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This was my hair?!

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Jeff and I... about 16 years ago.

Jeff and I… about 16 years ago.

The photo that you see in this entry was taken about 16 years ago. It was at my mother’s 70th birthday party. I like this photo very much because it brings happy memories. When that photo was taken, Jeff (my now husband) and I had been dating for about 4 years and we were very much in love.

I have this photo in the refrigerator because it reminds me of all that good time in our lives. Nevertheless, in the last months that photo is a continuous reminder of something else: I used to have beautiful healthy hair. What in the world happened to it?!

Just one of the locks of hair falling over my shoulder in the photo equals to my whole hair now. It is sad to see what it once was. I guess this happens also with the whole aging process: body, skin and hair never get to be what they used to be in our youth. Up to a point the only solution is resignation, because it is true that it is impossible to stop time. We need to embrace our new selves and get the best out of it.

Nevertheless I still refuse to embrace the current state of my hair. I believe there is much I can do in order to improve it. So, I am doing everything I can in order to achieve something close to what I had one day.

My hair had been terribly damaged and abused even before the alopecia showed up; it had thinned considerably and it was mostly dry and lifeless.

Therefore, I have decided that if I recover my hair I will stop the compulsive drying, styling, dying or sun exposure. I will focus in good healthy food and vitamins. I will keep taking the Biotin (will talk about it later on a different entry), a multivitamin, I will keep using the minoxidil; I will invest in good shampoos, and I will try as much as I can to get my stress under control.

And I swear it is not vanity (or maybe it is)… it is just that I miss my hair!

 

 

 

The almighty Chinese mallet

Martillo chino

As I have mentioned in previous postings, it turns out that now that I have alopecia areata I have found out that a bunch of other people have had it too. One of those affected by the disease was one of my nephews, who told me that he has had two bouts of bald spots and no recurrence in the last two years.

 

When he found out that I had Alopecia he got in touch with me and he told me: “I really recommend you to use the Chinese mallet.”

 

“What is that?” I said, and he explained that it was a little mallet with little needles in one end. To use it one has to basically hammer the area affected with the needles and one has to expect blood to come out.

 

After a few inquiries here in Cuba I realized there was NO way that I could find such a mallet in here. I got in touch again with my nephew and asked him if I could use a fork for the same purpose. He said “no,” it had to be the Chinese mallet. So he sent me his with my sister.

 

In the minute I touch the device I knew the procedure was going to hurt, but my nephew told me he started to see hair in his bald spots very soon after starting to use the mallet. He also sent me by email a link to a video that show how to use it:

 

 

You saw the video? You saw that BaldieGirl saying that it is painful? Well, let me tell you something: it is painful and bloody.

I am using it, although right now I am taking a break from it. In a future entry I will talk more about it and more about how my nephew got his hands on this mysterious device.

Minoxidil… for men?

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This is the Minoxidil I am using with a dropper, 1 ml twice a day.

This is the Minoxidil I am using with a dropper, 1 ml twice a day.

As mentioned in previous posts my sister arrived to Cuba from Mexico for a short vacation on April the 15th. She brought with her two main things that were not available in Cuba and that I have been using since then: one was the antidepressant (that I already talked about in http://mydearhair.com/2013/05/22/not-depressed-but-in-need-of-antidepressants/), and a bottle of Minoxidil 5%.

I think I mentioned before that when I discovered the first two bald spots I started using the Minoxidil 2% immediately. I had bought it time ago when I started noticing an overall thinning of my once abundant hair. However I never got to be disciplined with the required “two times a day” application. The instructions say that it would take at least 4 months to notice some progress. I don’t think I ever passed from one week of continues used.

Nevertheless I had it here and I started immediately. But also, during those first days of my alopecia areata I read that the Minoxidil 2% (which is the one for women) was not really effective in the treatment of this disease. So I asked my sister to bring the 5% solution with her.

In Mexico, by the way, it is pretty expensive. A small bottle that lasted less than a month was about 40 dollars. Nevertheless I was surprised to see that my medical insurance covered the cost of it.

I also order some from the U.S. and a few weeks after it was brought to me by a “mule” (someone that makes his living bringing things from the U.S. to Cuba) for a small 15 dollar transportation fee. The one I bought in the U.S. (via Ebay) was 16 dollars for a three month treatment (something I can afford for the rest of my life, if needed).

Since then I have religiously used the Minoxidil twice a day (1 ml each time as indicated) and I am starting to see some changes but I am not sure if I should attribute this to the Minoxidil or to any of the many other things I am doing or to all of them.

Anyway I will talk about the changes in a later post.

In the warnings included in the label of this mediation it says that it should not me used if (among other things) one is a woman, has patchy hair loss, and has no family history of hair loss… (check, check, check…).

Nevertheless the dermatologist said that I should continue to use it since it has proven to be effective in the treatment of alopecia areata.

I will report any changes, although I am doing so many things now that I will not know to what to attribute them to.

