Trying alternatives

I dont know why but this whole blog thing intimidates me. It is as if, if I blog then everyone will know this dark secret I keep. Maybe this is the road to dealing with my AA(which has been a long one). I fortunately have been able to hide my spots for 4 years and coming up to my half year it is starting to show, and I mean everywhere. Any angle I take a peak in the back and can see a spot smiling at me. Even in the front it is as if I have this receding hairline that people pretend not to notice. Im always in a hat and at the gym I bring a mirror to check the back just in case that spot is smiling at me again!
Anyways, I have done many types of medications. Steriod injections did work but made me incredibly sluggish and the creams and serum caused some burning. Of course then during the mist of it all I am left insuranceless and decided to take alternative routes. This might sound a little crazy but I try to hang upside down on the edge of my bed for at least 10 mins a day. Yes, crazy, but yoginis say it is the path to living forever( or something like that). It has actually made me feel and think more positively! And, in a way it has been working. I unfortunately went to a holistic doctor and we gave me all these types of herbs and vitamins and months later my alopecia has never been worse! I will not blame him but it makes me feel used and stepped on. Maybe that was his way of making me come back? Or maybe that is what was meant to happen for me to start thinking more positively and hanging upside down everyday (hey sometimes you need to look at this upside down!) But now I am 2 weeks into this Dr. Shan homeopathic medication. Its cheaper then that Dr. Shumuel Gohen (?) and easy to take! You just take these 4 tiny little pills 3 times a day! I am lucky to begin with I might add that I have seen regrowth to begin with on my ophiasis alopecia(the snake like pattern). But I am hoping this will work because I need my confidence back! I keep saying to everyone that if I had all my hair I would do this or that or this. And I want my confidence back to do anything without needing to run into the bathroom every 2 seconds or even having to always wear a hat! Frangrance free shampoos and conditioners have helped calm the shedding down as well as tea tree oil shampoos (smells great and feels good...giovanni organic hair care)I have also read that rosemary oil and jojoba oils in shampoos will calm down the shed. Anyways I dont know why I was so encouraged to write this but you all are so amazing and inspiring. Thankyou for being braver then I could ever be!!!!!!!!!!!!
-Rachael

Views: 20

Comment by Melissa Harris on November 6, 2009 at 11:31pm
Rachael, Hi there! I also have the snake pattern! I also was interested in the Dr. Gohen treatment as well. What is it? Just vitamins? What is in the pills you take now?? I have only been dealing with this for going on two years and I don't know what I expect with this pattern? What is your experience?! I'm really curious! I think I might try to make a group in here for our pattern? What did your doctors say about your pattern? I heard on the internet that our pattern is one on the worst you can get and usually goes AT. I don't know what to think. How many times have you lost your hair? Did it always come back? I just posted about shedding and what I could do to slow it down. Does the shampoos really work?? Wow, thanks for ANY feedback! I would love to talk! Melissa
Comment by Rachael on November 7, 2009 at 4:14pm
Hey Melissa! Thanks for your response! The treatment with Dr. Gohen is a shampoo and conditioner treatment that you use for 3 months. Its about $500 so I wasnt sure if I wanted to invest all that money into something I wasnt sure would work you know? So anyways the treatment I am using now is this doctor named Dr. Shah and its called Life Force. He has you fill out a really in depth questionaire about everything you could imagine that would be affecting the alopecia. It just a colabaration of organic ingredients. I honestly am not sure what is in it! But i am crossing my fingers that it works.
As for this pattern of AA it started like what others have experienced with the loss of hair at the bottom back and behind the ears kind of thing. Luckily it has always been easy to hide! But unfortunately I have gotten a patch that has come and gone a few times on the center back and Im just hoping it doesnt connect with the bottom back. This time it doesnt seem like its regrowing at all. I am honestly just hoping it doesnt turn into AT because of the fact that it has now wrapped around my entire scalp. Luckily I have been growing what hair I do have long enough so if need be I can cut it and maybe have a hair piece made or something. ANyways I have always had a spot here or there and never had full regrowth (it is very stubborn!) but its interesting how mine will regrow in one spot and then another will pop up. And, the shampoos do work! I went to a derm a couple years ago that was amazing! He said to go frangrance free everything (vanicream soap makes your skin so soft) including detergent for clothes. I went 2 years frangrant free(earth science shampoo and conditioner) and had a thicker head of hair. I got sick of the no frangrance and thats when i turned to the giovanni organic hair care cause of the frangrance of the oils. I dont have as much shedding and it stimulates the scalp in the shower!I dont know if helps at all but Im happy to talk whenever! This is such a difficult thing for me and now knowing this specific pattern may turn into AT. I really love the support system we can provide for eachother! I have researched a bunch and have read that this pattern is on a 5 year span or something like that. Meaning that it usually takes 5 years to make it budge one way or the other. Of course who knows what anybodys body is going to do! But I would suggest making sure of taking care asap becausse I didnt do any meds for just a couple of months and it has gotten increasingly worse. I would love it if you made a group for this pattern! I think it would be interesting to see the feedback! What is your experience with AA?
Comment by Barbara on November 7, 2009 at 5:44pm
Wow - I have never read anything about a 5-year span. Though as slow as the regrowth has beeen I can believe it. Meanwhile, will look into Dr. Shan homeopathic medication. Please keep us updated on progress or not!
Comment by Melissa Harris on November 7, 2009 at 6:23pm
Rachael, I too have never heard of the 5 year span! Where did you find that? I also have a big patch in the center back of my head and is very close to merging with the bottom part that is gone. I also have a few patches on the left side of my head and now I have some on the right side, but not as bad as the left side. Now I 'm so tired of looking at my hair for new patches that I'm not even sure if new ones are developing! I'm so tired of looking anymore. I will try the shampoos. I never heard that either. I currently use Redkin and my doctors nurse told me to just use Pantene. This is my second time loosing and the first year that I lost it, I grew at all back mostly. My mom even thought I had a hair piece on and I didn't. Too bad I didn't enjoy it then! Then again this year, it started again, but worse in my opinion. I didn't get spots on my temples like I did the first time which was interesting but I did get that big spot on the back in the middle and I didn't get that the first time so go figure. There just is no rhyme or reason to this AA. So do you wear your regular hair out in public or do you wear a wig? Now I still have hair so I can go out stilllike I am, but I'm not comfortable at all. I have hair pieces that I wear sometimes, but not a lot. I would rather not if I don't have to. I am going for treatment again, but I'm wondering why if it is all gonna fall out eventually. Is that the same thing that your doctor told you about this pattern? My doctor actually said that this pattern does better in the long run, whatever that means. I have already met people on here that have had our pattern and they are AT now. .So I really don't know what to expect! So Dr. Gohen's shampoos didn't seem to work for you? His ad's are really convincing! Well, hope we can talk soon! Take care and be in touch! Melissa
Comment by Lillian (Tracy-mom) on December 2, 2009 at 12:21pm
Hi Rachel

My 9 year old daughter has this same pattern of AA. We got the areas near her ears to regrow with those horrible cortizone shots over three month, but she has 2 spots now at the back of her neck and one on the left front near her part. It seems everytime she gets a cold or flu it spreads a little. We are seeing a naturopathic doctor which it sounds like Dr Shah is also. Please keep us posted on any results you get from your treatments. I may want to look into it if the route we are on doesn't work.

Good Luck

Tracy

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