Comment by Chefpam on April 12, 2011 at 3:06pm

Yep. I've dealt with it for 22 years. For some it is rather simple. If you do in fact have thyroid disease they will most likely give you Synthroid and adjust it accordingly. I did this for 20 years and was ok. But seven years ago after childbirth it all went crazy. Since then I have tried Armour and now compounded T3/T4 but my levels are still low. Most drs will tell you that your levels are fine if they fall anywhere on their lab ranges. But this is not the case. They will also go buy TSH alone. Whereas you have to get your Free T4 and Free T3 levels mid range or higher to feel your best. For some of us with other issues, that proves to be a challenge. You can really learn a lot about this on thyroid forums. Mary Shoman is a great author of such books as well. AND I for one knows thyroid disease and alopecia go hand in hand. Good luck and God bless.

Comment by Baldyogi on April 13, 2011 at 12:05am

I am surprised you didn't get checked when you had alopecia diagnosed. I can't remember the stats but I want to say around 25% of autoimmune disorders also have thyroid disorders. They go together. I am on synthetic thyroid replacement and have been since the birth of my baby. My dad (doesn't have alopecia) and my Grandma (doesn't have alopecia) also have hypothyroidism. If you are hypothyroid you should have them check for Hashiomoto (sp?) Disease. It is another autoimmune disorder that involves Antibodies suppressing your thyroid hormone. And remember high TSH = hypothyroid and low TSH = hyperthyroid. HOpe that helps.

Comment by Julie G on April 13, 2011 at 8:16am

I also have hypothyroidism which was diagnosed once I started trying to figure out why I was losing my hair(for the umteenth time..since doctors wouldn't recognize my issue for years). I have been on Synthroid for the past 3 years and it has helped my with my metabolism as well as other issues. I also have PCOS, which hair loss can be related to that as well, so I am catching it from ALL ends!

Comment by Amber W. on April 13, 2011 at 9:01am

Thank you for your comments, everyone! They may have checked my thyroid when I was first diagnosed with AA 17 years ago, but I've changed doctors several times and I don't think they've thought to check it again. It wasn't until I joined Alopecia World that I realized that there could be an underlying thyroid condition causing my AA. I'm really hoping that my new doctors can finally figure things out. I think I've come to terms with my baldness, so I'm not hoping that my hair will start to come back, I just want to start feeling like myself again.

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