"What an interesting specimin!"

[Humpty Dumpty]

Well, I'm back from my starring turn as DHT blighted guinea pig extraordinaire at this year's Endocrinology Clan Gathering. I had to sit in a wee cubicle listening to lots of Pakistani women gibbering in Urdi in the next berth, whilst various doctors and undergraduates came in to have a poak round my head and write things on questionaires. I tried to affect disdain by burying my nose in Chapter 3 of the Satanic Verses when the first batch of doctors came in but nonchalence proved impossible to sustain when they started to shine lights all over my scalp. Should any of you ladies ever be invited to attend your local endo's knees up, I should warn you that you are likely to be required to answer the same questions over and over and over and over and over again. And then they'll still get it wrong and write "history of family baldness" on their notepads. But still, anything for a morning off work and all that... <sniffs bravely> :roll:

 

[lentara]

:freaked:
:cry:
:roll:
:freaked2:
:evil:
:roll:

so, in essence, you just got run through the ringer from emotional spectrum A-Z and you've come out with your sense of humor in tact.
Way to go, girl, way to go. :lol:

 

[Humpty Dumpty]

Interestingly, the last one in all but told me to start stockpiling the finasteride (something I'd already elected to do myself). She took one look at my poor head and said "sooooooooo, have you been on the internet yet?" Point taken. Although a bit early to tell, they think there may have been some regrowth on the frontal area owing to the minoxidil: if so, I'm gonna get me some of the 50% solution and tip it all over my head. A hair pull (I think) was also done for the first time, when one doctor removed one of the new growing hairs from my head. I was like "nooooooooo, you can't take that! I need it!"

 

[Guest]

Hi Humpty,

Sorry you had to go through this ordeal. I think you handled it much better than I would have! I probably would have glared at everyone with a very sour look on my face. And if they managed to pluck out one of my newly grown hairs...I probably would have gone at their heads with a SuperSoaker filled with Nair!

Are you a Ludwig 1, 2 or 3? Just curious as to how great your hair loss is that they would ask you to be a part of their convention.

Laura

 

[thinning gal]

Humpty - You are very brave. We should all thank you because maybe just one of the doctors that poked in your scalp, will come up with a "cure" for this horrible problem. It's good to know that conferences like that are happening and someone is looking into finding out to stop this nightmare for us women. Good for you Humpty and thanks!

 

[Guest]

Thanks guys! Expect to see my bonce on the cover of "Hair Loss" weekly in a newsagent near you. Only kidding!

Laura

>>>Are you a Ludwig 1, 2 or 3? Just curious as to how great your hair loss is that they would ask you to be a part of their convention.

I'm probably a Ludwig 2 and a bit. (Ludwig 3 is total baldness in the scalp area, isn't it?) I'm probably an interesting case for a number of reasons. My age (25) and age of onset, which was probably 19 though it didn't become glaringly obvious till I was 22, which was when it was diagnosed; how aggressive the MPA is, (I'm going bald at a rate which would make most men blush); the fact that Dianette has exacerbated the balding by a 1000%; I have normal hormonal levels; there is no history of premature MALE balding on either side of my family, let alone FEMALE balding. Its being put down to hypersensitivity to the effects of DHT, and nothing to do with elevated androgen or deelevated progesteron levels, which is why I'm prepared to give the finasteride a whirl.

Try as I might, I haven't been able to find any cases of MPA affecting premenepausal women with normal hormone levels and no family history of premature balding in either sex. In fact, I don't even seem to satisfy the conditions for FPB, other than the empirical evidence of my (very) balding head. Is there any woman here with aggressive MPA, normal androgen levels and no family history of balding?

 

[Guest]

That would be me...I'm 23, my hair started thinning a bit when I was 20, then started shedding insanely when I stopped the BCP (orthocyclene) at 22. Since summer before last I have lost over 60% of my hair and it's still going fast. My endo and derm told me pretty much the same thing they told you...hypersensitivity to DHT with normal hormone levels and no history of male pattern baldness (and absolutely no history of FPB) on either side of the family.

My derm put it as being 'non-genetic' or something like that. Extremely frustrating, regardless! I can't do Rogaine cuz even the 2% made my head feel like it was burning off, and spironolactone had the WORST side effects, specifically that I was tired all of the time - not good when you're already tired all the time from being so depressed about your hair all falling out, yet unable to take anti-depressants because they aggravate hair loss! What a viscious cycle *sigh.*

Well, hang in there...are you trying any treatments?

--Sessa

 

[Guest]

Hi Sessa,

Welcome to the board!

Please share your story and keep on posting

It would be helpful though if you could register, that way you can even be informed of when people reply to your posts, and other goodies!

Laura