beauty through (hair) loss - part 1

I could never commit a crime.  I fully comprehend some of the logistics of cime-committing via Hollywood teaching me in various movies and shows like Dexter, but I truly could never commit a crime.  Am I just that holy of a person, you ask? No - not at all.  I shed too much flipping hair to ever flee a crime scene without a trace.  My hair leaves behind a trail Hansel and Gretel would be envious of.

Attempt at humor aside, my issue is more than shedding - it's hair loss, and it's one seriously depressing problem a lot of women suffer from but few have the want to discuss or knowledge to tackle.

With no attempt at diagnosing or taking the role of a doctor, I figured I can at least do my part in sharing what happened to me, what I learned, and what I did in this 2+-year struggle with hair loss.

The starting point and the point I noticed the loss were probably a few months apart, but things like this tend to creep up on us.  I'm pretty sure we develop wrinkles slowly, but BAM! one day they're horribly visible in the mirror.  Such was the case with my hair loss - probably happened slowly for a while without my noticing, but BAM! one day I was in tears over the shock.

Knowing in the back of my brain it was a horrible idea, I was compelled to Google hair loss. DAMN.  BIG mistake. BIG.  I'll spare you the gibberish that comes in search results up online (since you've probably already Googled it yourself, anyways) - the miracle products, the hair transplant centers, the blog rants.   Tons of chatter with little useful info, and a lot of fuel for panic.  While I see the sweet irony that I hope my own blog post comes up in a search and is able to help readers, I have to say - if you can avoid over-Googling hair loss, do yourself a favor.

There's a particularly helpful order in which a practical person could navigate their hair loss self-journey and recovery, and then there's the path I took - more of a frantic zig-zag mess of sharp turns, backtracking, sprinting, and stalling.  If you'll lend me your eyes and a little time, I'll walk you through my path in hopes of saving you the same angst I suffered - and saving you some money, too.

Step 1 - Dr/Dermatologist 

The Dr. was my first step, and it should be yours, too. However, in my case, a crappy HMO plan plus a young, misinformed Dr. misled me a tad astray.  Don't let that discourage you; just be prepared when you go the the Dr. what you're looking for and asking for. Have your general practitioner/family Dr. run blood work for "Hair Loss 101" (note that's my title for it - actual test names linked below).  If your Dr., like mine, tries to send you packing with an "I'm sure you're fine, sweetie," get the hell outta there and find a new doctor.  The basic tests you want are listed on this website under Diagnostic Blood Tests for Women's Hair Loss.  Hopefully, the results of these give you a clear path as to why this is happening, and you can identify and address the issue right away (thyroid issues, hormonal imbalances, vitamin deficiencies,  etc.).  If something does show in your blood work, you're rather lucky, in away.  Of course it's horrible to have this loss occur, but getting back a test result showing an issue means you have something specific to target.  That alone will save you time, angst, and money on useless tonics and potions.  

Step "1.5" is an additional visit to your dermatologist.  I waited too long for this key step in part because I needed the aforementioned crappy HMO to refer me and in part because I didn't really know what a derm could do for hair loss.  Turns out, they can do a few quick, helpful tests that are really informative.  Note that I had to fight tooth and nail to have these tests done/approved.  The derm, like my Dr., was under the impression of "you're fine, and this is all in your head, so just go home."  When I finally got my way, we ran a few tests in the dermatologist's office.  First, he examined my scalp and noticed there was a bit of dandruff (yes, a blog on hair loss is bound to have TMI at some point).  The presence of dandruff means the hair follicles could be choked off at the scalp causing breakage and loss.  In addition, the dermatologist finally agreed to a scalp biopsy, and that's by far the most helpful medical test you'll get in the "Dr. visit" phase of tacking the problem.  

I heard about a scalp biopsy after reading this helpful article in the New York Times. It was such a relief to find a medical test for what I'd been scrambling to solve, I was thrilled to get this done.  It doesn't hurt, and it's fast.  Well, it "doesn't hurt" in the way that a cavity filling doesn't hurt - there's a numbing shot that's more pressure and slight pain than the actual shot & procedure.  I'd have liked someone to tell me in advance that a) my hair will have a blob of petroleum jelly over the stitches for at least 48 hours; b) I may be a bit woozy after the procedure; c) petroleum jelly won't really wash out for a few shampoos, so be prepared for an oily scalp and some pillowcase ruining.  The small stitches come out about two weeks later, right around the time you'll get results.  

Results from this biopsy come in two forms - a cause such as androgenetic alopecia (hereditary hair loss) that you can start to tackle via products like Rogaine, or a "cause" like telogen effluvium (temporary hair loss that will allegedly resolve itself when the trigger and initial cause goes away).  In my case, I got telogen effluvium, and I felt very mixed results to that outcome.  In a sense, it was a relief it wasn't permanent hair loss, but in another sense, it left me more lost.  What did I do to cause this? What changed? And what to do now?

Wherever you're at in the process of addressing this issue - not gone to Dr. yet, waiting for results, or unsure what to do with the results you already got - check back for Part 2.  I'll be sharing what I spent my money on - both good and bad - to help take control of this problem.  

Beautifully Simple Through Loss,

Nicole @Vanity Cosmetics

Before & After