Alopecia World
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Diagnosis: Alopecia areata
Yesterday I got a confirmed diagnosis of Alopecia Areata and my first treatment of steroid injections in my scalp. I discovered the bald patch on the back of my head, January 31st. I ran my figers through my hair and felt bare scalp, so I went to the bathroom to check it out and I had a patch the size of a 50 cent piece. I checked my pillow, the shower and every where I could think to look and found a few hairs, but nothing out of the ordinary..I don't know how I could have lost that much without noticing. I was in a panic and made an appointment to see a dermatologist and started doing research online. I came across quite a few testimonies of other woman having the same problem and claiming it was caused by the mirena iud, which I had at the time. I immediately scheduled an appointment to get mine removed in hopes that it's what was causing my sudden hair loss. It was out by mid february. My dermatologist says that there is no way my mirena iud caused this hair loss and that it is in fact just Alopecia Areata. She said the fact that my mother has asthma, my father has multiple sclerosis, my uncle has a history of alopecia and my oldest sister has lupus (all autoimmune diseases) supports my diagnosis. Initially I was relieved to have finally figured out whats wrong with me and to start a treatment plan, but today it's hitting me pretty hard. I realize that not much time has passed between my discovery and the diagnosis and there is a chance my hair loss could get worse..I'm only 24 years old and in good health otherwise. I have had hair loss before, after both of my children were born, it was mostly around my hair line and temples and although it was very noticeable it was easy to cover up with my bangs and it grew back on its own almost immediately after it fell out. I guess for now I'm just going to keep up with the injections, watch for regrowth and hope that no other patches appear, but I'm really struggling with the fear of possibly losing all of my hair. I'm happy to have found this site and already feel better knowing I am not alone in this.
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Comment by angelwings on March 11, 2013 at 5:50pm
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Hiya Braya.. well come to this site. I have also just joined. I went to my Drs and got told i had aa. Like you mine was a50p peace but has gone bigger and it's also at the back of my head. I have been told that there is nothing they can do but to just carry on and see how it goes. Please let us know how the injection go. Take care :-)
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Comment by Braya on March 14, 2013 at 1:36am
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Thanks, I'll be updating every now and then just to keep track. It's only been a few days so I don't have much to say about it yet. The shots weren't bad, it was over with really quickly, but there was a burning sensation for about 20 mins after. My dermatologist says I can wash and style my hair like normal so that's what I'm doing and trying not to stress myself out. Of corse this is a huge deal to me, I never imagined I would be dealing with hair loss at my young age, or ever...because I'm a woman. I've noticed my anxiety increasing and it's definitely taking a toll on my self confidence which was small to begin with. Some days I just want to sit and cry and some days I feel ok.
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Comment by George Ortiz on March 16, 2013 at 9:58am
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Hello, there is very promising news on the horizon in the microbiology world concerning Lform and biofilm form bacterial overgrowth within the human body and its direct correlation to inflamitory autoimunual diseases of all types. The studies show unmistaken connections between inflamitory diseases in the human body and internal biofilm bacteria that resides within the body gone undetected by current testing. Biofilm and Lform bacteria are the cause of all autoimmunal diseases the articles posted below show this. If interested please read the articles, personally I owe it to myself to read up on this current break through information. we are all victims of this current situation. If you wish to read the article just go to www.bacteriality.com and read Dr. Randalls discoveries on biofilm bacteria.
and also check out the Marshall protocol websites google Dr.Trevor Marshall or google the marshall protocol. I hope this information consoles every one who reads it in some way.
If you believe in this movement please let the word out contact your primary care physicians and inform them of this breakthrough information give them the websites so they can read the published articles and read about the current conferences and currently ongoing human trials in effect.
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Thanks George, I'm very interested in any bit of information I can get my hands on right now.
