DL [guest] from livingwithadd.com
hair Posted 5-31-2002 23:24

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Hi, I'm an 18 year old woman with "innatentive" add. I have dark hair, and it's been falling out for a few years now alot. I don't have any bald spots on my head, and there's no medical reasons why my hair should be falling out. I was wondering if anyone out there has had the same problem? Possible Add related? I want it to stop! I'm not on any meds at all either.Is there anything I can do to stop it? I've tried relaxing alot and taking lots of baths... nothing seems to help. I take vitamins... I'm only 18! I excersice about every other day. I medically am in good health. Maybe it's stress, but I can't help being stressed about things! What am I supposed to do? Sorry I rambled on about this for so long, and by now surely lots of people have left! If anything has helped anyone on this subject PLEASE let me know!

Tara from livingwithadd.com
Re:hair Posted 6-1-2002 01:26

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There can be so many different reasons for hair to fall out. Could be something as simple as the products you are using, what you are/aren't eating, etc. Yes, it can also be stress related. Stress can lead to almost anything. Have you talked to your Dr about it? It could be some sort of disorder.

I have gone through different periods where my hair has fallen out. Sometimes it was from things I had done to may hair and other envirommental factors. Many of the time is had to do with my diet.

I have just started taking both Flax Seed Oil and Grape seed extract to help with my ADD. Both are said to be good for the nails and the hair. I bought both Bottles at Wal-Mart for aboubt $6.00 per Bottle. [ This message was edited by: Tara on: 6-1-2002 01:25 ]

AmazonD [guest] from livingwithadd.com
Hair Posted 6-7-2002 20:37

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I am having that problem now. I am 41 and I think it is because I may be primenopasal. No answer for you there, but sometimes stress can cause it or other hormonal problems.

Skiba from livingwithadd.com
Hair Posted 6-24-2002 20:40

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I also have this problem but recently I experimented with my diet and found that eating natural foods helped a great deal :)

Wings2233 from livingwithadd.com
QuestionTara ? Posted 9-8-2002 03:53

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This Flax Seed Oil & Grape Seed Extract you say is good for hair & nails are they herbs or pills that u take or they have this in shampoo bottels at all or just pills ? how dos ethis help ADD i am fine never needed any thing help with Add some when they get odler dont Notice there ADD but for me was bad as a kid but got better when i grew older im Married 23 female married for 2 years my moms a nures she wanst have a herb shop her own soem day my great gramma native American was a Medicine woamn a healer & my great grammpa wasa medicine man a healer runs in family lot is it over counter & did u bye Generic kind i would be very thank ful if u can answer those Questions if thats not asking a Whole lot buy Wings2233 have good night

Wings2233 from livingwithadd.com
Dont freak about your hair thats normal hun ok DL read this , this infor is for u & other need help with the hair k :) Posted 9-8-2002 21:02

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my moms a nures so i thought i post info she gave me she said Yes and kelp is good if you are low in iodine---which could be reason for hair lose that is thyroid....Go to Walgreens and get Kelp,Lethician,and B6---it is about 5.00 dollars for 90 tablets and take 1-2 per day Zinc is also very good for nails and hair
Walgreens has a large seledrink green tea it is a good anti-oxidant,which means it protects you from cancer..Remember what I said about your ADD--stay away from artificial dyes and highly processed foods. Walgreens has a large selection and not too expensive. well i pasted what info my mother gave if it helps any i am glad i have helped DL no need to freak about that i have same problem if it really bother me i would find out from my mom :) u very welcome i was same age when that happened im 23 now did freak me out lil but ya take good care your self u will be fine no worries :)

I have long hair and I used to be very concerned over the amount of hair I found on me, in my hair brush etc. As Tara said, there are some things you can do, as well as getting adequate amounts of protein. Any excessive dieting, eating disorders (hidden or known) etc can damage hair, skin, nails, throat and teeth in an obvious way. What i did find out from my doctor was that a daily shedding of hair is normal, and if your hair is long like mine, it can seem like a ton of hair. The plumber came and unclogged my tub drain and it looked like a small drowned rat he pulled out and it was all MY hair (my kids are lighter haired than I). So try not to worry too much and just focus on taking care of you. Keep one eye on the brush and the other eye on your life.

