fell out again...was more aggressive the second time my hair came back (determined to keep it, I guess), fell out a third time, but lost almost everything where the first 2 bouts I lost 80% and kept my eyebrows and eyelashes. I am healthy, exercise, no stress (retired); I will admit to a less-than-perfect diet, but I'm not overweight, my blood pressure is low, cholesterol normal.

I think this condition affects everyone differently; some lose all their hair permanently, others may have times of regrowth, but I have never heard of anyone who has gotten their hair back permanently once diagnosed. I have seen people here write about their "success", but I could have claimed "success" the first time my hair came back. I never see follow-ups to any of these success stories, so I'm left wondering if they really had permanent success or if they were just experiencing a time of inactivity. My feeling is they is their hair fell out again.

This time, since the hair loss is so severe, my doctor has prescribed Plaquenil. I am seeing re-growth of my top eyelashes, a few eyebrow hairs, and some growth on my scalp. The growth I was getting before the Plaquenil kept falling out; so far, the hair is not falling out and I'm seeing more of it, so I'm hopeful. Even if my hair does grow back, I fully expect it to fall out sometime in the future. As it is, it will take months for it to look anything close to normal. Definitely a roller-coaster ride, but this is my life and I have accepted it. I honestly don't know if it is the drug at work, or if my AA is just cyclical.

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