Laser Therapy

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It was less than a month after the diagnosis when my dermatologist, Dr. Silvia Garcia, told me that she was going to prescribe also 7 sessions of laser therapy.

By then I was already getting the cryotherapy, the cortisone, the minoxidil (the 2% solution and I was still waiting for the 5% solution that was brought by my sister) and the placenta lotion and shampoo. On top of that I was running and taking the flower therapy to control my anxiety. The Zoloft was still yet to arrive.

So, there I went, to the physiotherapy department of the Clinica Central Cira Garcia (where, as said before, most foreigners get medical attention in Cuba). A very nice doctor (whose name has slipped my mind) booked me for 7 consecutive laser therapies.

The Laser Therapy, according to what I have read on the Internet, consists of laser light applied to the affected area in order to alter the cellular function. Some of the documents I found in my web research said that this treatment has proven to be effective in the treatment of all types of hair loss (not only alopecia areata). But there are also other websites that say that the efficiency of the laser treatment is yet to be proved.

Anyway, there was nothing to loose (other than time).

So starting on April the 8th I went to Cira Garcia for 7 consecutive appointments for my laser therapy. Each time, the doctor applied the laser light over the bald spots for several minutes and while doing so I felt absolutely nothing.

During the 7 days I didn’t see any immediate result and actually the spots kept growing. The doctor explained that the result was not going to be immediate, that I had to wait. Patience again was the key word.

Not depressed… but in need of antidepressants

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This is seratonin, the neurotransmitter that Zoloft inhibits and that plays a role in the persons mood.

This is seratonin, the neurotransmitter that Zoloft inhibits and that plays a role in the persons mood.

Since the very first day I discovered my bald spots and I called my brother (the neurologist) in panic, he suggested that I should start an antidepressant regime. He said that for my case the best medication was Sertraline (commercially sold by the name Zoloft).

My first response at that time was that I was not depressed; actually I was very happy having just returned from a very nice vacation. Still he said that such medication would help control the anxiety that was causing the alopecia areata and the panic and the extra anxiety that resulted from the hair loss.

The following morning before going to the beach I looked unsuccessfully for the medication in two pharmacies close to our place. They didn’t have it. Then I talked about it with Carlos (my psychiatrist) at the beach that morning and he recommended waiting, not to take medications right away. I decided to wait.

But four weeks after the diagnosis I decided that I was going to find and take the medication. My mood swings were not many but they were very drastic. I could easily go from happy and optimistic, to sad and devastated, to anxious and terrified in any day.

After three very bad days I told Carlos that regardless his opinion I was going to follow the recommendations of my brother. At that moment he agreed that taking the drug could be beneficial in my case.

So I called every pharmacy in Cuba just to find that there was no Sertraline at the time in the coutry. Nevertheless my sister was visiting in a few days and she brought it with her.

The first few days after taking 50 mg of Sertraline in the morning I struggled with some nausea (pretty severe the first day) and also with some drowsiness.

But after more than a month on Zoloft I feel fine, the side effects are gone and I haven’t felt sad or anxious in several weeks, I feel optimistic and happy. My husband says that he could immediately tell when the drug was taking effect, because overnight I stopped talking about my hair all day long.

The bald spots are growing!!!

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Me and Veronica, on her wedding day, when the only thing I could think about was my hair.

Saturday March 23 was Veronica’s wedding day. She is my friend and housekeeper and I was chosen by her to be an official witness at the ceremony.

The day started with me baking some pecan tartlets for the wedding reception and then I had to wash my hair. Anyone that has read previous entries of this blog and anyone that has heard me complain about my hair problem know that washing my hair has become a nightmare. I don’t like it, it terrifies me, it gets my anxious… I do not enjoy it at all.

So I jumped in the shower and washed my hair. I felt so much of it fell from my head and when I came out of the shower I could see the bald spot on the top of my head looking at me from the mirror. It looked huge!

I got closer to the mirror and turned the lights on and yes, the spot was definitely bigger. I know that my dermatologist told me to avoid the mirror, not to look and the spots and stop paying attention to the hair that falls in the shower. But I can’t, I need to see and I rather see now than find a surprise in the future if the spot keeps growing.

Still, when we left to the wedding my bald spots were the only thing on my mind. I told my husband, Jeff, that I thought the spots were growing. He told me that I needed to calm down, “thanks for your support,” I said ironically, even when I knew that he is right, and that what I need is to calm down and keep doing what I am doing. I know I have to be patient, it is just so hard.

Later that day, after the wedding, we went to play tennis with some friends. Before arriving to the court I was still feeling down, depressed and worried, but the exercise worked its magic and after two hours of tennis I was smiling, happy, and enjoying life again

Penicillin… could it be an infection?

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On the day of the first cryospray therapy I got the results of the blood tests the doctor had ordered. It turns out that everything came back normal, everything but a throat culture test that revealed the high presence of streptococcus. It is true that my usually healthy self had been fighting a lingering cough for a big part of 2012 and the whole month of January of 2013. It started on March last year (more than a year ago) and it has been going on an off.