I've been taking a B50 vitamin tablet (one per day) at the advice of a friend and it's really helping with my hair as well as my nail growth. My hair feels slightly thicker....and my nails have been growing more since I've been taking it. Try it....hopefully it will work as well for you as it has for me.

I use the hair products by Nioxin--they're more expensive, but they really do work! I also used to take Biotin (just fell out of the habit one day) and prenatal vitamins (getting back in to that habit). When I was doing all three "religiously," my hair stylist told me whatever I was doing was great for my hair and to keep doing it.

Two things that can cause a woman's hair to fall out are.
PCOS and hypothyroid. Both can be detected by blood work.
PCOS stands for poly cystic ovary syndrome.

I had my thyroid tested as well as hormones and they came back normal. I shed like a dog. Black hair is the worst to see all over the floor. I take multi vitamins and flax seed and B- complex and Biotin. I think it helps but sometimes I shed more than other times. I had a hyst so I don't have a cycle per se but there is a change in the amount I shed during the month.

dixiepeep thyroid disease is not always detected in the standard blood test they do. Mine wasn't I had to have a more involved blood test done.
Just something to know if you have concerns over the amount of hair falling out.

As a hairstylist for 13+ years, I can tell you I've seen all sorts of hairloss. Many things can cause this. The first thing to come to mind is that hair goes through 3 stages--it grows, stops growing & then it sheds. If your hair is long it can seem like alot more than it really is. On average ppl can lose 80-100 hairs a day. If it's more than this I would suggest going & seein g doc about it, it could be an underlying problem.

Other things that can cause this are poor diet (no matter what vitamins you take or how many), drugs--persricption or not, and excessive chemical/heat treatments on your hair.

I have to say I've seen more "hair loss" from this last one more than any others. If you do color/ perm or flat iron you hair alot you can cause breakage which would be my guess. If you feel you must iron you hair ( I know this is popular , especially among your age group) you need to use a moisturizing shampoo & a deep moisturizing conditioner each time you wash, and once in a while you will have to use a protein pack of some kind. The ones I usually reccomend are from the JOICO K-PAK line.

I also reccomend that you DON"T wash everyday. You hair needs the oils you body produces to naturally soften your & condition the hair shaft. Before you blow dry & definatly before you iron you MUST use a heat protectant. Check with your sylist or with your local beauty supply for what they reccomend.

Good luck, any other questions feel free to ask!:)

i have excessive amounts of hair falling out. its ALL OVER the bathroom floor, the brush is full every day (andi only use it twice.. when i get up and beforei go to bed). and even MORE hair falls out when im washing my hair.

there doesnt seem to be any less hair (my hair is very thick) - but with all this amount of hair falling out, wouldnt i notice it?! there's a h*ll of a lot of hair in the shower, on the floor, in the brush etc etc. (i take the vacuum to the floor once a week!).

ADDitives ---did you read my post above? If you're not noticing any less hair on your head it's prob'ly a normal amount of hair loss.

What type of brush do you use? If it's a vent brush, check & see if the bristles have a small piece sticking up from the base of the brush. If so, that can cause breakage too.

Try not to brush too vigorously, hair is very fragile. If your hair is brittle ("snappy"), it can break easily. If it's too soft it can be stretchy, and stretch alot before it breaks. this too is bad. Hair needs both moisture & protein to be healthy.

I started losing a bunch of hair when I started Adderall, or at least that is what I think caused it. I was told (by my stylist) that any type of stimulant even too much caffeine can cause excessive hair loss. It seems to have tapered off some. I have a ton of hair so it did not have a huge impact, but now I have all these 1-2 inch hairs sticking out all over when it is humid...
I did get my thyroid check.
I also read somewhere that body products that contain mustard seed causes hair loss for some people, (I was also using a moisturizer from Dr. Harchuka (oh boy I can't spell that one!)

