Help! My Hair Is Falling Out!

Omega 3 suppliments have worked for me. My hair has always just fallen out easily. At 44 I didn't want this to continue.
I've been taking Omega 3 for a few months now and have noticed that my hair isn't getting brushed out or when I blow-dry.
Good Luck,
L.

I had the same issue. My doctor told me the same thing that this typically happens after birth of a child. However, everyone is different. My hair still falls even after 4 years. After researching on my own, I have found that low iron levels could be a factor which that was not my case after bloodwork results came back. I did find that Biotin supplements may be helpful. I have just bought the vitamin and so I will find out in a few months if it works or not. This may not work for me or you. Like you, I'm still searching for answers and solutions to this problem myself even after giving birth almost 5 years ago.

Good luck to you.

I would recommend having your thyroid checked again, particularly if it was borderline before. My thyroid function decreased after each of three pregnancies - never to the point that I was put on medication, but after my fourth, I developed hypothyroidism and am now on a very low dose of synthroid. I also had hair loss and various other classic symptoms of hypothyroidism. Often the symptoms are so wide ranging, they are misdiagnosed as other things, like depression, or irregular periods, without ever being checked for possible thyroid disease.

http://thyroid.about.com/cs/basics_starthere/a/hypocheckl...
This site has some info about risk factors and symptoms.

Blessings,
D.

The same thing happened to me after I had my daughter. It was alarming. My hair would come out by the handfuls. My dr told me that as a woman ages and goes through hormonal changes like pregnancy hair loss will occur. He said if I paid attention I would see that it occurs in cycles related to stress and my hormones. He was right. It eventually stopped after my hormones got back to normal with my daughter but I still notice it from time to time.

I have 3 children 3yrs,2yrs, and 6mths old...my hair shed before i had babies , but when i was pregnant it was full and thick and i loved it, but at around four months after i had my babies each time my hair would start to fall out...i mean it's every where, like a dog shedding his winter coat...i did have a dermatologist tell me it's my hormones...so i never got scared about it... i don't have bald patches or anything just that my hair is shedding a lot....i hope this helps...keep us updated...i'd like to know if its something else besides hormones...

I have had 6 kids and mine does the same thing. All the doctors say it is just your body going back to its pre-pregnancy state. I have not found any solutions for it. so if you find a solution let me know... would love to have my hair back.
J.

Check out these websites, relating to what is happening with your hair:

http://www.americanpregnancy.org/pregnancyhealth/hairloss...

http://www.babycenter.com/0_postpartum-hair-loss_11721.bc

W.,

Ask your Gyn to check your hormone levels. I have this problem and it is an increased level of Androgen hormone. She has prescribed a certain birth control bill that controls the hormone level and the hair loss. Good Luck. I know from experience it's devastating.

B.

I'm sorry to hear about your hair trouble. I too have suffered from the same incident. I have a six year old and a six month old and after both pregnancies my hair began to fall out. I am a nurse so my comments are from what I have seen while working with various doctors and patients. Regarding your thyroid test; are you experiencing any other signs and symptoms associated with hypothyroidism (sluggish thyroid)? If you are I urge you to talk to your doctor. Lab tests give the doctor a "general" idea of an ailment. What could be seen as a "normal" lab value could actually be low for you. Push your doctor if need be. The other suggestion I have for you is a supplement called Biotin. I saw a women post menapausal with thinning hair grow back her hair within months after the doctor ordered the supplement. You can find a good brand at GNC. I hope this helps. Take care and God Bless.

I am having the same trouble!! I am 32, and I have 2 boys (5 years and 2 years). Mine is getting really bad. I have handfuls coming out each day. I am really beginning to worry. I think there may be an imbalance in my body. I am tired all of the time. My friends tell me that it is stress related. I am not really sure. I can totally sympathize with you. Please let me know what you find out. I wish I could help you with an answer. I was actually thinking about going to a doctor myself. My mother thinks that my hair is too dry from blow drying it and flat ironing it. She thinks that is the problem. Do you use either of these items?

