Medication-induced Alopecia?! Lost My Hair In A Month?! Devastated...

[SuperDPAsteve]

Sorry OP, this is a huge bummer. From a mindset PoV (coming from someone who also once had an HIV scare after volunteering at a blood bank) I think you should be primarily concerned about whether or not your follicles are coming back, not how much hair you currently have. Sounds harsh but if you can get in the “good things are coming” mindset you’ll have an easier time.

As far as AA vs Androgenetic Alopecia, I would urge you to go straight for a skin biopsy. Many autoimmune conditions are triggered by upticks in stress, like thinking you have HIV. My psoriasis flares the f*** up any time I have an important presentation to do. If AA was induced by stress, it will most likely fade, and you can take Jak inhibitors.

At this point, you’ve experienced a shed. In the case of AA or Androgenetic Alopecia, it will NOT be permanent. Worst case scenario, DHT has been given the opportunity to miniaturize your follicles for the duration of the 2-3 month resting phase of your hair, before a fresh anagen can begin. This can be minimized with topical AAs. But again, a biopsy will tell you if you’re wasting your time treating DHT when areata is your issue.

I would personally discount the idea of anagen effluvium. Post-exposure retroviral HIV meds ARE well known to cause chemo-like anagen effluvium, but the fact your transplanted hair remains discounts this idea. There have been a few documented cases of areata NOT effected transplanted hairs. The theory is that the immune system hasn’t “learned” that these new transplanted hairs are there yet.

Best of luck bro and stay safe

 

[snooze]

Sorry OP, this is a huge bummer. From a mindset PoV (coming from someone who also once had an HIV scare after volunteering at a blood bank) I think you should be primarily concerned about whether or not your follicles are coming back, not how much hair you currently have. Sounds harsh but if you can get in the “good things are coming” mindset you’ll have an easier time.

As far as AA vs Androgenetic Alopecia, I would urge you to go straight for a skin biopsy. Many autoimmune conditions are triggered by upticks in stress, like thinking you have HIV. My psoriasis flares the f*** up any time I have an important presentation to do. If AA was induced by stress, it will most likely fade, and you can take Jak inhibitors.

At this point, you’ve experienced a shed. In the case of AA or Androgenetic Alopecia, it will NOT be permanent. Worst case scenario, DHT has been given the opportunity to miniaturize your follicles for the duration of the 2-3 month resting phase of your hair, before a fresh anagen can begin. This can be minimized with topical AAs. But again, a biopsy will tell you if you’re wasting your time treating DHT when areata is your issue.

I would personally discount the idea of anagen effluvium. Post-exposure retroviral HIV meds ARE well known to cause chemo-like anagen effluvium, but the fact your transplanted hair remains discounts this idea. There have been a few documented cases of areata NOT effected transplanted hairs. The theory is that the immune system hasn’t “learned” that these new transplanted hairs are there yet.

Best of luck bro and stay safe

Hey, thanks man... trying with the "good things are coming", but its kinda difficult with the chemo-like appearance, and with this sudden excess growth of body hair, literally dont know which one is worse (probably the hair)

I will definitely insist on the skin biopsy now on the 27th when I have my derm appointment... I never had AA before or any autoimmune conditions (as far as I know), but I guess they can appear at any time, especially under heavily stressful situations.

I started with 1mg Finasteride to prevent the potential miniaturization, but experienced bad side effects (penis pain, testicle pain and chest/breast pain), so I was on and off, and now I am on 0.5mg with only mild penis pain that goes away pretty quick, so its manageable. I got a mometasone corticosteroid lotion from another derm to apply on my scalp, but I refrained for now from it as she didnt seem to know what shes doing, she only diagnosed me with "stress-induced alopecia", only after me pointing out that it potentially could not be androgenic alopecia happening this fast and doing this damage in 2-3 weeks, plus it looked like I had some exclamation mark hairs (this was taken a month ago):

So, as its been 2,5 months now since my hair shed, do you think my anagen phase might be kicking in now and that I might start seeing some new hairs? Its just frustrating waiting for the growth part again, having in mind that I was 7month FUE post op when it happened, and I finally started seeing some nice growth after the hair transplant

Yeah, youre right, it wasnt telogen effluvium for sure, as it happened 2 weeks after starting the treatment, so either anagen effluvium or AA. And yeah, some of my transplanted hair survived, but I wouldnt say all of them unfortunately (if you look up these pics from my crown for example, they are a month and a half after losing the hair, and mainly transplanted ones are there, with immediate re-growth of other transplanted ones that shed).

