I recently went to a dermatologist because my hair has been falling out at a pretty rapid rate since mid august. Almost every time I run my hands through my hair one or two hairs comes out and the loss is very noticeable when I wash and dry my hair and my hair is now visibly thinner in the front this is quite disturbing since prior to this I had extremely thick hair. I was just wondering if anyone else here has dealt with Telogen Effluvium and what their experiences were...how long did the hairloss last, what triggered the hairloss and if your hair grew back to the way it was before Telogen Effluvium. Any help or insights would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Telogen effluvium
- Thread starter gmpymahny
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astral week
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hey at this point I'm quite sure I'm suffering from a long bout of Telogen Effluvium, to the point where you could call it chronic. I'd say my hair's been falling out quickly and steadily for the past year and a half, mostly due to some very very stressful situations I'd rather not get into, and probably more so a very bad diet bordering on malnutrition. I was probably averaging less than 1200 calories a day for this whole time. At the absolute worst point, I lost 15 pounds in like 12 days (and I only weigh 130 as it is), by not eating for up to 48 hours at a time due to stress. Unfortunately I'm predisposed to male pattern baldness, evident by my slowly receding temples, and I'm pretty sure Telogen Effluvium is exacerbating it. I'm also sure I have some degree of Telogen Effluvium because my hair has been falling out and thinning on not only the crown and front, but sides, back, everywhere (which is characteristic of Telogen Effluvium and not male pattern baldness). It's definitely thinned more on the crown than elsewhere, but Telogen Effluvium apparently sometimes affects the top of the scalp more than other places, and of course if you're predisposed to male pattern baldness it will thin more on top anyway.
Anyway, it has been a very slow process, and I have gotten rid of most of my stressors, and am eating much much better. My shed's actually increased since I've started taking better care of myself (almost 2 months now), so I'm thinking it's the first step toward improvement. I've also on propecia because discovering my temples were receding freaked me out (I'm 19). The propecia supposedly can also help make sure the hair that grows back after Telogen Effluvium isn't miniaturized, or at least AS miniaturized. So I'm sorry to tell you that I haven't had much improvement yet, but I'm not expecting it for a while. The absolute worst thing to do is stress out about it, as hard as that may be. it should be comforting to know that your hairloss is due in part to something you can control, unlike male pattern baldness.
Do you know what caused your Telogen Effluvium? Many many people (including myself) first think that their hairloss is due to stress, etc., in hope that it's not male pattern baldness. Unfortunately, it's almost always male pattern baldness. Telogen Effluvium doesn't happen unless something serious has happened to you, ex. major stress, serious illness, surgery, very poor nutrition, and I believe some medications such as accutane can cause it as well. Keep in mind that by the time you actually notice your hairloss, you've already lost up to 50% of your hair.
Basically, ask yourself these questions:
1. Is my hairloss diffused over my whole head, or just front and/or crown?
2. Have there been any reasons to believe it is Telogen Effluvium and not male pattern baldness?
3. Is male pattern baldness prevalent in my family, and if so, at my age?
4. Have my temples/hairline receded? (if so, then you have male pattern baldness to some degree. Telogen Effluvium does not cause this, although it can make it worse).
I hope this helps a little. I'm very sorry to say you are more likely to have male pattern baldness than Telogen Effluvium, but you never know. keep us updated, i'm curious to see how you do.
Good luck!
Anyway, it has been a very slow process, and I have gotten rid of most of my stressors, and am eating much much better. My shed's actually increased since I've started taking better care of myself (almost 2 months now), so I'm thinking it's the first step toward improvement. I've also on propecia because discovering my temples were receding freaked me out (I'm 19). The propecia supposedly can also help make sure the hair that grows back after Telogen Effluvium isn't miniaturized, or at least AS miniaturized. So I'm sorry to tell you that I haven't had much improvement yet, but I'm not expecting it for a while. The absolute worst thing to do is stress out about it, as hard as that may be. it should be comforting to know that your hairloss is due in part to something you can control, unlike male pattern baldness.
Do you know what caused your Telogen Effluvium? Many many people (including myself) first think that their hairloss is due to stress, etc., in hope that it's not male pattern baldness. Unfortunately, it's almost always male pattern baldness. Telogen Effluvium doesn't happen unless something serious has happened to you, ex. major stress, serious illness, surgery, very poor nutrition, and I believe some medications such as accutane can cause it as well. Keep in mind that by the time you actually notice your hairloss, you've already lost up to 50% of your hair.
Basically, ask yourself these questions:
1. Is my hairloss diffused over my whole head, or just front and/or crown?
2. Have there been any reasons to believe it is Telogen Effluvium and not male pattern baldness?
3. Is male pattern baldness prevalent in my family, and if so, at my age?
4. Have my temples/hairline receded? (if so, then you have male pattern baldness to some degree. Telogen Effluvium does not cause this, although it can make it worse).
I hope this helps a little. I'm very sorry to say you are more likely to have male pattern baldness than Telogen Effluvium, but you never know. keep us updated, i'm curious to see how you do.
Good luck!
thank you for replying. The reason I believed this to be Telogen Effluvium was because I also went through A major bout of ill health. For a period of 6 months maybe more I was vomiting everyday from stress. I thought it may have been an ulcer causing the nausea but the throwing up came from daily panic attacks. during the same period I came down with a norovirus which almost killed me I had to be taken to the hospital due to severe dehydration. Coupled with this I was in my last smester of school where I had to maintain a 3.5 GPA, my mother had a stroke and I was in a serious car accident all of this bunched together. I have absolutely no history of MPD in my family on either side both men and women have a full head of hair. My brother who is 29 has a full head of hair and no signs of MPD. The hair loss comes from all over the head so it is not isolated. Also my hairline has not receded it is just thinner in the front you can see a bit more scalp in an area where my hair is blonder than the rest of my head. Thank you for the reply and good luck to you as well.
astral week
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well that definitely seems to be more than enough to trigger Telogen Effluvium, and if there's no history of male pattern baldness, I'd say you're pretty much in the clear, which is a very unusual and fortunate thing to say on these boards. I'm jealous. so stop worrying about hairloss, it looks like you have bigger things to worry about than hairloss, and once you correct the problems that initiated the Telogen Effluvium, you'll stop shedding in 3-4 months, and start regrowth in about 6. you'll be cosmetically recovered by a year or less, barring some complication (like male pattern baldness!).
So take care of yourself, and get off this forum! stop worrying
So take care of yourself, and get off this forum! stop worrying
jeez man...im sorry to hear about all that crap u had to go through...more than likely its Telogen Effluvium. if there was a case for Telogen Effluvium, you can def justify it with all you went through.
if i was you, id buzz it on a 3 like brad pitt in mr smith and try to just chill out and make money and before you know it, it will slowly start filling in. Telogen Effluvium usually improves within a year..it may not be perfect for a while, if ever, but it will vastly improve and noone will cosmetically notice you had anything wrong with your hair.
good luck man, and stop being depressed..having Telogen Effluvium is the best news u could get with regards to hair loss.
if i was you, id buzz it on a 3 like brad pitt in mr smith and try to just chill out and make money and before you know it, it will slowly start filling in. Telogen Effluvium usually improves within a year..it may not be perfect for a while, if ever, but it will vastly improve and noone will cosmetically notice you had anything wrong with your hair.
good luck man, and stop being depressed..having Telogen Effluvium is the best news u could get with regards to hair loss.