Another poster, Elizabeth, posted about the same issue. I gave her a response that she might need to consider. Here is what I said:

Do you have any other physical symptoms? Do you have any stomach issues or diarrhea? The reason I'm asking is that my 18yodd use to have that very problem, not pregnancy related though. After a shower I swear it looked like a gorilla had showered in there, she had literally stuck her hair to the walls of the shower stall to prevent it from clogging up the drain. Turns out she has celiac disease and her malnutrition was contributing to her hair loss.

Now to look at her you wouldn't classify her as malnourished, 5'7", skinny, but she was never classified as failure to thrive as a child so it was surprising to us. But after going on the gluten free diet she put on 15#'s which looked great on her, but her hair loss stopped within 3 months. Her color is wonderful, her hair looks great, she feels like a new person.

Now you can have this disease without those symptoms, just stomach issues & diarrhea are the most common. You can go to http://www.csaceliacs.org/ and get some great information.

I hope you find an answer because I know that it can be a little unsettling to have this happening to you.

W.,
get a second opinion on your thyroid. In my travels, Dr.'s have diffent opinions on thyroid and at what level they should be treated. Find one who put you on a low dose thyroid medication such as synthroid.

Keep in mind, my hair still falls out because of my thyroid issues. If not, good luck and be persistant with finding the real issue.

Jenn

This is extremely normal after having a baby and don't worry- it will stop soon. I had the same problem after my son was born. You will see new hair (baby hair) coming in soon. I freaked out and all of my mommy friends said they suffered through it too! You aren't sick and you don't need meds. Just relax, try not to wear ponytails or wash it too roughly. Be really gentle with it and it will be fine!
I know it scares you, but it will taper off. The worst is over!! Your Dr. will tell you that this is TOTALLY normal and it is from hormones.

Have your doctor check your folic acid levels. Your prenatal vitamins are full of folic acid, that is probably why your hair stopped falling out while you were pregnant. It really could also be your thyroid. Even though your doctor said your thyroid was normal, it may be on the low side of normal. Last May I went to the doctor because I was tired all the time. She took several blood tests which checked everything from hormones to vitamins. My thyroid was also normal but on the very low end. My doctor put me on Armour Thyroid and until we finally were able to get my thyroid levels normal my hair started falling out. She rechecked my folic acid and it was extremely low. She told me to start taking a folic acid vitamin. So I now take a vitamin once a day called One Source for hair, skin and nails. You can get this at Wal-Mart. I have only been taking the vitamin for 2 weeks and I can already tell my hair is getting thicker. I hope this helps and good luck.

My hair did the same thing!! It ended up being my hormones. Need to get them to check it out. Once I got that fixed it stopped and my hair is fine now. It all grew back in and I have not had anymore problems.

Hi, I'm not a doctor, but judging by what you've said, it sounds like your body needs something that it produced more of while you were pregnant. Maybe you should ask your gynecologist about that. If it is hormone related, you might could get hormone treatment of some sort.

hi W., what you are describing sounds perfectly normal to me. i am a hairdresser and also have 3 children. most everyone i know that has given birth has gone through losing hair, everyone to varying degrees. if you are very stressed that will just make it worse. when you say that you have lost it in chunks, are you losing it in handfuls where it is thinning allover or around the hairline or do you actually have bald spots? my hubby gets bald patches on his head that can range from the size of a peanut to the size of a half dollar....this is called alopecia and it is a stress related disorder. if this is the case, you need to find some way to deal with the stress, not the hair loss (doctors can give you shots in your head to help with the hairloss if you want to go that route. i have a customer that had it so bad from stress that she wore wigs but once the stress was gone (she was going through a divorce) then the hair grew back and she has a headfull now!). if you deal with the stress that will stop the hairloss but again, it is completely normal to lose hair after having a baby. it can last several months or even a year so give it time and get a cute new haircut that is manageable while your hormones are going through these changes. also, you mentioned that your hair didn't fall out while pregnant...it is normal to lose 75-150 strands a day and you didn't lose them for 9 months. your body is now catching up. hang in there and you will see new hairs sprouting in no time!

Hi, I went through the same thing and it ended up being a lack of Iron. Try getting a vitamin supplement with plenty of Iron, Biotin and B complexes as these are all interdependant upon each other.

