It's official!

All this stuff I've been doing is working. It's not all *in* my head...it's *on* my head! bwuhahahahar

Seriously, I got my hair cut today, and the woman who cuts it commented that it was thicker, and in better shape.

This is no small praise from this person, because even though I like her very much, I've gotten the impression in the past that she has been somewhat annoyed with me because I've never bought anything she's tried to sell me for hair loss (hair care products, laser comb, clip on hairpieces, etc., which I never bought). The most she would do when I waxed enthusiastic about this forum and some of the things I learned here was say "Hmmm." She also cautioned me about brushing and towelling a few months ago, as they were likely to be detrimental to my hair. It maybe seemed like the things we're into on the IH forum are professionally threatening.

So for her to spontaneously observe that my hair looks thicker means something(s) I've been doing has clearly benefited my hair.

I will post pictures in the near future, as I believe pics will also show progress. But I wanted to post this quickly as encouragement for everyone. Of course I'm not out of the woods yet, but for the first time I truly feel like I may be able to get my normal hair back.

Quick overview of keys to my regimen:

--Addressing adrenal, thyroid, and general hormone/endocrine problems with supplements and diet (adrenal cortex extract, iodine, etc.)
--Proper mineralization, esp. Decalcify
--Maliniak method
--hair brushing (boar bristle brush)
--Papillapower (although I stopped this because my hair is long and the towelling tangled it, causing breakage when I combed it out, I still highly recommend it for shorter hair and I may try it again)
--Scritching (been doing this for about a month, I think it's already helped and I LOVE IT)
--Hair tugging (just added this in about a week ago)

Nice work...I want to hop on a new regimen too...What kind of shampoo do you use?
I've been brushing


Quick overview of keys to my regimen:

--Addressing adrenal, thyroid, and general hormone/endocrine problems with supplements and diet (adrenal cortex extract, iodine, etc.)
I can fix/ working on fixing this with supplements

--Proper mineralization, esp. Decalcify
What do you mean by this?

--Maliniak method
I'll look this up

--hair brushing (boar bristle brush)
Been doing this

--Scritching (been doing this for about a month, I think it's already helped and I LOVE IT)
What do you mean by this?

hey congrats and thanks for the update. how long have you been doing all this? i agree that the brushing and papilla power work.

quick question tho, whats scritching?

also exactly what kind of supplements are you taking?

"Scritching" is basically scrubbing your scalp with fine-toothed combs made from ox- or sheep's-horn. A site called longhairs.com sells the combs here https://www.hairgasm.com/products.php?cat=139

It's an awesome technique for increasing circulation, and a great adjunct to those of us who are already doing the other manual methods. If you get one, thinner is better. They're made in different thicknesses, with 1x being thinnest.

Also, more TPI (Tines Per Inch) are better. Denser the tines the better the coverage as you scritch all over your head.

Scritching tutorial here http://www.longhairs.com/content/how-use-lmlonghairs%C2%AE-horn-combsthe-original-scritchertm%C2%A0-medicine-combs
but basically you scrub the little comb in short back & forth motions (think 3 steps forward & 2 steps back, in a line) from your hairline to your crown, all over your head. So, for example, you start at the middle of your hairline (above your eyebrows), scritch back to your crown, then go back to your hairline a little to the left or right of where you started, and do it again, until your whole head is covered. In the back of your head you would start at the nape of your neck and scritch up towards the crown, etc. It feels really, really good, especially with the extra-stimulating oil she sells. Lots of tingle.

It's recommended you scritch right before you wash your head.

FWIW, I wouldn't use anything but a horncomb for scritching. I'm leery of and somewhat concerned about the "abrasion craze" I've seen touted in other threads (which type of wounding is different from dermarolling), and IMO scritching too hard with a non-natural material could seriously injure your scalp. Scritching too hard with a horncomb could, too, but plastic or wood would be much worse.

Also FWIW I had a hard time with these products at first because, although the idea of scritching appealed and made sense, the longhairs.com website is kinda disorganized, and some of the tutorials on how to use the products are confusing. If you're a really linear person it can be a little annoying. Initially I was also a little put off by the fact that the site owner/manufacturer won't pony up about the ingredients (she's in Canada so not sure about ingredient disclosure laws there). But after giving it the old college try I have to say her products truly work and I really, really like her stuff. If you do what she says how she says, it will make a difference in your hair. Not sure yet about regrowth, but the hair you have will be better, that's for certain. I also credit her products for a bit of the good feedback I got from the lady who cuts my hair. My hair is much softer/shinier and less frizzy/flyaway since I started using her products the way she says to use them.

