Comment by alopeciamommy on May 6, 2015 at 10:00am

@PamD,

I completely agree with you. I am a parent of a child with Alopecia. I was obsessed with figuring it out and getting her hair back, but she told me not to worry about it. She said if her hair came back, it came back, if it didn't , it didn't. Funny how a child can be stronger than a parent sometimes. She said it who you are on the inside and even though it's not something she wanted, it is who she is now. So that's our family's philosophy now, if it comes back then so be it, if not then oh well. She's having regrowth so we will see what happens.
A friend of mine started losing her hair and she became so obsessed and depressed trying to find a so,union, but she said once she stopped and took a step back started thinking positive and taking a break from all the treatments, she was able to start accepting the situation. She is now getting some eyelashes back and some hair regrowth.
Everyone is different and everyone can feel like they want, but I feel when we accept it then everyone around you will too.

Comment by Pam D. on May 6, 2015 at 12:20pm

Cheers to your daughter for her wonderful, sensible, outlook. :)

Comment by Jim In Cali on May 6, 2015 at 5:42pm

Matters how much risk you want to take. The Immune suppressing drugs will grow hair without question but at what cost? Now you are at a high risk for cancer. The scalp irritating solutions supposedly work great by tricking the immune system but you have an incredibly itchy, flaky scalp. Propitiate is also a good alternative but it has impotency as a side effects.

For 3 years I had scalp injections with varying success. No doubt it grew hair, but my hair never came back like before. Was thinner, dryer and more fragile. Also had one period where I lost all my hair in 2 weeks but it grew back in 3 months. 6 months ago during a period when I was again losing hair, my Dermatologist,  tried giving me a general corticosteroid shot in my arm, as well as the scalp injections. My hair grew back to almost what it was before I had A.A. Now I get steroid shot in my arm 2-3 months and scalp shots for any "hot spots", which is far less.

For me the scalp injections really didn't hurt that much. Side of my head and eyebrow DID hurt like a you know what.

Comment by Todd on May 6, 2015 at 6:37pm

Hi! I had decent luck with the X-Trac Laser @308NM. Pretty much everywhere I had treated has regrow band retained hair. Not the hair I had, but thinner and white, but still hair. Email me @ hutchings2@hotmail.com and I'll provide more details. As a guy, I have options that the ladies don't really like to consider. But, I am more than willing to help anyone who is going through AA or AG (like me).

Todd

Comment by Anisha on May 12, 2015 at 9:07pm

Some doctors are now prescribing Zeljanz (Tofacitinib), the rheumatoid arthritis medicine. Only downside is the cost - $2k per month, and most insurance companies don't cover it because its not approved yet for Alopecia treatment. But it works.

Comment by marybeth on May 13, 2015 at 12:11am

Mark i totally agree with you, i too have AU and have to been to 2 dermetologists,a rheumetologist,and 2 endocrynologists, i have hosimotos thyroiditis which is autoimune , i had a years worth of shots in my head and eyebrows. used a topical solution and creams, to no avail NO HAIR GROWTH. and unbe known to me the more cortizone you get the more it surpresses your immune system, i have had an URI in january, a sinus infection in march, and strep throat a week ago. everything someone else has i'm sure to get. I am going to see another rheumetologist maybe they can help with my immune system. IDK , it's worth a try

Comment by marybeth on May 13, 2015 at 12:27am

i too stopped going to the detmetologist Jean, all those injections for a year did NOTHING for me, i have accepted the fact that this is the deck of cards that GOD has dealt me and i strongly believe that he dishes out what he feels people can handle, after the endocrynologist told me there was nothing he can do and don't waste my time and money on shots and creams because i have hoshimotos thyroiditis which is autoimmune he believes my hair will never grow back. I also buy my wigs on line. WIGS.COM

Comment by Anisha on May 13, 2015 at 7:42pm

I did steroid injections for years. They worked great for maintaining the hair that I had.  In fact I was able to maintain most of my hair for several years with injections and topical solutions such as Rogaine and Olex foam. However, once it all fell out, the injections were useless. I still however, get them in my eyebrows, which usually respond. Excited though to try the Xeljanz. My doctor has been teasing me with this for 3 years now, and she finally took the plunge.

For wigs, go Follea. Once you get a Gripper you can't go back. They're the top of the line prosthetics... worth every penny.

Comment by Jim In Cali on May 13, 2015 at 11:17pm

@anisha - Xeljanz, Tofacitinib citrate, and all the othe immune suppression drugs are nothing new. When it was reported last year that a guy taking a new arthritis drug, Tofacitinib citrate, rapidly grew back hair. I took the article to my Dermatologist, he said big deal we (dermatologist) have known for 10 years immune suppression drugs will grow hair but at a high cost. You have a high risk for cancer, infection, colds, flu, can't receive any live vaccines, etc...he said several companies are working on topical formulas but they are a few years away.

Immune suppression drugs trigger hair growth by turning off the immune system attack on hair follicles, that is prompted by another condition/disease such as Alopecia.

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