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Comment by Stephanie on March 20, 2013 at 8:52am
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Sounds all too familiar! I found my first bald spot in january also, mine was all around the back of my ear, about the size of two quarters. I freaked, feeling what felt like a babys bottom on my head, there was no hair what-so-ever in that patch. Of course I also panic and began to read all sorts of stuff online about what it could be. Then I found it, Alopecia, it said something about giving your self a tugg test, which means tugg a little on a bunch of your hair, and if more than 5-8 pieces come out.. chances are it was going to be alopecia. Sure enough, lots of hair came out.. and it just kept coming out. I went to a derm. the following week, and he made me so upset. telling me chances are i'm going to lose all my hair, and there's not cure or known cause. basically in other words he told me to just deal with it. I went home that night feeling lost, and like i was about to be pretty ugly with no hair! After joining this page, i talked to a few people and they made me think about getting a second opinion. After seeing a second derm, he made me feel much more positive. He told me I had alopecia areata, and that chances are the bald spots i had (about 12 of them the size of dimes at this point.. in just two weeks time) were going to be the only ones I'd get because of the type of alopecia. That was great news! He also suggested the air injected cortizone shots, and I got those done that same day- which wasnt too bad, just kinda sore head afterwards. Since the injections it has been 5 weeks. I go back this friday to the derm to see if theyre helping.. though since my patches still feel pretty smooth, and my hair still falls out all the time, I'm starting to lose hope again though. I'm up to about 23 small patches throughout my head, and i'm begining to not be able to hide them. I've already cut bangs, and moved my part around, but i'm starting to see thinning right on the top of my head, and i'm not sure how i'm going to hide that one! Im still not letting this get me completely down though, I have a man that loves me no matter how much hair i have on my head. And I will find the confidence to just embrace this, that I am sure of. I hope you can too, and I will let you know how my second checkup goes as far as any hair regrowth! Good luck with everything, and if you ever need someone to talk to thats on the same page as you, hit me up!
(:
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Comment by nursekati1981 on March 20, 2013 at 11:04pm
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This is interesting. I too developed AA after having the Mirena IUD implanted. Not sure if it was the cause since I had major stressors around this time also...traumatic c section delivery....Father passing. Nevertheless, AA is something I've learned to deal with, whatever the cause. I had some very hard days in the beginning, trying to accept this horrible disease. But there is hope! It gets easier and easier until one day you realize AA isn't the only thing you've thought about. Then, happiness returns! Keep the Faith and trust that our God will provide answers about AA and the peace that we all need to deal with AA! God Bless and good luck!
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Stephanie, Thank you for your post, it helps so much to know that I'm not the only one going through this. So far I still have just one large spot on the right side, just a few inches above my neck. I've been having my boyfriend take picture for me about once a week, but I'm starting to think thats not very helpful for my mental state, I am obsessing about it even though I think that the right thing to do is just to let it be. There are no noticeable changes since my discovery of the spot, I think it might have gotten a little bigger, but that could just be my paranoia. Luckily for me it's in a spot that's easily covered up. I feel like my hair looks thin and stringy lately and I can really see the difference even though no one else seems to notice. I have only told my immediate family and my boyfriend about it. I'm still sort of in denial and am thinking I need to get a second opinion and maybe some blood tests to rule out other possible causes. My mom is really pressuring me to get tests done since we have a family history of Lupus and my oldest sister was just diagnosed. The dermatologist that I seen sounded so sure about the diagnosis, but it seems like it only took her 2 minutes to decide thats what I have. I want more evidence.
nursekati1981
I've had my IUD out for a month and have seen no noticeable difference in my hair growth, but my mood has improved and I just feel better without it. How long have you been dealing with AA? I've had a pretty good week, haven't really thought much about my hair, just trying to live my life and not stress about it. I think I'm getting used to the idea.
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My Mirena was removed December 2008. I've had a complete, full head of hair for about 5 months now. Just not long enough to go without my wig yet--hair is just now all one length. It seems to grow way slower than before AA.
I will tell you, I think if I had started wearing the wig sooner I believe it would have grown back faster. Not worrying who could see the bald spots really helped my stress level. And we all know that stress is a monster for AA!
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