Can anyone please help me with my hairloss?

I am at my wits end and don't know what else to do. I started to have a moderate hair loss all over my head about 6 months ago. I am in menopause and I had all the hormone tests and thyroid tests done and am currently on estrogen, progesterone, dhea and testosterone because all my levels were very low. The thyroid is fine. I also saw a derm and she presrcibed Ketoconazole to use to wash my hair with twice a week. Well I have been doing this for almost a month now and my hair loss is no differenet and my hair feels and looks like straw! Each time I wash my hair more hair comes out and if I keep going like this I will be bald in another 6 months. I should mention my scalp is flaky, itchy and sore at different spots on my head. I don't think the shampoo the derm suggested is doing anything but irritating my scalp more. Can anyone give me some sound advice as to what direction I should take next? I would like to use a different shampoo that would help my scalp and repair the damage to my hair. Has anyone here ever used emu shampoo's and condtioners? They sound pretty good but I am not sure if this is just another product that will dissapoint me. I am getting desperate and would love a good shampoo and conditoner reccomedation. Can anyone help me?

The first question to be asked is, how is your diet?

Nizoral is harsh, use a conditioner afterwards, or T-Gel. Emu oil is good for hair/scalp, not seen the shampoos or conditioner for it.

I would not recommend the nizoral shampoo, it has hydrochloric acid in it, VERY VERY HARSH
it made my hair like i had poured acid on it, which is true.........

Diet is okay, I eat lots of fruits, vegtables, and yogurt. The product I use isn't called Nizoral but it's a prescription shampoo called Ketoconazole. Are they two of the same? If you wouldn't use this because of the harshness can you suggest something else that would help the itching and flakes but wouldn't damage my hair? I am at a loss and there are so many so called remedies out there that don't work. Have any of you found anything that does work to help the hair loss and scalp issues?

bixa525 - Are you taking bio-identical estrogen and progesterone via a compounding pharmacy or are you taking standard prescription versions?

Also how much DHEA are you presently using?

Yes, Ketoconazole is the same as Nizoral. Did your hair loss begin shortly after menopause or has it been consistent for some time?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ketoconazole

/ˌkiːtɵˈkoʊnəzoʊl/) is a synthetic antifungal drug used to prevent and treat skin and fungal infections, especially in immunocompromised patients such as those with AIDS. Ketoconazole is sold commercially as an anti-dandruff shampoo, under brand names Perkhotal by Gepach International, and Nizoral, by Johnson & Johnson.

HanginInthere wrote:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ketoconazole

/ˌkiːtɵˈkoʊnəzoʊl/) is a synthetic antifungal drug used to prevent and treat skin and fungal infections, especially in immunocompromised patients such as those with AIDS. Ketoconazole is sold commercially as an anti-dandruff shampoo, under brand names Perkhotal by Gepach International, and Nizoral, by Johnson & Johnson.

There are a lot more than one brand. Actually, recently I went into a local pharmacy and found 6 different types of Ketoconazole shampoo. 3 were called just Ketoconazole 2% shampoo.

guess those are the generics?

Yes I am taking bio-identical estrogen and progesterone. The DHEA is mixed in with the estrogen cream that I apply so I am not sure how much it is actually. My hair loss started a few months after I went into menopause and it just keeps up with very little slowing in how much I shed. My scalp is sore in areas and flaky so maybe this is contributing to it also. The shampoo seems to be making things worse. I was thinking of trying emu shampoo and conditioner but I am not sure how that would work. Any suggestions?

I would drop the keto shampoo without hesitation--a shampoo should revitalize your scalp and hair, not torch it.

Then experiment with essential oils: peppermint, lavender, cedar, geranium, sage, in that order--peppermint may suffice alone.