I also found this AA-related articles where the guy had the exact same pattern of loss on the exact same area, with his transplanted hairs surviving: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0748806817699926?journalCode=acsa I am just worried I have the same issue and I am not treating it (as he was treated with steroid shots)

Sorry for the longer posts, but I am really devastated and hopeless

 

[doyle11]

Looks very very similar to what happened to my hair. I had severe loss of density all over including my eyebrows and facial hair and body hair and it happened very quickly (within a couple of weeks)

Fortunately mine recoverered with removing dairy and treating my anxiety/ panic disorder. Without realising I was continuously hyperventilating which long term isn't going to do any favours for your hair or skin or general health.

My other symptoms were shortness of breath, chest pain, tingling fingers, sore scalp and gastro problems. All completely resolved as well as with my hair now thank f***. I had fluctuations in loss of hair over 10 years though, it's taken that long to find out what it was.

 

[BaldBearded]

Sorry, that must be tough, especially after the work of going through the transplant. It is probably NOT the HIV meds, as you were on them for a VERY short period of time, and baldness is not really a side effect.

Stress, and it appears that you were under an incredible amount of stress, and still are, will have a huge effect on your hair. The good news is that stress-related alopecia can reverse itself, and the steroid cream should help.

Now, you need to find ways to de-stress yourself.

 

[snooze]

Looks very very similar to what happened to my hair. I had severe loss of density all over including my eyebrows and facial hair and body hair and it happened very quickly (within a couple of weeks)

Fortunately mine recoverered with removing dairy and treating my anxiety/ panic disorder. Without realising I was continuously hyperventilating which long term isn't going to do any favours for your hair or skin or general health.

My other symptoms were shortness of breath, chest pain, tingling fingers, sore scalp and gastro problems. All completely resolved as well as with my hair now thank f***. I had fluctuations in loss of hair over 10 years though, it's taken that long to find out what it was.

Really?! That makes me feel a bit better, knowing I wasnt the only one going through this. Without doubt, this is the worst period of my life. The HIV scare was one, and gladly that passed, but what happened with my hair after that has literally finished me off...

I also lost a lot of density in my eyebrows, they are still there, but I could easily pull out 2-3 every time. That seems like it has subsided now as well a bit...

If its not the HIV medications, the only thing I can remember what was weird lately with me was that from August to September I had excruciating headaches, and neck and shoulder pain and stiffness, which my GP attributed to stress. Then shortly after came chest pain and heart palpitations, jaw stiffness, shortness of breath, tingling sensation in my arms and legs and this lower eye lid "jumping" somehow. As a cherry on top, came this "HIV incident" October 27th when I started taking the Post Exposure medicine and got a really bad rash on the 11th day and a fever, where I thought I was seroconverting to become positive, they ran in the hospital an RNA test to look for the virus itself. The results came 2 days later where I misinterpreted the results on a laboratory website, and thought I was positive for 2 hours until I reached the hospital, and I completely fell apart. I found later on it was negative, but they told me to continue with the medication just in case the remaining two weeks. My anxiety and panic attacks exploded, I literally didnt sleep at all for days, I lost 7kg, it was really awful...

Week three of HIV PEP, and some 8-9 days after the rash and thinking I was positive, the hair just started thinning, and in 2-3 weeks it was nearly all gone on top, and the sides have thinned substantially. Now it seems like some of it is coming back already (as seen in the pics above), but I ended up with having quite some gray hair on the sides, and one gray eyebrow hair

Can I just ask few questions.. Did you lose hair all over, or was it also more on top as in my case? How did you manage your anxiety/panic disorder if you dont mind me asking? I am seeing a psychologist (with not too much of a success), and my GP prescribed me sertraline/zoloft to help me cope with this period at least for a while, but I am scared of taking zoloft as well as I read online it causes hair loss (ironically enough...). And how long did it take for your hair to recover?

Thanks for your reply again, means a lot!

 

[snooze]

Sorry, that must be tough, especially after the work of going through the transplant. It is probably NOT the HIV meds, as you were on them for a VERY short period of time, and baldness is not really a side effect.

Stress, and it appears that you were under an incredible amount of stress, and still are, will have a huge effect on your hair. The good news is that stress-related alopecia can reverse itself, and the steroid cream should help.

Now, you need to find ways to de-stress yourself.

Yeah, its been quite a hit. The doctors say as well that theyve never seen it happening from the meds, at least not with the new ones (Descovy & Prezcobix), and if it does happen that it is a gradual thinning that happens after months or years taking them.

Thanks so much for the kind words, that makes me already feel a bit better!