It's normal for your hair to fall out, some people's fall out more than others. Also, while pregnant due to the hormones in your body your hair does not fall out and this normal hair shedding process stops. Once you have your baby a ton of hair will fall out as your hormones start regulating back to normal - this is also normal. This will continue to happen as long as you breast feed as well. It sounds like you are going through some normal hormonal changes related to your pregnancies. Talk to you OB - they can probably help explain the process. I had the same thing happen - I literally had to sweep my bathroom floor about every other day due to all of the hair that came out after birth and during the first year of nursing. Since I've weaned our daughter this has decreased a lot although I still shed hair normally and I have always shed more than what I considered normal anyway.

Look up alopecia on google. Read about it. Sometimes, there isn't anything wrong with you for your hair to fall out. I know because it happened to me. I have what is called alopecia areata. The dermatologist diagnosed it; they took a few strands of hair and looked at the roots. There are different ways to treat it, but they don't know what causes it (they have some theories & they thought mine was stress) so treatments they use are only becuase they've worked for some people. The treatments used on me didn't really work, but I followed them. With alopecia areata, hair falls out, then will grow back & the doctor told me that it can happen again and grow back and again...so it's a lifelong issue. It's happened to me twice. The first time, so much fell out that I resorted to wearing a wig, but right now, it has happened again but not as much fell out and I haven't had to wear a wig b/c you can't tell. It's just started growing back in again. The doc told me that for whatever reason, stress, etc., the body's immune system attacks the hair folicles and hair won't grow in the damaged folicle. We lose hair everyday normally, but when you have alopecia, it doesn't come back, which creates bald spots. The way you can tell is if the bald spots are in perfectly round circles. Anyway, hope the advice helps!

I was reading your request and you may want to get your thyroid checked again I have a thyroid disorder and it was before I ever ahd children and I lost some of my hair until I got it straightened out. Also sometimes pregnancy can trigger thyroid disorders since it is a hormone. It is normal for your hair post natal 3-4 months to start shedding. I am a hairstylist and there is a great product called Nioxin, that most people see results from when they use it the right way it may take 2 weeks to start noticing less of your hair coming out but buy one month you will notice new hair growth. Make sure you read on the product which one you need. There are different ones for natural, chemical treated hair and different levels of severeness. Good Luck-A.

If your hair is falling out something is wrong. My hair fell out when my thyroid hormone was too low. Go to an endocrinologist and have it checked.

Hello,
I responded to someone about this the other day. I had this problem also and was talking to my aunt who lives in another state about it. She went to a Dr. about it where she lives and they told her to use Pantene(sp)Pro V. Well I went and bought the Walmart brand since Pantene is so expensive and it has worked. I still have a little on my brush and shirt after I brush and style my hair but that is going to happen.Hope it works for you!! K.

Hi! I hope it's not too late to respond, I just joined. I am a 34 year old mom of 3, and have had the same problem. I lost hair after each of the kids' births, but have been losing again lately. My youngest is 3 now, so I didn't think that it had anything to do with childbirth. I found out from my doctor, that it was my diet. I was extremely sick for about 2 years, and my appetite was very poor. I became a vegetarian to help my health, but wasn't eating enough protein. My hair loss happened about 6 mos after my appetite crashed. My doctor told me that my hair had simply weakened, and was breaking. He also said that I needed to examine the hairs that were coming out. If they have the hair "pulp" on them at the tip, that meant that they were falling from the root, and not breaking. If they fall from the root, the root is damaged and the hair will not grow back. If they do not have the root pulp, then the hair is breaking off, and not falling out. I examined the hairs, and found that it was mostly breaking, so it will grow back. I've modified my diet to include more protein in the form of eggs and milk, and am happy to say that my hair is getting thicker. The funny thing (if there is one in this case) is that when the hair grows back, it's so short, and I have long hair. So, my head looks fuzzy, and the new hair just sticks out any way it wants. But, I've never been so happy with such wild-looking hair. Hope things go well for you! It is sooooo stressful when you see your hair on your pillow, in hairbrushes, in the tub, all over your clothes, etc. Hang in there!