Woman with 17 years of hair loss

Hi all,

I was here 4 years ago.I was 7 years on antiandrogen - Diane and Spiro and my hair was fine, but when was stress, I had high cortisol and then my hair started to fall again. 10 years ago, some naturopath helped me (he does not live anymore) and I could stop Diane and stop ed my AGA without supplemants for 3 years - I had just vitamines for hair. After long stress , everything stared agina and doctor gave me again antiandrogen that I have little estradiol and little progesteron andDHT is 1,2 (range 0,2-0,9) - it is little but when I had DHT like that I always got hair loss, oily skin and SD.

Last year I finisned after 8 years relationship with my boyfriend and even I was on antiandrogens, hair started fall again . I stoped antiandrogens because they did not help and I did not want to have problems with hair loss once I have to stop to take them for TTC:
I had hai r loss huge already that I did not care. I did hormonal yoga, took Maca, biotin, krill oil, etc....Hair loss stoped after 6 months. I was ok 5 months and then I found that after 17 years of hair loss I have not hair and started to stress again. I ten days hair loss was back, then scalp pain and very oily skin. I take Maca , biotin, flax seed, tumeric powder......but still stress because I am scared. I took Lugols and it was bad - I am now hypothyroid. TSH 4,8. I ordered from iherb Thyroid Energy to help me with Hypo . In the past kelp also help me , but Lugols made the things worse.

The new hormonal test shows that my estradiol now is in middle range and also progesteron(dont know if Maca or hormonal yoga did)) , The bad is only DHT, when I was on antiandrogen - it was 0,5, when I had no hair loss 10 years ago - it was 0,4-0,6), now is 1,2. Cortisol was just little elevated.
What I can do - dont want Rogaine, Minoxidil and not hormones again. I dont know what to do with DHT. Somebody said I could be IR - then I started today cinammon. For cortisol and stress I ordered aswaghanda. I continue with Maca - does Maca lower DHT? Do you think stress elevated cortisol and cortisol elevated DHT?

I am sorry for my english and thank you for your advice.

Louise

Louise wrote:Hi all,

I was here 4 years ago.I was 7 years on antiandrogen - Diane and Spiro and my hair was fine, but when was stress, I had high cortisol and then my hair started to fall again. 10 years ago, some naturopath helped me (he does not live anymore) and I could stop Diane and stop ed my AGA without supplemants for 3 years - I had just vitamines for hair. After long stress , everything stared agina and doctor gave me again antiandrogen that I have little estradiol and little progesteron andDHT is 1,2 (range 0,2-0,9) - it is little but when I had DHT like that I always got hair loss, oily skin and SD.

Last year I finisned after 8 years relationship with my boyfriend and even I was on antiandrogens, hair started fall again . I stoped antiandrogens because they did not help and I did not want to have problems with hair loss once I have to stop to take them for TTC:
I had hai r loss huge already that I did not care. I did hormonal yoga, took Maca, biotin, krill oil, etc....Hair loss stoped after 6 months. I was ok 5 months and then I found that after 17 years of hair loss I have not hair and started to stress again. I ten days hair loss was back, then scalp pain and very oily skin. I take Maca , biotin, flax seed, tumeric powder......but still stress because I am scared. I took Lugols and it was bad - I am now hypothyroid. TSH 4,8. I ordered from iherb Thyroid Energy to help me with Hypo . In the past kelp also help me , but Lugols made the things worse.

The new hormonal test shows that my estradiol now is in middle range and also progesteron(dont know if Maca or hormonal yoga did)) , The bad is only DHT, when I was on antiandrogen - it was 0,5, when I had no hair loss 10 years ago - it was 0,4-0,6), now is 1,2. Cortisol was just little elevated.
What I can do - dont want Rogaine, Minoxidil and not hormones again. I dont know what to do with DHT. Somebody said I could be IR - then I started today cinammon. For cortisol and stress I ordered aswaghanda. I continue with Maca - does Maca lower DHT? Do you think stress elevated cortisol and cortisol elevated DHT?

I am sorry for my english and thank you for your advice.