I also like all her combs and brushes for general hair care (not just scritchers). The small brush she sells is da bomb. Not too hard, not to soft. I'm not using any of my others any more, including the over-priced and over-hyped Mason-Pearson.

As far as supplements: I take the kitchen sink. Might be easier to say what I don't take, LOL. IH top six (except ecklonia cava), iodine, adrenal cortex extracts, basics like CoQ10 & vitamin C, Biosil, etc. Good quality phosphatidylserine for cortisol control. Three different magnesiums (mag orotate in Decalcify, mag citrate, and mag l-threonate). The recent additon of magnesium L-threonate with phosphatidlyserine stabilized my latest bout with stress and depression pretty quickly. The stressors are still there but my mood and outlook improved dramatically and quickly (within a week) of putting these two together.

What I meant about "esp. Decalcify" is that it's a well-balanced product that eliminates the need for taking a few extra supplements. Lots o' good minerals in there.

probably works in a similar perhaps more mild way that dermarolling works.

Okay, here are some progress pictures. Please keep in mind that my hair is wet in these pics, and combed in such a way so as to give the "ugliest" possible view of the problem. IMO wet and severely combed is the best way to gauge progress if you have longer hair. [Thankfully] My hair looks normal when dry, combed properly, and styled.

The room and lighting is exactly the same in both pics. Angle is unfortunately not exactly replicable in every instance, as I am taking these pics myself.

Worth noting is that I started doing iodine and the manual methods (both of which I credit with the largest part of my progress) in mid-Decemeber 2011 and late January 2012, respectively. I don't remember exactly why I didn't take pics from the start; probably something to do with a subconscious fear of documenting failure. Nothing I've ever tried had worked all that well before then.

Also, FWIW, I don't think there was a whole lot of progress with coverage between January and April, although my hair began to noticeably behave better, feel better, etc. Maybe there was some, but it's hard to speculate about that.

Anyways, here are the pics:

April 2012
(don't remember exact date, haven't bothered ot figure out how to turn the date back on in my camera)
[img][/img]

Today
(June 23, 2012)
[img][/img]

I think the second image clearly shows more density, although obviously there's still a long way to go.

In case anyone's wondering, that "inflammation" place in my scalp is where my cat scratched me (he likes to get on the back of the couch, take mouthfuls of my hair, and pull it). I keep irritating the place when I scritch.

WOW!!! Good for you! I can clearly see you hair has thickened up, and compared to the before photo there is much more coverage!

Definitely making some headway! *rim shot*

I seriously love this manual stuff and it's giving me more results than anything else I've tried.
I ordered a scricher from that site too so I'll be on board with that once it arrives. I figured I might as well since I'm basically doing it but with a different tool anyway.

My frontal hairline is slowly creeping back and i gotta say I'm pretty amazed and excited! To me its already destroyed the whole 30 month window idea too since the hairs I'm getting are in places where I haven't had any in about 8 years!

Hope your progress continues!

Do you use the violet ray?

whodathunkit, it is looking great! Wonderful results for only 2 months.

Good progress just by brushing

Can you tell us what exactly you did? Your routine as to how much brushing how?

Also, your regimen?

Thanks

Hey duketronix, were you over on omg's forum? If you are, are you still lasering?

Not to be cynical but just to keep an open mind... Whenever I apply oil (eg. coconut) to my hair it appears much thicker and healthier/shinier like you describe, even after shampooing.

Also because we don't know the ingredients in the topical, we can't rule out some kind of dht inhibition (eg. saw palmetto).

Thanks for the pics and keep us posted. It's so nice to see pics in this forum. It seems like for years we didn't have any.

In the second pic your hair is parted almost all the way back. Maybe if you parted it all the way back in future pics it would be easier to compare and see any regrowth? Good call on being wet; it's much easier to see what's really going on.