Since beginning Adderall, I've noticed a lot more hair coming out in the shower and when I brush it. Especially since they've upped my dosage. I take very good care of my hair (flax seed 2x daily, good amt of C- and B- on top of a daily multi + deep conditioning once a week) so it's definitely been scaring me and have been worried it may not stop (like with Ibuprofen - talk about hair loss).

Vicki - How long were you taking Adderall before the hair loss began tapering off?

UmCubed,
You are not going to want to hear this but I am thinking I have just started noticing it tapering off recently, past two months? I started adderall in Nov of 04 so I guess it took 3+ months?
It was bad for me as well. (I don't even want to tell you what I spend on my hair) in the shower Id have to clear the drain strainer thing between wash/and condition or i'd clog up the tub. In the old days, I'd clean it once a week when I cleaned the tub. The good news it did not changed the texture or effect the shine or whatever!
Deep stuff here huh?

Thanks VickiS! 3-4 months I can deal with, I was worried you were going to say years. I didn't start recovering from the Ibuprofen fiasco for a year after I STOPPED taking it.

I have pretty thick (thick strands not lots of hair - there is a big difference), black hair so seeing even one strand in my hand makes me teeter towards a temper tantrum.

Shine, texture, hair loss...it's all very deep...in a very shallow and yet undeniaby fixating sort of way.

*walks away silently counting to 100 while brushing hair* ;)

This started to happen to me. i had a dry scalp and i would sometimes scratch it. but then when i started taking adderall it got worse. then i started seeing to bald spots. scratching or dryness i don't know what causes it but i did switch to something that helped it. my scalp looked like an aerial shot of afghanistan: bombed out & depleted.
so, i bought american crew for men dryness moisturizer shampoo. it's helped a lot. it's sulphate free which may be helping me. now my hair growing right back in the spots that were really really dry.

Try rubbing some jojoba oil cheap, (well relatively) into your dry spots/scalp and let it sit until you shower and wash it out. Not much, maybe a couple teaspoons if you hair is short. Heck even try olive oil if you have got it, it will be harder to rinse out, and I don't think it absorbs as quickly, something with the molecule size. But your scalp will love ya!

.

I have done hair for 8 years. Alot of my clients say this. Since u dont have any bald spots i would say u are ok. The average person loses 80-150 hairs a day, more during shedding periods (when the seasons change). Alot of times it seems like there is a lot when u have long hair because it curls and dobles over making it look like alot more hair. go to the store and get a drain strainer and after your shower count them. I bet it will be alot less than u think.:)

i gave simalar advice sometime ago.....most ppl freakoput when they see "More then the ususal amount" of hair loss....it's spring ppl!!! we're gonna shed some. I hear it from my clients all the time.

I think any change to your body after starting a medication is worth noting.
I appreciate all the input from you hair professionals, but give me some credit, after 43 years I have a pretty good handle on what ought to be coming off my head (even in the spring)
If 150 hairs a day is average, I was losing 3-4 times that just washing it in the shower and then it continued to get all over the place during the day. This is not normal, and can be a symptom of a thyroid problem among other things.

Yes it can be. not to mention any other medical condition. Including diabetes & stress. Go to the doctor if it's that excessive. It can also be a condition called alopecia, where hairs fall out at an exaggerated rate. there is treatment you just have to find it.

This can be tons of things: Lupus, Thyroid Disease or Polycystic Ovary Syndrome ("PCOS" http://www.4woman.gov/faq/pcos.htm) etcetera etcetera.


You really need to see a Doctor. (Or the original Poster does.)

I agree!!!! if you don't, the stress related to losing your hair will make it worse & make you sick.

A few years ago I stated loosing my hair in unusually large amounts. I have thick hair so it didn't seem to effect the way my hair looks but I thought it was strange. I attribute it now to stress and weight loss. I'm 20 now but when I was 18 I lost about 25 pount over short period of time. I ate better and less often. My hair loss has pretty much stopped but I've also gained back all the wieght...plus some. Much to my dismay. the stress cause by that will probobly make my hair start falling out again.