Louise

Sounds like your thyroid and stress is causing your hair loss and not actually the dht, especially considering men have enormously more dht in their body than that... You mentioned scalp pain, well regardless the cause, It doesn't appear to me that hair really falls out unless their is chronic inflammation present, so your best to follow an anti inflammatory lifestyle, diet, and supplement regimen in my opinion...

But in the past 17, 16, 12, 10 , even 8 years ago, when I had hair loss I had no problem with TSH. Even not with DHT. DHT was problem form 2000. And I know, from past, when my DHT is more then 0,8, I have hair loss and very oily skin like now. What make DHT to go up? Stress? Cortisol? Will Maca help to decrease the testosteron and DHT, or it increase? Do I have to take Saw Palmetto? Or the tumeric can help too or flax seed?

Howmuch stimulation ( brushing, massaging) does your scalp get?

Louise, your English is very good...no worries and no apologies. :-)

I can't comment on your lab tests or hormonal levels, but since I am also a woman with long-standing hairloss, who is finally having some success regrowing it, I'll tell you what worked for me.

Get your diet under control. If you're eating processed foods, stop. If you're eating a lot of sugar, stop. Eat in a way that helps make your liver healthy. Good diet is a foundation for health and hair growth.

Try to get back health-wise to where your were when you were seeing the naturopath. What did he have you doing? Do the same things, even though he is not around.

After you've cleaned up your diet a little, you might try chelating some heavy metals. I believe it helped me. Please search this forum for info on chelation.

200 mg. phosphatidylserine softgels taken at night before bed can help greatly with stress and with crazy cortisol levels.

Primary thing: stimulate your scalp! Brush (with a medium-firm boar bristle brush), massage your scalp for at least 10 minutes per day, scrub your scalp with a towel (but watch out for tangling your hair)...do anything and everything to get the blood circulating up there. And do it daily. I have been doing these manual methods to get blood circulationg to my scalp for six months, and it has been one of the keys for me in experiencing regrowth. There are several good threads going near the top of this board about the different ways you can get circulation going to your scalp. Please search for and read them. I plan to do my brushing/massaging/scritching (scritching is a way of stimulating your scalp with a comb made from sheep's horn) for the rest of my life. My hair has improved tremendously since I started doing these things.

Final note...do a lot of searching and reading on this board. You'll find a lot of good ideas and advice. I owe where I am today health-wise and hair-wise in large measure to the ideas I found and advice I got on this board.

Good luck!

Thank you very much to all. I think my problem is stress, cortisol a DHT - when is stress and hormones go up and down , then even thyroid. I tryied Lugols , but was big mistake, I started to have pain and my TSH is now 4,5-4,8.

I would like to do metal detox, but I found that only with Lugol you can do it. And I cannot do it, can you advise please something else?

I cannot do the same like 10 years ago when naturopath helped me, it was not food or special pills, it was the work with enerrgy - dont know how to explain. And i did hypnose to change my mind to think, everything is ok. I also did not now that my DHT is so big problem, then when you dont know the thing, you are less scared.

Masages I started to do.

I am only extremly scared from oily skin and this stupid DHT. Also dont know if flaxseed and Maca is good. One my female friend stopped her AGA only with Maca. She was able to go out of all hormones without hair loss only with Maca.

I would like to do something to stop oiliness skin. I know from past, oilinnes stopped and hair loss too.

Yesterday my friend said me, that after 17 years of hair loss I have only 30 % left and they are like 3 years old. I saw many people who won naturaly their hair loss , I want to finaly do my last fight and try to win. I just dont know what to do more for DHT. I only scared if I start Saw Palmetto I will have problem to stop it, with Regaine I have bad experience.

What else I can do to stop DHT and oiliness? How I can do detox withou Lugols? Thyroid is going better, last test 3,5. With Thyroid Energy and Aswaghanda I hope it will be soon less then 2,5. Womens hormone are going up finaly too. But the stupid DHT and maybe high end testosterone not.

Prague is from the same city like me, I am so jelous of his succsess. I am also jelous of all the success here. I know it is possible, I believe also to power of mind, because first 4 years I was able to stop hair loss only with mind. But when it came again again, I lost the power to believe. Most of men here has more hair then me. I am 35 , have no boyfriend anymore, have no children even want both so much and scared that my life is only hell.