Back then I would have cough fits that would keep me awake, something really unusual for me. Still I didn’t pay a lot of attention to it and treated it mostly with over the counter cough syrup and medication that would at least let me sleep. The cough went away after two months or so, but not totally, and then in came back in January. Well, apparently it was due to a sinus infection caused by these bacteria.

I asked the doctor if this could also be the cause of my Alopecia Areata. She said that the lingering infection could have caused stress to my body and contributed to the onset of the Alopecia. That is, she said, on top of any other stress that is present in my life right now.

In any case she prescribed three penicillin injections, one each month. I have already had two and, I don’t know if it is because of that, but the cough is over (for good, it seems); I am also combining that with sinus saline washes.

Probably this won’t cure the Alopecia, but at least it would help me get healthy overall, and that can only be good.

More common than you think

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Snapshot of me 2 copia

Me with my full hair… a couple of years ago.

After 10 days since the discovery of the Alopecia Areata, and after being in a truly emotional roller coaster trying to cope with the condition and at the same time keep my anxiety controlled I decided to see a dermatologist.

So far, I have gotten opinions from my brother (the neurologist) and by my friend Carlos (the psychiatrist), but on Tuesday March the 17th I went to the hospital where most of the ex pats go in Havana, it is called Clinica General Cira Garcia. I was there helping a friend who is not fluent in Spanish and needed some translation with her doctor.

After her appointment I asked her physician, Dr. Teresa, if she could recommend a dermatologist for me. “What is your problem,” she asked, “I have Alopecia Areata,” I responded. She stood up from her desk and without even asking permission she started examining my head. “Don’t worry. This is more common than you think,” she said and then she added the same thing I heard so far: it is stress related, stop thinking about it and your hair will eventually grow back.

She gave me the name of Dr. Silvia Garcia. She is my new dermatologist. Two days after I had the first appointment with her.

Terror in the shower!

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As an enthusiast runner for most of my adult life I am used to sweat a lot, and therefore I am also used to take a lot of showers. In the last 14 years I have lived in places with hot, humid, and long summers (Houston and Havana) and during those hot days (after a run or not) I would love to get in the shower and wash my hair or at least get it completely wet to get refreshed.

This has changed in the last month. I still love to take showers as long as my hair is not involved. But washing my hair has become one of the bigger (if not the biggest) trigger of my anxiety.

So, I washed it the Sunday after I discovered the spots and after my trip to the beach (March 10). It went OK. But since then I barely touched my hair. It was Thursday, March 14, when I decided that I needed to wash it again.

I got in the shower I got my hair wet and massaged my head with the shampoo and when I rinsed it I saw hundreds of hair strands ending up in my hands. I just broke down.

But later this is how I try to reason about the subject: if I hadn’t touch my hair in four days (no combing, no styling, no water, no nothing) and then I wash it, wouldn’t that be the perfect opportunity for my hair to shed the natural shed accumulated in four days? I want to believe it is so.

Or maybe it is just the natural shedding amount and I just have lost completely my objectivity.

Or maybe the shedding caused by the Alopecia Aerate hasn’t stopped (I hope this is not the case).

Still, my afternoon was horrible. I called my mom and cried, I called my brother and cried and I cried my eyes out by myself.

December 2012 382 copia

I loved washing my hair!

My brother, the neurologist suggested an antidepressant, Zoloft (which happens not to be readily available in Cuba), and then said that I should have a little bit of clonazepam (a quarter of a pill) to control extreme anxiety states such as this. I will try the clonazepam, and I decided to leave the antidepressant pill for future consideration.

From now on, I will focus on washing my hair three times a week and be brave about it… maybe with the help of a little clonazepam before the shower.

Flowers for my head

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Healing myself with flowersOn March 12, after my massage day, I had an appointment with Carlos, my friend and psychiatrist. I was not supposed be a counseling session, but and evaluation of my emotions according to specific questions design to help determine which was the best mix of healing flowers for me.

As mentioned in a previous posting these flowers, called Bach Flowers, were discovered by a bacteriologist called Edward Bach and are believe to have healing properties, primarily for conditions such as depression, anxiety and stress.

Carlos is my friend, and a very intelligent man, so it was easy to talk to him. We discussed a little how this condition makes me feel: anxious, afraid, insecure, and desperate… among other things. We also talked about my moods in the last few days and then he asked me questions which help him decide that I am a woman that is over controlling, totally impatient, very apprehensive, one that tends to worry to much about her health and that of her loved ones. “I could have told you that in ten seconds,” my husband joked.

Carlos said that those characteristics of my personality were creating extra stress in my body and could be a contributing factor to the alopecia. He also said that the events on my life such as our imminent repatriation to the U.S. and the changes that come with that could be causing stress, along with some other things.

So I have my flowers now, I have been taking 12 drops a day (4 drops 3 times a day) for a whole month and generally I feel much better, less anxious, less afraid. Nevertheless I still have very bad moments most of them triggered by the hair I see falling when I wash it, is it normal? Is it more? Will I get more spots? And then I get anxious again!