(Was thinking a short trip to Gran Canaria would help with the de-stress )

 

[BaldBearded]

Yeah, its been quite a hit. The doctors say as well that theyve never seen it happening from the meds, at least not with the new ones (Descovy & Prezcobix), and if it does happen that it is a gradual thinning that happens after months or years taking them.

Thanks so much for the kind words, that makes me already feel a bit better!

(Was thinking a short trip to Gran Canaria would help with the de-stress )

I would totally join you on that trip!!!!

 

[doyle11]

If its not the HIV medications, the only thing I can remember what was weird lately with me was that from August to September I had excruciating headaches, and neck and shoulder pain and stiffness, which my GP attributed to stress. Then shortly after came chest pain and heart palpitations, jaw stiffness, shortness of breath, tingling sensation in my arms and legs and this lower eye lid "jumping" somehow.

Exact same. Neck and shoulder pain comes from the increased activity in while "chest breathing". I've been in a+e with chest pain, shortness of breath, tingling, jaw pain. Each time I've thought it was a heart attack and Ecgs and bloods revealed nothing.

For me, the diagnosis of anxiety was the most important thing, you need a professional to tell you theres nothing wrong with your heart or lungs and youre not going to die.

it's a vicious cycle, you get the shortness of breath and the chest pain, think you're dying and you start hyperventilating until you reach a point of panic.

My hair loss was strongest on top of the head and crown but diffuse over the entire body. I noticed a lot of the hair was still there in my beard and eyebrows but lacked any color. Finasteride, dutas and minoxidil did absolutely nothing for me which further suggested atypical hairloss.

I found cognitive behaviour therapy useful, programs like fear fighter are very good ( although do cost) but the most important thing for me is breathing.

I didn't recognise subconsciously I was constantly hyperventilating, and of course when you do realise your breathing you slow it down so you don't feel it's an issue. Try 7/11 breathing, breathing from your diaphragm and just try and be more conscious about your breathing rate (shallow or deep rapid breathes need to avoid). Also breath through your nose if you don't already. Also, have a look at this. I literally ticked every box



I have a thread somewhere which I'll be updating soon.

 

[snooze]

Exact same. Neck and shoulder pain comes from the increased activity in while "chest breathing". I've been in a+e with chest pain, shortness of breath, tingling, jaw pain. Each time I've thought it was a heart attack and Ecgs and bloods revealed nothing.

For me, the diagnosis of anxiety was the most important thing, you need a professional to tell you theres nothing wrong with your heart or lungs and youre not going to die.

it's a vicious cycle, you get the shortness of breath and the chest pain, think you're dying and you start hyperventilating until you reach a point of panic.

My hair loss was strongest on top of the head and crown but diffuse over the entire body. I noticed a lot of the hair was still there in my beard and eyebrows but lacked any color. Finasteride, dutas and minoxidil did absolutely nothing for me which further suggested atypical hairloss.

I found cognitive behaviour therapy useful, programs like fear fighter are very good ( although do cost) but the most important thing for me is breathing.

I didn't recognise subconsciously I was constantly hyperventilating, and of course when you do realise your breathing you slow it down so you don't feel it's an issue. Try 7/11 breathing, breathing from your diaphragm and just try and be more conscious about your breathing rate (shallow or deep rapid breathes need to avoid). Also breath through your nose if you don't already. Also, have a look at this. I literally ticked every box



I have a thread somewhere which I'll be updating soon.

Thanks a lot for this, makes very much sense. I also ended one time in the ER thinking it was a heart attack, everything came out normal.

I started ticking the boxes as well unfortunately I will try to bring my stress levels down somehow, to see if the hair will start growing, and try to refrain from taking Zoloft for the time being...

Can I ask you one last question, did you have male pattern baldness before you had this huge hair loss, and did it grow back fully in the end, or did it grow back thinner?

Ill make sure to find your thread as well

Thanks so much again!

 

[doyle11]

Thanks a lot for this, makes very much sense. I also ended one time in the ER thinking it was a heart attack, everything came out normal.

I started ticking the boxes as well unfortunately I will try to bring my stress levels down somehow, to see if the hair will start growing, and try to refrain from taking Zoloft for the time being...

Can I ask you one last question, did you have male pattern baldness before you had this huge hair loss, and did it grow back fully in the end, or did it grow back thinner?

Ill make sure to find your thread as well

Thanks so much again!

That questionnaire is indicative of chronic hyperventilation.

