Women Share What Does and Doesn’t Work for Thinning Hair

How many of you ladies have noticed that your hair started thinning by the time your reached 40 or 50 years of age? Be honest. Don’t hide the truth as most do. Did you know that some experts in the field claim that up to 50% of women suffer some form or degree of hair loss by the time they turn 50?

Hair loss in women is rarely spoken of in public or with others. It’s just too embarrassing for most women to admit that their hair is thinning as they get older. Hair loss is a male thing, isn’t it? NO! It’s not!

One of the problems many experts and researchers have in dealing with the issue of age related hair loss in women is that so many of them won’t talk about it. It’s one of those silent and private things one just doesn’t discuss or share.

Fortunately, a handful of ladies did talk about it and shared some of the tips they have used to deal with their thinning hair.

One New Jersey woman said she noticed her hair thinning all at once back in 2011. She tried doing everything that anyone told her, including changing shampoos, trimming her hair more often, not brushing her hair as frequently, extra conditioner and even the shampoos that are supposed to add volume to your hair, but nothing worked. She turned to home remedies including avocado and oatmeal soaks, but again nothing. Finally, she confided in her doctor who diagnosed her as having Hashimoto’s disease. It’s a condition where the body’s immune system attacks the thyroid gland which usually causes chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis, also known as hypothyroidism or underactive thyroid gland. An underactive or low thyroid can result in thinning hair and most generally affects middle-aged women, but can affect men and younger and older women as well. Once diagnosed with Hashimoto’s disease, her doctor put her on thyroid medication and in about a year, most of her hair grew back.

One 51-year-old woman from Australia said she started noticing her hair thinning shortly after she turned 40. She went to the doctor who tested her for thyroid function and vitamin deficiencies, but everything came back normal. She was then sent to a dermatologist who recommend she take zinc supplements and use a minoxidil-based topical treatment. However, the zinc was hard on her system and blood work showed her zinc levels were normal, so she stopped taking it. After using a 2% minoxidil solution, she found the odor unbearable and felt like it stayed with her all day at work. It also left her hair looking greasy and dirty, so she stopped that. Next, she turned to vitamin B12 and biotin, but they didn’t restore any of the thinning hair. So far, nothing has helped her.

One Colombian woman said she has had alopecia since she was 19. She visited several dermatologists, a general practitioner, a Chinese herbal doctor and a hair loss specialist. She tried herbal remedies, 7 different shampoos, specialized diets cold laser treatment, vitamins, biotin, hair oil, teas, prescription meds and even changed her birth control, but like the woman from Australia, nothing worked. She got the best results from a special brand of shampoo and condition, but said they were so expensive, she couldn’t afford to keep using them.

A Texas woman said she always had thin hair, but when she was pregnant, she lost about 25% of her hair and then after giving birth she experienced the postpartum shed. Doctors just dismissed her concern over her thinner hair after running blood work and finding everything normal. She then ended up at an endocrinologist who prescribed spironolactone. After using it, she lost even more hair. She turned to Rogaine, using it twice a day for 6-months, but saw no positive results, but her hair follicles seemed to continue to get smaller, leaving her with what she described as hair that looked like cotton candy. She turned to wearing toppers and wigs. She said her faux hair made her look and feel normal, but when she took them off at night, she came back down to earth, looking older, more tired and even heavier.

A Virginia woman related that she felt that stress was a contributing factor to her hair loss. She tried a number of volumizing shampoos and they made her hair appear thicker, it never really helped stop or reverse her hair loss. She has been using Rogaine faithfully for two years and said that it seemed to stop any further hair loss, but has not helped regrow any of her lost hair. She believes that if she stops using the Rogaine, she’ll lose more hair.

Lastly, another Virginia woman, this one is 66 years young, said that early on Rogaine made her dizzy and gave her heart palpitations. It’s since been improved, but now her skin reacts to it. She is seeing a specialist who is using a new therapy called Acell + PRP Injection Therapy. The doctor injects her own blood into her scalp to help stimulate hair growth. He warned that at her age, it may not work, but so far, it seems that it has helped stop any further hair loss. She also recommends washing hair in warm water, rinsing in cold, only coloring the roots and no more and she uses Biotage hydrating shampoo and conditioner. The shampoo and conditioner do help make her hair look thicker, which helps to cover some of the hair loss.

Sometimes it can be something as simple as low thyroid and many other times, nothing may work. However, don’t hide be silent about your hair loss. Do talk to a doctor as it may be something treatable, but don’t get too disappointed if it isn’t easily treated. There are many products that claim to regrow hair, but it seems from these ladies that few if any really work. Perhaps a wig, topper and some kind of hair piece may be the only solution for many of you.