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My very first blog - advice would be appreciated
Well, this is the first time I have written a blog on here, but I figure it's a good way of getting things off my chest.
I first noticed a tiny bald patch about the size of a penny on the top of my head back in August and I started to panic. I went to the doctor and chatted with friends and they all told me not to worry as it was most likely stress. This made me feel a lot better. I was travelling to Canada for 7 weeks 2 days later for work, so I went and put the bald patch out of my mind. Then I remembered I had got a french plait done on the top of my head and the girl who did it pulled my hair really tightly to make sure it would stay in for a few days, so I googled....It was there I learned about traction alopecia and I thought this might be what I had. The patch has since become bigger. I was then sent to Spain for work for 6 weeks. The patch got bigger again, but I was still able to cover it up. Then on the week I was due to come home, I noticed another tiny patch on the back of my head...this was 3 weeks ago and I have also found another 3 small patches. I went to the doctor in Spain who told me I had alopecia areata and this was caused by stress so he gave me a steroid liquid called Betnovate and also pills to help relax me. When I got back home I went straight to my doctor who told me its not stress and I will prob have to come to terms with losing all my hair. This of course was a bit of a shock and I was really upset, but then I had a chat with myself and tried to be positive about it. Of course I have bad days when I cry about it but then I tell myself to stop as there are people out there with life threatening illnesses. I am determined not to let this beat me. The path on top of my head is now about the size of an oreo cookie (thats the best way I can describe it lol) ... I can still cover it but if it gets bigger I may have trouble, especially as there are more patches throughout my head. I went wig shopping the other and wasnt happy with the selection. I really want one that is close to my own colour but I think it will be very hard for me to find that :( Can anyone recommend anywhere I could get a good quality wig. I am willing to pay whatever it takes. In the meantime, my head has been itching like crazy, mostly at night time and I have been lead to believe this could be regrowth...I am keeping my fingers crossed and hoping this is the case and that I wont lose all my hair. A close friend told me the exact same thing happened to her sister and she was told she was losing her hair due to having low protein intake, so she started taking more protein rich foods and her hair grew back. I went to the health shop as they are more helpful than my doc and I got a vitamin to help my hair and also a multivitamin that helps with stress, fatigue, hair regrowth etc so I am hoping this could work. I have also been trying to eat a bit more protein as I dont like milk, red meat etc so I know I am not taking a lot of protein. If anyone could offer any kind of advice I would be extremely grateful.
Thanks for reading!
Sarah xo
I first noticed a tiny bald patch about the size of a penny on the top of my head back in August and I started to panic. I went to the doctor and chatted with friends and they all told me not to worry as it was most likely stress. This made me feel a lot better. I was travelling to Canada for 7 weeks 2 days later for work, so I went and put the bald patch out of my mind. Then I remembered I had got a french plait done on the top of my head and the girl who did it pulled my hair really tightly to make sure it would stay in for a few days, so I googled....It was there I learned about traction alopecia and I thought this might be what I had. The patch has since become bigger. I was then sent to Spain for work for 6 weeks. The patch got bigger again, but I was still able to cover it up. Then on the week I was due to come home, I noticed another tiny patch on the back of my head...this was 3 weeks ago and I have also found another 3 small patches. I went to the doctor in Spain who told me I had alopecia areata and this was caused by stress so he gave me a steroid liquid called Betnovate and also pills to help relax me. When I got back home I went straight to my doctor who told me its not stress and I will prob have to come to terms with losing all my hair. This of course was a bit of a shock and I was really upset, but then I had a chat with myself and tried to be positive about it. Of course I have bad days when I cry about it but then I tell myself to stop as there are people out there with life threatening illnesses. I am determined not to let this beat me. The path on top of my head is now about the size of an oreo cookie (thats the best way I can describe it lol) ... I can still cover it but if it gets bigger I may have trouble, especially as there are more patches throughout my head. I went wig shopping the other and wasnt happy with the selection. I really want one that is close to my own colour but I think it will be very hard for me to find that :( Can anyone recommend anywhere I could get a good quality wig. I am willing to pay whatever it takes. In the meantime, my head has been itching like crazy, mostly at night time and I have been lead to believe this could be regrowth...I am keeping my fingers crossed and hoping this is the case and that I wont lose all my hair. A close friend told me the exact same thing happened to her sister and she was told she was losing her hair due to having low protein intake, so she started taking more protein rich foods and her hair grew back. I went to the health shop as they are more helpful than my doc and I got a vitamin to help my hair and also a multivitamin that helps with stress, fatigue, hair regrowth etc so I am hoping this could work. I have also been trying to eat a bit more protein as I dont like milk, red meat etc so I know I am not taking a lot of protein. If anyone could offer any kind of advice I would be extremely grateful.
