In light of all my blessings, what’s my current ‘life lesson’? Sometime between November 13 and December 23, (hairdresser appointments) 3 biggish patches of my hair packed their bags and moved out. Carol, my hairdresser, was checking my scalp, as she always does, and we were chatting about nothing when suddenly I realized her attention was absolutely riveted on the back of my head; and then she had to break the news to me. Yikes.
The first part of my lesson is that I’m not nearly as detached as I like to pretend to be. In fact I haven’t handled this event particularly well; not quite weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth, but pretty irrational all the same. Sixteen year old drama queens - move over! My father was completely bald and I am envisioning the same for myself. Ugh. At this point I have had blood tests that don’t show anything unusual which is good news, and I had a dermatology appointment today which is a major miracle. It’s now 2 weeks later and I am calming down a bit but still don’t have ‘bald’ on my list of fashion preferences!
the least scary photo
The dermatologist is calling it alopecia areata, which means nothing specific just, hair loss in pathces which I definitely have. Typically he says there are three round patches and it hits hard and fast. Also typically it is a hairdresser who discovers it as there isn’t any warning or evidence of loss. Usually it occurs when people are between 20 and 45 years old although he has a 70 year old who’s just had it happen (I assured him I’m not yet 70), and there isn’t any known cause or trigger. (I am putting my money on the double flu shot I had December 4; see the 'princess' reference below.) He doesn’t particularly believe in the much touted stress factor (good job because I’m not) but does believe that everything that happens to any of us, other than infections, has a genetic origin so was interested in my father’s alopecia universalis (full body). Typically in areata the hair should start to reappear in 6 months or so if it isn’t treated and the first generation will probably be white. He could speed it up by a couple of months with cortisone shots but that sounds too painful so no thanks. If I develop more patches he will take a different tack and says there are ‘treatments’ but he didn’t elaborate so I'm thinking they may be dire.
This is the part to pay attention to:
My GP (lovely Iain) suggested that I change to an infant shampoo to reduce stress on my scalp/hair, which I did. I don’t know if it will have any effect on my head but what has changed is that my long standing ‘dry-eye’ syndrome has improved. If any of you have weepy eyes in wind or cold or if your eyes feel dry and scratchy in the mornings, try a different shampoo. The culprit (thank you Carol) is sodium laureth (sometimes lauryl) sulphate or sodium laureth 13 and it is used as a foaming agent in a great many products like shampoos, facial cleansers, and toothpaste. Apparently it’s a poison and while much diluted and benign for many people we get it in a lot of products and it can build up. I often refer to myself as a princess, not because of regal delusions or aspirations or because I think I am special, but in the sense of the Princess and the Pea fairy tale. I seem to react and over-react to all and sundry chemicals and I have an overactive immune defence mechanism. Sometimes that’s a good thing and sometimes it’s less fun. In this case I’m hoping my hair will make a return engagement if I make some changes, and redecorate the environment.
I’ve moved on from the baby shampoo since I have adult hair, what’s left of it, and discovered some really nice alternative shampoos at a local health food store. I’ve also switched from my “dermatologist recommended” cleanser, Cetaphil, to a ‘clean’ one and a couple of itchy stingy spots on my face seem to be resolving. It’s early days yet on these products and I doubt they have anything to do with the sudden hair loss but any improvement is good.
The general consensus is that the hair will grow back; eventually, probably. I am certainly hoping that it is on vacation and that this is not a permanent emigration to a more hospitable clime. But will I ever be able to trust my hair again if it does return? My hair that was, according to Carol, just about perfect and completely reliable? Another big piece of the life-lesson: forgiveness and trust in response to betrayal is essential to health, happiness, and hopefully a thick head of hair!
The most important part of the lesson is that I have the best and most supportive friends and family in the entire universe!
The completed laundry room and the progress of the miracle amaryllis!
1 comment:
I think you should give yourself a big warm hug for the honesty, bravery, humour and grace with which you have met this challenge. You are my role model!
Thanks for including the suggestion about changing shampoos - I have been troubled with dry eyes the last while, and will definitely give this a try!
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