New and excited
One day, out of the blue, I started to loose my hair significantly. I think I was loosing at least 200-300 hairs per day. At first, I was oblivious to this as I had really thick hair. Then, one day, I realized something was very wrong. My sink and bathbub were constantly plugged. My BR floor was full of hair. Before I knew it, I couldn’t wear a pony tail b/c it was the size of a pencil. I cried. I cried a lot. I was the unhappiest, saddest person. It seemed so vain, and yet, I couldn’t stand to loose my hair.
I went to my doctor a LOT. I think she couldn’t stand it anymore. I would cry a lot and literally beg for help. She took my TSH, testosterone, iron etc. and it was all normal. I begged for anything, any medication. I couldn’t stand to loose another single strand of hair. I remember her words quite vividly "stop colouring you hair. There is nothing physiologically wrong with you that could account for your hair loss". I stated that I have coloured my hair for about 18 yrs and had gray hair, her response was "it’s better to be gray than bold". I was devastated and left the office feeling powerless and helpless.
The hair loss got worse and I was starting to look ill. I was pale, gaining weight, depressed and had no energy. Emotionally, I was dying. I finally seeked out a friend a work who was an internist. After approximately 3 months, he took ample tests and discovered that I was indeed hypothyroid. My TSH escalated rapidly as did my symptoms. My hair was lifeless and I wanted to shave it bald. I was really depressed.
After about 1.5 yrs and 2 wks on Synthroid, my hair loss is now approx. 1/2 if not less, per day. My hair is already thicker. Is that even possible? I used to wear hair pieces, just to fill in the thickness and now, I don’t have to.
Ladies, I am all smiles. The difference has been night and day. I am able to shower without having a traumatic melt down. I am able to brush my hair without filling the brush with hair. Halelujah!!!
I am writting this to give hope. To encourage and to give support. I believe I am well on my way to recovery. With less than 2 wks on my medications, I see such a drastic difference. I hope that women here persevere and fight for answers, and don’t give up. My Dr. made me feel like it was all psychosomatic and like I was loosing my mind. I wasn’t. There was a reason for this, and I had to find alternate resources to figure it out. I lost about 1/3 of my hair and my Dr. did not want to help.
I just wanted to share my story. I had substantial hair loss even before my TSH went up. Basically, I was symptomatic before any diagnostic correlated to the symptoms. I am now elated, optimistic and just wanted to share that with all of you.
Cheers
Catherine