Also Maca is revered by many women hitting menopause. This is the best. Available at Whole Foods.

http://www.naturalhi.com/products/MacaPause.aspx

if using PEPPERMINT............dont be dumb like me
be sure to dilute it , however the board recommends

i put it directly on my scalp JESUS THAT HURT, you have no idea what pain that is

I NEVER RECOMMEND KETO SHAMPOO or
nizoral same thing

very harsh
not sure if other keto shampoos are so harsh as nizoral but the nizoral KILLED my hair
i switched to the keto cream

bixa525 - In other thread, Warren recommended blood donation to get rid of free reactive iron. Many of us on this board believe that hair loss is at least accelerated by having iron build-up. This of course is a new occurrence for you since menstruation was a natural form of iron elimination.

While your thyroid may have checked out, most people are not diagnosed correctly. Standard tests such as TSH, T4 and T3 are not quite enough so quite often a sub-clinical thyroid condition exists. Bio-Identical HRT is great, but even it can suppress the thyroid to an extend. Would highly recommend the addition of iodine. Look up the Broda Barnes test, it is something you can do at home and assess the possibility of low thyroid. If it is a positive reading and you also suffer from a few notable symptoms (i.e, constipation, cold hands or feet, hair loss, low energy, etc.) taking some iodine would be a nice way to improve this and possibly your hair too.

To protect against oxidative stress, would recommend Ecklonia Cava (Fibroboost). If you want to go all out, you can check out my regimen here:

Thanks Caustic Symmetry, You seem to really know your stuff. I did have several tests done for the thyroid but I do have several of the symptoms you mentioned so I will try the Broda Barnes test.

Here are my test results

THS 2.61 Range 0.40- 5.50
FT4 1.22 Range 0.78-1.50
Ft3 382 Range 230-420

Iron 126 Range 25-160

What do you think?

Oh I also found out I am taking 1 mg of DHEA mixed in with my estrogen cream. Someone had asked me how much I was taking and I did look on the script and it said 1 mg.

bixa525 -Your Thyroid stimulating hormone is on the high side. The updated consensus is anything over 2.0 is considered low thyroid.

TSH 2.61 Range 0.40- 5.50
FT4 1.22 Range 0.78-1.50
Ft3 382 Range 230-420

There is Pueraria Mirifica as a herbal alternative to HRT.

So how would a low thyroid affect me? What can I do to fix it? My Dr. told me everything was normal but I had my doubts.

CausticSymmetry wrote:bixa525 - In other thread, Warren recommended blood donation to get rid of free reactive iron. Many of us on this board believe that hair loss is at least accelerated by having iron build-up. This of course is a new occurrence for you since menstruation was a natural form of iron elimination.

She said the hair loss started only a few months after menopause, that wouldn't be enough time to build up her iron stores to a level that would affect her hormones or anything, would it? Considering that you only need to donate 2-3 times a year to keep your ferritin stores under the 100 level where it starts to be a problem. Unless she started eating an all-red meat and oyster diet around the same time I guess.

Espio wrote:
She said the hair loss started only a few months after menopause, that wouldn't be enough time to build up her iron stores to a level that would affect her hormones or anything, would it? Considering that you only need to donate 2-3 times a year to keep your ferritin stores under the 100 level where it starts to be a problem. Unless she started eating an all-red meat and oyster diet around the same time I guess.

I think it could be a shock to the system. Especially if she eats meat or lots of foods fortified with iron (pasta, etc).

I guess I could try to give blood and see what happens. Most people say 87 is still okay though. Do you think my thyroid is low enough that I need to do something?

bixa525 - Would do the blood donation right away, it will extend life. Another advantage women have is that menstruation keeps the supply of red blood cells "fresher" and more flexible since they have to be made more frequently. In males, we have to hold to on these for 120 days and they are more prone to rigidity. Considering that for red blood cells to travel in the tiny network of capillaries so small they need to line up in a single file to move through, having this flexibly improves oxygenation.

Personally, I do not give blood donations since my veins are really hard to see and they have to draw from my hand. What I do is take regular doses of stabilized R-Lipoic acid and Ecklonia Cava to fend of the reactive iron. Ultimately everything comes down to free-radicals in the end.

Would definitely look into iodine use for your thyroid. Consider that the rest of your body needs iodine. There are some marvelous threads on this site on iodine and you might be very surprised on what you'll find in there.

Thanks Caustic, I will check out some of those threads you mentioned and will give some blood.