Thanks for the congrats, people! After looking at the pics with "fresh eyes" (was busy and tired yesterday) I'm even more encouraged than before.

duketronix--yeah, I think the 30-month window is a fallacy, too. Lots of people on here do, although I think the consensus is the longer it's gone the longer it will take to come back if you manage to find what will bring it back. What will bring it back seems to be different for everyone, although the manual methods do seem to be pretty effective across the board when applied consistently. It's been over 10 years since I lost the majority of my hair, so I'm in the same boat as you. I'm seeing results where I haven't seen them long term. I hope it keeps up!

taidan--I love the violet ray. Highly recommend!

mistyisland--thanks! but I do think a lot of the progress was made between January and April. It just wasn't showing in April yet. Does that make sense? It was "behind the scenes". My hair did begin to act better within weeks of starting the manual methods, and within a couple of months of starting iodine. Worth noting is that my eyebrows also seem to be filling in on the ends (thin eyebrows is a sign of hypothyroid).

Mentalist--progress wasn't made "just by brushing". Please read the whole thread. It was a bunch of manual methods plus getting my physiology in order with diet and supplements.

Regimen includes emphasis on diet, adrenals, gut health, and chelation (all necessary before I could tolerate iodine), as well as brushing, toweling, massage, and violet ray.

Correcting the hormone/physiological imbalances that are causing your hairloss is crucial to regrowth, IMO. But I also think increasing circulation with the manual mehtods may be a critical component to regrowth for many of us, especially when results are limited with correcting physiological imbalances alone. Time will tell.

As I noted in other threads, my diet has taken a hit lately from stress and life circumstances. Plus, even though my hair was acting better, I was having doubts about how real the progress was. Seeing these pics has inspired me to really get back in healthy mode and try to take it to the next level.

FWIW I no longer do the toweling (Papillapower/Margo method) because it tangles my hair, and then my hair breaks when I try to comb it out. But I do recommend it for people with short hair or buzz cuts.

I brush like the lady at longhairs.com advises: part hair in the middle, brush straight down from vertex and crown, ~150 strokes. Then I flip over and brush from the nape of the neck and hair line, ~100 strokes. But I don't brush the whole length of my hair shaft until I flip back over. I found brushing the whole length of my hair shaft too much was causing breakage, like toweling. When I do brush the whole length of the shaft it's after the original ~250 strokes, and it's very gently. I usually comb it out gently first with a wide-tooth comb, too.

I also added hair pulling in addition to scritching, to replace toweling in my regimen. Scritching & tugging are a little more time consuming, but it's working out nicely.

This is a pretty good video on hair pulling.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xG614N_NQ6Y

I used to be a massage therapist (before I started losing my hair, LOL), and this is how I do it. Be careful if you try it, and make sure you have a good handful, pull gently but firmly, with your knuckles close to your scalp. I use my knuckles on my scalp to create the "lift" with my hands that pulls the hair. If you do it wrong you can yank out some hairs, but if you do it right, you won't.

Paradox said:

Not to be cynical but just to keep an open mind... Whenever I apply oil (eg. coconut) to my hair it appears much thicker and healthier/shinier like you describe, even after shampooing.

Also because we don't know the ingredients in the topical, we can't rule out some kind of dht inhibition (eg. saw palmetto).

Thanks for the pics and keep us posted. It's so nice to see pics in this forum. It seems like for years we didn't have any.

In the second pic your hair is parted almost all the way back. Maybe if you parted it all the way back in future pics it would be easier to compare and see any regrowth? Good call on being wet; it's much easier to see what's really going on.

Paradox, I know you mean well, and I am not slamming you, dear fellah, but I think your post is a good example of why people don't post pictures. I've heard rdkml and CS and others say it before: no matter how you try to control the lighting, replicate angles, combing, etc., people are always going to pick apart your progress pics. They're going to think what they want to think.

Your comment about oil is well taken, but I think that just points to how good hair care is essentially to having good-looking hair, no matter how much hair you have. I know I neglected my hair sorely for years and years (bad shampoos, crappy conditioners, sticky styling products, hot dryers, etc.) before I started losing it. I think if I'd used good hair products and ignored conventional wisdom that says do not brush your hair or stimulate your scalp, etc., I would in all likelihood not have a problem. Or at least, I'd have much less of one.

I don't use topicals. The only "topical" I use is the scritching oil from longhairs.com,and I've only been using that for two weeks. I was scritching without the oil before that. But even at that I've only been scritching daily for about a month or so. Further, that oil is not a leave-in product. You put it on, scritch for 15 minutes, then wash it out. You're not supposed to leave it in. So no, it's not possible to credit potential dht inhibitors in the oil at all with any growth, although oil could account for some fatter hair shafts.