Thanks for reading!
Sarah xo
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Comment by Heather Lynn Peckham on January 3, 2010 at 4:54pm
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Hi Sarah, your story sounds just like mine minus the traveling. My'ne first started on Christmas of this year. Pretty scarey. I was told by my primary care physician what it was and I have to see a dermatologist for the first time on Jan. 8. I'm not sure what to expect. I wish I had some knowledge to share with you, but am new to this as well. I wish you all the best. - Heather
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Comment by Sarah McA on January 3, 2010 at 5:02pm
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Hi Heather....thanks for the comment...I wish you luck with the dermatologist....my doctor hasn't referred me to a derm though...i don't think he really wants to know to be honest. I am planning to call him this week and tell him I was him to make an appointment. All the best to you too...this website is great!
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Comment by John M. on January 3, 2010 at 9:01pm
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Hi Sarah - I can't offer any good advice on a wig, but in terms of your Alopecia, I'm not sure your doctor's recommendation on coming to terms with losing all your hair was exactly sage advice. You'll hear this said on this forum a lot, but the only "sure" thing about alopecia is that it is unpredictable. While true there are cases where alopecia areata (AA) turns into totalis or universalis (AT and AU, respectively), that is not always the case. Sometimes it just stays at AA for a while until your immune system stops attacking the hair folicles, then the hair grows back.
In my case, I "think" I'm in a remission/transition stage where my spots are filling back in but yet I still shed here and there (fingers crossed of course!). It's taken me 5-6 months to get to this stage since all this mess started.
The best advice I can provide you is to do your best to put the AA aside. In truth, that advice is easier said than done, so the next best advice would be to prepare yourself for an emotional ride (like the one I had). YOu'll have days where you'll frett about it big time, other days where you're much better, and still days where you're in denile. It's all natural, we've all gone through it, and YOU ARE NOT ALONE in this.
Hang in there, reach out to others on this forum or local support groups for help, and feel free to drop a line if you have questions.
Take care for now!
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Comment by Heather L on January 3, 2010 at 10:17pm
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Hello Sarah,
I'm sorry you are going through this!! It is a emotionally consuming condition!! ugh- I"ve had it off and on (all "on" the last few years) for 20 years!
I do think it would be a great idea for you to see a specialist who should run some blood tests to rule out
some other conditions that might be underlying your hair loss. ( i.e. thyroid test, ANA, Vit. D levels, RA
factor - there are a few other autoimmune diseases that do sometimes correlate to AA- so it's a good idea
to rule those out.) I have a complete list of test he recommends from my docs. office somewhere- if you want it let me know.
Try to remain hopeful! I know that is hard! It is different for everyone- for me topical steroids seem to
really help my spots to stay smaller and the hair re-grow quicker.
Check out a great post by Susan-- It is great compilation of info. which says it all! Wish I knew how to post the link here....sorry! BUT it is under Blogs"- and at the bottom on that page you can click on previous blogs-
you will see it. It is only a page or two back - titled " Alopecia Awareness For Newbies & Veterans"
Good luck & let me know if I can help!
Heather
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Comment by Jeff W on January 3, 2010 at 11:29pm
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Sarah,
Please do whatever it takes to find a doctor who has some understanding of Alopecia Areata (probably a dermatologist). While losing all of your hair is a possible outcome, if you look at the medical statistics it is more likely that your hair will eventually come back. You should have proper medical tests such as those Heather mentioned to see if there is an underlying medical cause for your alopecia. Please remain hopeful that your condition will reverse in time. I went through exactly the same progression as you are going through a year ago and although the hairloss was dramatic and took many months to reverse almost all of my hair has now returned. Please get a second opinion and go through some of the old blogs on this site. You will find a plethora of information about alopecia here as well as advice on wigs and styling options to help you get through this. You have a wonderfully positive outlook on this and I'm sure you'll be fine! Please don't hesitate to send me a message if you have any questions.
