Question about Hair Shedding

[snarlingcoyote]

This comes totally out of nowhere, mind you, except my sleepy mind as I was showering this morning.

I moved from MA to Louisiana a while back. We moved in the middle of summer, and for about 4 months I noticed that I was losing hair. Lots and lots of hair. Every time I showered I had to pick up a huge hair ball out of the shower, but eventually it stopped.

Now, fair warning, I have about twice as much hair as most people. I have relations who have a similar racial pedigree to mine (but aren't genetically related to me), and we all have hair that is about the same thickness. It's got the high follicle-to-the-the-square-centimeter thing going on, while at the same time it's not thin hair. It's not curly or flat, but somewhere in its own realm with cowlicks that do whatever they want whenever they want.

No one I've talked to has ever noticed a dramatic thinning of the fur, so to speak, on a move from North to South, but DIS boards are such a larger audience, I figured if anyone else had noticed this phenomenon they might be a DIS board poster.

Also, do this even occur? Was my hair loss and the move just a coincidence, or did I lose my cold winter pelt when I moved to sub/semi tropical climes?

 

[mlynn]

I would contact your doctor.My daughter has alopecia. It is a auto amun. disorder that can cause hair loss. It can be cause by stress,Thyroid problems or Vitiamin disorder.
Call your doctor or if you see bald spots call a dermotologist.

 

[Tinijocaro]

Just curious-what can be done about alopecia? Are there any meds that can help it and can the hair grow back?

 

[BKMETV]

Another vote for having your thyroid checked.

 

[polkadotsuitcase]

I was thinking low thyroid, too.

Not to diminish what you're experiencing by mentioning my dog, but she's got low thyroid and if we ever miss her meds, that's the first sign: hair loss.

Good luck!

 

[ClarabelleCowFan]

I have to echo the thyroid issue. Hair loss is a huge warning sign.

I can tell when my levels are off because I start losing hair again.

 

[Jeafl]

I also started losing some hair, especially on the top of my head. I had tons of tests done, but when all was said and done, it was diagnosed as "female pattern baldness" Fortunately, I found a doctor who told me what to do about it and now my hair is totally back to normal, and only falls out at a normal rate. If you want to know what he recommended to me, let me know.

 

[Tinijocaro]

I also started losing some hair, especially on the top of my head. I had tons of tests done, but when all was said and done, it was diagnosed as "female pattern baldness" Fortunately, I found a doctor who told me what to do about it and now my hair is totally back to normal, and only falls out at a normal rate. If you want to know what he recommended to me, let me know.

Yes, I want to know what he recommended you do.

 

[snarlingcoyote]

This was about 3 1/2 years ago, and it did stop. I didn't notice any changes in my health and I've had 2 full physicals since then, so it wasn't anything in my health. My dogs and cats were also shedding lots and lots of fur at the same time, so at the time, I just shrugged it off to climate change. (The difference between an New England summer and a Louisiana summer is about, on average, 30 degrees, after all.)

When we moved to Massachussetts, that first winter all the animals had MUCH thicker pelts than they'd ever had, but I didn't notice my own hair getting thicker; however, at that time I was growing it out from a really, really short spiky cut I'd had, so I probably wouldn't have noticed if it was getting thicker.

 

[mlynn]

Just curious-what can be done about alopecia? Are there any meds that can help it and can the hair grow back?

My dd is only 8 so we use a cream on her spots 2x's aday.My friend gets shots to the spots.Some forms the hair doesn't grow back.

 

[Kathi OD]

It's not uncommon for us to lose hair at various times throughout our lives. Pregnancy, certain medicines, & stress can all cause hair loss. Of course, as with you, it usually stops after awhile.

If you're concerned, a trip to the doctor is in order. Personally, I'd be surprised if it is anything serious and am more likely to believe there is an environmental cause.

 

[WhateverLolaWants]

Your hair grows in stages and individual hairs are in different stages. The end of the stage is to fall out three months after they stop growing. Experiences can cause stages to speed up - medication, pregnancy, and so on.. but a biggie is stress. Approximately three months after a stressful event (your move perhaps), your hair will fall out because the process had been sped up.

 

[snarlingcoyote]

Your hair grows in stages and individual hairs are in different stages. The end of the stage is to fall out three months after they stop growing. Experiences can cause stages to speed up - medication, pregnancy, and so on.. but a biggie is stress. Approximately three months after a stressful event (your move perhaps), your hair will fall out because the process had been sped up.

Now that is a thought. I was a trailing spouse in this move, so I had a LOT of stress.

 

[figment52]

I also started losing some hair, especially on the top of my head. I had tons of tests done, but when all was said and done, it was diagnosed as "female pattern baldness" Fortunately, I found a doctor who told me what to do about it and now my hair is totally back to normal, and only falls out at a normal rate. If you want to know what he recommended to me, let me know.

I would like to know too please