In the second pic my I think my hair appears to be parted all the way back because there was enough of it to show a part. In both pics I made every effort to comb my hair in exactly the same way. I made the determination of how I was going to comb my hair in every single progress pic I took, before I even took the first picture. I think making those kinds of determinations is important to keep the pics as objective as possible. Dunno what else to tell you but that.

I don't mean to sound truculent but I'm not to defend the pics any further, either. I'm doing my best to control the factors that can make the differences, and anyone can think whatever they want about them. If it gets too bad I just won't post any more pics. I'll keep any progress to myself.

whodathunkit wrote:Paradox said:

Not to be cynical but just to keep an open mind... Whenever I apply oil (eg. coconut) to my hair it appears much thicker and healthier/shinier like you describe, even after shampooing.

Also because we don't know the ingredients in the topical, we can't rule out some kind of dht inhibition (eg. saw palmetto).

Thanks for the pics and keep us posted. It's so nice to see pics in this forum. It seems like for years we didn't have any.

In the second pic your hair is parted almost all the way back. Maybe if you parted it all the way back in future pics it would be easier to compare and see any regrowth? Good call on being wet; it's much easier to see what's really going on.

Paradox, I know you mean well, and I am not slamming you, dear fellah, but I think your post is a good example of why people don't post pictures. I've heard rdkml and CS and others say it before: no matter how you try to control the lighting, replicate angles, combing, etc., people are always going to pick apart your progress pics. They're going to think what they want to think.

Your comment about oil is well taken, but I think that just points to how good hair care is essentially to having good-looking hair, no matter how much hair you have. I know I neglected my hair sorely for years and years (bad shampoos, crappy conditioners, sticky styling products, hot dryers, etc.) before I started losing it. I think if I'd used good hair products and ignored conventional wisdom that says do not brush your hair or stimulate your scalp, etc., I would in all likelihood not have a problem. Or at least, I'd have much less of one.

I don't use topicals. The only "topical" I use is the scritching oil from longhairs.com,and I've only been using that for two weeks. I was scritching without the oil before that. But even at that I've only been scritching daily for about a month or so. Further, that oil is not a leave-in product. You put it on, scritch for 15 minutes, then wash it out. You're not supposed to leave it in. So no, it's not possible to credit potential dht inhibitors in the oil at all with any growth, although oil could account for some fatter hair shafts.

In the second pic my I think my hair appears to be parted all the way back because there was enough of it to show a part. In both pics I made every effort to comb my hair in exactly the same way. I made the determination of how I was going to comb my hair in every single progress pic I took, before I even took the first picture. I think making those kinds of determinations is important to keep the pics as objective as possible. Dunno what else to tell you but that.

I don't mean to sound truculent but I'm not to defend the pics any further, either. I'm doing my best to control the factors that can make the differences, and anyone can think whatever they want about them. If it gets too bad I just won't post any more pics. I'll keep any progress to myself.

No man, I wasn't being critical of your pics- I was saying that it's refreshing to see pics and I like how you have your hair wet and parted like that. It does look noticeably thicker, but like you said I'm not sure about regrowth. It's too early to tell that obviously but it is encouraging. I guess I shouldn't start with "not to be cynical..." because it implies that I am, but I'm honestly not. I wasn't trying to discount anything about your method or your pics. All I was saying was that when I use oils on my hair it appears thicker (the shafts) and it's difficult for me to tell if the hair itself is getting thicker or not. That's not to imply yours is not. Even if the oil was playing a role in dht inhibition I don't consider that bad at all, or mean that the manual methods don't work. I take finasteride and have been brushing. I do massage in the shower and was towling until recently too. Just got an inversion table mostly for my back, but I've been brushing while hanging too.

whodathunkit - I just realize you're a female. Do you know the cause of your hairloss or is this AAG ?

Paradox, it's cool. Sorry for being defensive & taking you out of context.

But it took a lot for me to post those (to this day I still can't believe sometimes that that is my head) and I guess I just wanted to hear a bunch of "wow, progress is fantastic", etc. Plus, based on past experiences in seeing others post progress pics, am kind of waiting for a pile-on.

Anyway, a quick question: how much was your inversion table? I'm interested in in one but don't really have the space, even if I have the money. But cost is a big factor. Mind sharing?

niff, I think it's AAG. It's inherited, and has to do with endocrine disruption, I'm sure...my father was a total cueball (shiny pate, tight galea, acute diffuse thinning on sides of head, etc.), and my mother's brother's both have AAG. My mother has some post-menopausal hairloss, as did my maternal grandmother. Paternal grandmother didn't lose her hair, though, and neither did maternal grandfather.