Tbh, I've suffered for that many years it's hard to tell what my 'before hair' is although my bros and family history is Norwood 2 into 60s. I think I receeded to Norwood 2 when I was 18 and the hairline has stayed put since (34 now). It was never hairline loss with me, just severe diffusing All over.

I think the giveaway is that my hair has always fluctuated with times of emotional distress. I recall being slick bald at one point. Zero guard Norwood 6 and at other times having thick unnoticeable hair loss. Thankfully I'm at a thick Norwood 2 now.

The thing that strikes me with your hair is the little random tufts of thicker hair on top which is what I always noticed , also the grey eyebrows I always had when it was at it's worst.

Very unusual to see hairloss so similar to mine.

 

[Armando Jose]

calp biopsy were consistent with alopecia areata incognita.

I really have no idea what to think anymore...

Nor med, incognita.....
Please grow your hair, can I ask you why did you cut severely your hair?
Good luck, take care .

 

[Armando Jose]

Can I just ask few questions.. Did you lose hair all over, or was it also more on top as in my case

Stress affect to all scalp hairs.

(Was thinking a short trip to Gran Canaria would help with the de-stress )

Good idea, paid by the health gobern program? Surely.

 

[snooze]

Nor med, incognita.....
Please grow your hair, can I ask you why did you cut severely your hair?
Good luck, take care .

Sorry I didnt understand your first sentence, do you think I have alopecia areata incognita?

I cut it when I first saw that it started shedding and thinning, I thought I would just cut it completely short, have it like that for a month or two, and then that it would grow out normal as it was. I was so wrong I am letting it grow out right now, but it looks awful...

Thank you!

 

[snooze]

Stress affect to all scalp hairs.


Good idea, paid by the health gobern program? Surely.

Haha, I wish! Paid by my own hard earned money at work, which probably contributed to my alopecia in the first place

 

[snooze]

That questionnaire is indicative of chronic hyperventilation.

Tbh, I've suffered for that many years it's hard to tell what my 'before hair' is although my bros and family history is Norwood 2 into 60s. I think I receeded to Norwood 2 when I was 18 and the hairline has stayed put since (34 now). It was never hairline loss with me, just severe diffusing All over.

I think the giveaway is that my hair has always fluctuated with times of emotional distress. I recall being slick bald at one point. Zero guard Norwood 6 and at other times having thick unnoticeable hair loss. Thankfully I'm at a thick Norwood 2 now.

The thing that strikes me with your hair is the little random tufts of thicker hair on top which is what I always noticed , also the grey eyebrows I always had when it was at it's worst.

Very unusual to see hairloss so similar to mine.

Damn, thats really interesting to hear....

Well mine never fluctuated, I wish it did, I actually had a full-blown male pattern baldness earlier, I was Norwood 4 or 5 when I had my first FUE transplant, 3200 on top and crown, but it wasnt the most successful one, and stupidly enough I went for another on early this year, 3600 in the same places and the results were finally great (those two pics from the first page), and I was so happy with the results. And then this happened. Why I have these random tufts of thicker hair like you do, I really have no idea, but to me it seems like it is the transplanted hair as it looks quite thicker than my native hair, and as someone mentioned earlier might be that my immune system really did not "recognize" some of the transplanted hair, or it was simply more resistant to the Areata than my naitve hair, so it survived.

If I even have alopecia areata in the first place. My biggest fear is that either the medication or the stress has somehow made a hormonal mess in my body, as my scalp hair fell off, and my face and body hair exploded literally at the same time, and my scalp and face got oilier, and that the hormonal chaos has sped up my male pattern baldness perhaps similar to when bodybuilders use steroids and use their hair. Because while taking this short course of HIV meds, I have used for a while also intranasal corticosteroids for my sinuses, and Ive read online that the HIV meds can interact even with intranasal corticosteroids causing adrenal suppression, Cushing syndrome etc. I dunno, its just my weird theory, I literally dont know anymore what has happened to me, and I am so tired of everything, that I am super-close to buzzing everything down and going for an SMP...

 

[snooze]

A little update, my hair is still crap, still some small regrowth in the crown mainly, but looks still very bad... I had a follow up with my first derm who gave me finasteride in December and still claims its androgenetic alopecia, even though he is still puzzled how come it happened so fast. In the end after a longer discussion he referred me to the main state hospital for the university doctors to have a look at the dermathology department. I just want to know what the hell happened, and if it can be treated or not, if not, just so I can shave it off, get an smp and move on....

 

[Armando Jose]

he referred me to the main state hospital for the university doctors to have a look at the dermathology department.

The best option, till then try to relax.
Good luck, yiou must to know that quicker hair loss is better to regain it.