I would like to be ten years ago, when I was able to grew hair back without hormones and my hair where like when I was 15. Hormones was ok and all people were surprised. But stress with ex made my hell started again an doctors tried only hormones, it helped but sometimes it did opposite.

I know your problem is not DHT, but my experience is , that my problem is DHT with Thyroid and cortisol.

I changed my diet - now suger, no flavour, no milk. I do hormonal yoga, take Aswaghanda - cortisol, take Maca - hormones, take flaxseed - hormones, take krill oil, Epo, biotin, B5, D3, take cinammon for insuline resistance and take fresh tumeric (I did not want pills because my liver). I drink herbal tea for liver.I started to do stand on head, do masage with my fingers on head - tappering, do vizualization and again hypnose. What else I can do?

Louise

Also I did read this forum - all. From this forum I had with my friend Maca, Krill oil and masages. But how to stop DHT without hormones or Saw Palmetto or Pumkin or Pygeum I did not find. Or it is other way to do? I know everything with hormones go together. Probably stress is the main thing - stress increase cortisol and thyroid, and cortisol increase testosteron DHT.

There is a good alternative to Lugol called Kumbu which is a brown sea kelp from Japan or China. YOu can include it in your diet a couple of times a week, and get natural organic iodine that way, which the body can better handle than Lugols IMHO.

I got the Thyroid Energy form Now foods and there is already Kelp , L-thyrosin and other stuff, I hope it will make me better the thyroid. I am not scared anymore of cortisol, I believe to Aswaghanda.

But what the DHT and oily skin? Maca? Flax? Or has to be Pumkin or Saw Palmetto? Or something anti DHT topical? And metal detox, how without Lugol? Please advise, realy I will be glad.

You can try eating pumpkin seeds every day.
I take iosols iodine, I dont think its as potent as Lugols. You probably have some serious stuff that needs
to be detoxed and which is why the Lugols threw you in for a scare because your body/thyroid started to be stirred up.
Id give it another shot, without a doubt your likely deficient in Iodine, and I still think your thyroid is your biggest problem with your hair loss, especially as a woman. You could even try iodine painting for starters and also do the Kumbu mentioned earlier.
I am curious how dht blockers feel for a woman on them, in regards to libido or other things, I mean I know women dont produce much dht anyways, which is why it would be strange that it could be harming your hair.

Thank you for your answeres. That mean that for DHT I can do only pumkin or saw palmetto? Is there something else form your experience i can do to lower DHT? And what with oily scalp?

Louise wrote:...And what with oily scalp?

try pantothenic acid (also known as vitamin B5)... o ácido pantoténico si hablas castellano.

How much of B5 - I take already 1 caps - 500 mg. CS advised also Borage oil to block DHT, i take 3 full table spoon every day already one months and nothing. I take 2600 mg of Evening primrose oil and also nothing.

Also CS: does cortisol afect DHT? It is possible that stress bind DHT?

Louise wrote:
Also CS: does cortisol afect DHT? It is possible that stress bind DHT?

Possibly. Stress can make your scalp very tight. When your scalp is tight, blood flow is hindered. When blood flow is hindered, removal of toxins is hindered.

BUt do you eat or do you put something on your scalp to reduce oilness scalp and DHT?
I am scared to star pumkin or saw palmetto , because will be no way to stop it like with finasterid.?

Louise wrote:BUt do you eat or do you put something on your scalp to reduce oilness scalp and DHT?
I am scared to star pumkin or saw palmetto , because will be no way to stop it like with finasterid.?

There is a lot of evidencefloating around that brushing your hair (scalp) and doing massages will loosen your scalp and improve circulation. This MAY be enough to "un-clog" DHT and prevent its future accumulation. Nonetheless, I dont believe it can hurt to start brushing your hair today.

You can try lavender essential oil topical.

I got last part of my tests.

Jodurie (jod) - 35 (80 - 300) - I have bad experience with Lugol, will be Kelp ok? Tsh after stress off came form 4,8 to 3,5. Will be this sup. ok if I cannot lugol?
This i ordered:http://www.iherb.com/Now-Foods-Thyroid-Energy-Thyroid-Support-90-Vcaps/843

Last cortisol 590 ( 150- 609) - on top range from stress

testosteron - totaly first time ok 1,45 (0,6 - 2,65)

women hormones, progesteron, estradio, prolactin -in middle

only Dht elevated 1,2 (0,3 - 0,9) - what made it higher, when DHEAS ok, testosteron ok, estradiol middle. Cortisol? Can stress eleveted DHT?