I strongly suspect that if I'd just taken better care of my body and understood about circulation and hair health, I probably could've skipped this whole problem. I'm genetically susceptible but think I pushed myself into it.

It's a whole big tangle of factors. Good news is I believe now it can likely be unraveled. Bad news is I just don't know if I have the discipline to do it. It's going to be a long slog, and I'm coming later to the game than is ideal. Whippersnappers should take hope, though!

"mistyisland--thanks! but I do think a lot of the progress was made between January and April. It just wasn't showing in April yet. Does that make sense? It was "behind the scenes". My hair did begin to act better within weeks of starting the manual methods, and within a couple of months of starting iodine. Worth noting is that my eyebrows also seem to be filling in on the ends (thin eyebrows is a sign of hypothyroid)."

Even though you feel the progress started in January, there is still considerable change from April on. I know you said those pics were hard to post, but they have been an inspiration to me, and perhaps others.

My hair is also acting better, especially after violet ray usage Can you tell me how much iodine you take, and which brand? I can't seen to find a standard dosage. I also have hypothyroid.

I have sparse eyebrows, but I thought that was part of the aging process. I used to have very thick brows. My eyelashes are almost non-existent. I have taken some before pics, but need to see some improvement before I take any more. I have only been doing "manual methods" for 2 months.

I think I read in another thread that you had an F 165. Do you credit any of your improvement to the rife?

Very cool whodathunkit -

Thanks for posting the pics. They look great. Keep up the good work. Also thanks for the Scritching info as well, in case I want to change things up bit down the road.

Ya I was on OMG's forum and did get a laser helmet from him, but have not had the chance to really use it! My work has kept my schedule all over the place and I know consistency is important with lasering so I figured I'd wait until things quiet down (end of the summer).
I did do a bit of lasering at the start but only about 5 sessions before I had to put it aside, so I started these manual ones for now since it's easier to transport and do wherever.
I'm hoping the two will compliment eachother once I start the laser back up. I did notice my head felt pretty good from the few times I'd used it, but like I said didn't get into it to much, yet.

Duketronix wrote:Ya I was on OMG's forum and did get a laser helmet from him, but have not had the chance to really use it! My work has kept my schedule all over the place and I know consistency is important with lasering so I figured I'd wait until things quiet down (end of the summer).
I did do a bit of lasering at the start but only about 5 sessions before I had to put it aside, so I started these manual ones for now since it's easier to transport and do wherever.
I'm hoping the two will compliment eachother once I start the laser back up. I did notice my head felt pretty good from the few times I'd used it, but like I said didn't get into it to much, yet.

lol, no excuse to not laser. takes what 20 mins a day. do it while you read the paper or surft the web!

misty, I don't think there is any standard dosage with iodine...you have to find your way with it. But if you decide to try it go slow...it can give nasty sides if you have heavy metal toxicity from bromide (from eating bread products) or mercury (from fillings, not recommended to take iodine if you've got mercury fillings). I don't have fillings but still had to chelate and clean up my diet for 8-9 mos. before I could tolerate it. Interesting to note I'm actually taking it for another condition...the beneficial effect on my thyroid is just a happy side.

Can't credit the F165 with any progress yet. I haven't used it long enough, plus I unfortunately was falling off the "Good Clean Livin' Wagon" right about the time I got it.

After I got comfy with the programming I researched and ran a bunch of long scripts daily for about a month, and in fact began feeling pretty crappy so I stopped. No doubt because the scripts were doing what they were supposed to do (killing pathogens, etc.). But I wasn't eating well or chelating so I don't think my body could handle the extra toxin load. Plus a bunch of stuff at my job came to a head...unserendipitous life circumstances. I plan to dedicate some time to experimenting healthily with Rife in the near future. What little I've experienced makes me think it will help if utilized properly. But my main priority is getting my diet back on track now that I've seen some proof that all the trouble I've gone to in the last year is actually yielding some hair results. Then I can move on to other health-promoting therapies again.

Whodathunkit, sorry to hear about the fall from the diet wagon. It happens to the best of us, but just think how good your hair will look when you get back on!

BTW, I have been trying to find a place to buy the SG-1, or magic bean, and can't find one. I got an estimate for $2600 from pachealth for a custom made one, but somehow I think that is not right. Would you mind sharing your resource?