Best wishes,
Jeff
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Thank you all so much for the advice. I am overwhelmed by the support of everyone on here. Today has been the toughest day so far. It is my first day back to work after the Christmas holidays and I was so worried about how my colleagues would react to my alopecia getting worse . I am still at the stage where I can mostly cover it up and to be honest, I think I am just too aware of it. But no-one else seems to notice. It could be they are just not wanting to bring the subject up or they genuinely can't see any bald patches. I am keeping my fingers crossed it will grow back. I am hoping it is just down to stress, and I lead a very stressful life so this would make sense. I always found it very weird that, when everyone in my household were ill with the flu, I never got it. I never get colds either so I just assumed I had a really strong immune system. But obviously this is not the case and my immune system is being attacked through my lazy hair follicles lol. Oh well, its not the end of the world I suppose!
Thanks again for all your support :)
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Comment by brenda kay on January 4, 2010 at 12:58pm
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just try to eat a healthy diet for your whole person...not just your hair. i found that eating organic peanut and almond butter helps. certain grains are high in protein such as quinona. my alopecia started out like yours and having many blood tests, mine showed low ferritin levels(iron), low vitamin D, and low protein.......i do believe stress contributed to it as well, THEY beg to differ. you know your body. hang in there and remember that before you are a person with hair.....you are a person!!!!! and a wonderful one i am sure!!!!! bk
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Comment by nimisha on January 4, 2010 at 2:14pm
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I really dont know whether to hope or not.I was first attacaked with AA 4 years back.after a few test ,i was discovered with hyperthyroidism.i had almost lost all my hair in the front.Then once I was treated for tyroid my hair began to come back .i had a head with all hair for almost 1year.After that again i have started getting patches since the last three months.And everyday there are clumps of hair falling out.All the doctors that i have showed,say that all my hair will come back gradually.but i wonder what is the point of coming back if it has to go again.It is better to be completely bald and wear a wig.at least ill have nice thick hair that way.
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Comment by lynne on January 4, 2010 at 5:33pm
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hey sarah sorry to hear ur goin thro the same, it can be a very sad and scary time, i lost my hair after taken an allergic reaction to the sun bak in april 09, but my hair fell out within 2wks, i was left with strands of hair, so it happened so quick for me which was maybe a gd thing, i have dealt with it quite well altho everyday it still bothers me and i seem to watch people alot and stare at their hair, maybe weird but i cant help wantin my hair bak,
altho i have some regrowth its growin bak very very slow so i still dont know wats round the corner for me, i get my synthetic wigs from nhs which are ok and i have red hair and found it very hard to get a match in colour but i found something called apricot frost which is similar so had to do, i am goin to save and get a human hair wig sn as i would love to look after it like it was my own, usin synthetic one's isnt bad just quick was steep in fabric softener then dry, lol, i always try to make jokes about how it only takes me 20mins to get ready now, ha ha, keeps me goin i suppose,
this website has bn the best support ever, everyone has bn there for me on a daily basis wen im feelin low or great,
so keep doin wat ur doin and try to keep positive, we are always here for support or a blether, hope ur well tho, and we can catch up sometime, x
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Comment by Stephanie on January 5, 2010 at 10:52am
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Hi Sarah, You've gotten great advise above regarding medical tests and your diet so I won't repeat. If your hair continues to fall out each day you should look into a wig sooner rather than later so you have it ready. I started with a "topper" of human hair since my loss was not on my hair line but on top and the back of my head. Once I could see that was not enough coverage I got a full wig. The company is called iwig. Very high quality and very natural. No one would know I have a wig on so I have been able to share my AA with friends and family only, for support, which is the way I want to handle it. Happy to talk any time. This is new for me as well and John M. said it all when he reiterated that this disease is unpredictable. Even so, everyone on this site can empathize with you and there is comfort in that.
Stephanie
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