The massages I started to do.

The Saw Palmetto I have, but I am scared to start, because I am scared, that I did read, it will be problem to stop it without problem. Or just to take it one month to help DHT and then stop and will be not problem?
Do you advice saw palmetto or not. I dont need decrease DHeas, testosteron or estradiol, just cortisol and DHT.

Thank you for answer also to CS. I am sorry for my questions all the time.

Louise wrote:BUt do you eat or do you put something on your scalp to reduce oilness scalp and DHT?
I am scared to star pumkin or saw palmetto , because will be no way to stop it like with finasteride.?

Louise - I see some problems.

#1 - Iodine is not bad for the thyroid. a TSH test is not accurate. When you witness a rise in TSH with iodine it is temporary and is not something negative like many clinicians are instructed to believe.

#2 - Stress is a big deal and I agree with the others, this needs to be under control. Aside from the other recommendations I would suggest taking 500 mg of Quercetin

#3 - Lab tests for DHT are not that useful. Would worry more about cortisol.
If you're worried about DHT, it just means you need to control oxidative stress, that's where iodine,
and fat and water soluble antioxidants come in (like Ecklonia Cava for example. http://hairevo.com/shop/

Thank you CS for answer.

I am not scared from iodine, I see I need it, I know that my problem is thyorid and cortisol.

My naturopath says that all my androgenetig alopecia is just stress that change my hormones.

I want to do iodine, but not Lugols, he said, I had huge problem when I gook it. I did think Kelp is also iodine. and in the Now formule, there is other things to help thyroid.

For cortisol I ordered Aswaghanda. Is it good for cortisol or not enough. Topical I use just Revita and Nizoral.

Quacertin, is it for cortisol? I did read that quacertin elevated to somebody here DHT, why I am scared.

I am from Prague, why it is not so easy to order something from US. I have no pay pall. I order from iherb , cheaper for sending and after one month still have no order.

I want in the future something from your top 6. I see that is great stuff.
But I have no pay pall.
Also to test. I have higher urine acid, total cholesterol and HDL cholesterol and very low LDL cholesterol, they said, it is from thyroid.

Blood DHT levels are not important. What Quercetin does for DHT is not a factor. It's a bit complicated, but the short answer is that Quercetin manages something more important than DHT. It modulates cortisol and inflammation response.

Kelp does not contain enough iodine to make a difference.

Pay Pal not necessary here:

http://hairevo.com

Oh, this is so complicating... actually for hair everyone needs zinc at first. Zinc is better in liquid form. I drink sulfat zinc every day. It prevents the testosterone do become dihidrotestosterone, so it may be very helpful in hair.
And also hair need peptides, is the non-essentian amino-acids, because hair is made from keratine. Also check your ferritine level, ferrum serum level, it should be normal.

My ferritin is in middle.

My problem is low iodine, high TSH - hypothyroid
High end of cortisol - huge stress from hair loss
Hight DHT
High cholesterol

super oily skin and scalp, burning of scalp , hair loss- oily skin and scalp started one months after little hair loss, I think more I stress ,more oily skin is, then burning started then cortisol is elevated. I think CS is right, higt DHT could be just the cortisol from high stress and thyroid.

Louise - One other question. Are you taking any Vitamin D3? Also, if not already would definitely take vitamin A (Retinal palmitate or from animal source). It will help reduce oil secretion and work with vitamin D.

I am taking D3 from Now, but only sometimes. Can you send me link to Swanson or iherb which A you mean, I am not english speaker and my english is bad, then for me is very complicated to find always what you mean.

Thank you all for your help.
Realy. I dont want the AGA win, even if it is impossible AGA 17 years to win, I want to finaly win and not live life of hell.

I did win once and also see how people here whe had no hairs more then 10 years without hormones and Minoxidil can grow hairs again.

Also so nice it is, that you all try to help to each other.

I try to focus that everything is possible. It is difficult, sometimes I wished that God takes me to him. I dont want to be rich, just want to have normal life.


Louise