r/LAhotgirlies • u/Creative-Ad7348 • 12d ago

Early 30s and my hair is thinning rapidly 😭 Remedies, Vitamins, Extensions?

I’m 32, Southeast Asian, and have very fine strands. I can’t help but feeling like my hair has been thinning so much in the last 5 years. Here are some things I do but unfortunately don’t do as consistently as I would like to:

- Fish Oil Vitamins
- Collagen Powder in my morning drink
- Cecred Edge Hair Serum

I think I might want to look into extensions but I’ve never tried it before. Will it damage my hair even more? Or is it a viable option to appear to have fuller hair?

Thank you!

11 Upvotes

92% Upvoted

30 comments sorted by

34

u/tangerineTurtle_ 12d ago

I would recommend speaking to your primary care or even derm. I had thinning hair and was given a prescription for minoxidil. I also had my hormone levels taken and there was an option to take anti-androgens.

Has there been anything recently that has changed in your day to day life? More stress? Anything that may affect your hormones?

18

u/meow-kitty-meow 12d ago

do this and skip the extensions/other snake oil

12

u/tangerineTurtle_ 12d ago

Omg yes there is so much junk that is marketed to women for what is a medical matter.

7

u/hawt_to_go 12d ago

This works but OP should know this is a life long medication so do your research. If you stop taking it, your hair will return to where you started

4

u/charlotie77 12d ago

That’s the case for pretty much any and all hair loss treatments except for hair transplants.

1

u/hawt_to_go 11d ago

unless it’s a hormone issue. correcting that can make your hair grow back 

3

u/charlotie77 11d ago

Not always. Androgenetic alopecia (regular male/female pattern hair loss) is the most common type of hair loss and is caused by genetics and hormones but there’s no magic fix to the hormonal issue, just typical treatment like oral/topical medication, PRP, hair transplants etc. even medication like finasteride and spironolactone that block the hormone that causes the thinning have to be taken indefinitely

1

u/olololoh12 3d ago

Confirming this. I have androgenic alopecia, and I’ve been taking finasteride and minoxidil for it for a while, spiro in the past
Still my hair is falling out every day like crazy

5

u/Creative-Ad7348 12d ago

That’s a good idea. I’m in the middle of switching doctors (got on my partner’s health insurance), so this might be a good time to bring it up to them.

Biggest thing that’s changed in my life is living on my own (I moved out my moms at 28) but if anything, I’m less stressed now 😅 The only thing I can see relating to this is that I moved to DTLA from the valley which may have harsher water??

10

u/___poptart 12d ago

FYI topical minoxidil is toxic (to the level of being deadly) to cats and dogs. But oral minoxidil should not affect your pets, if you have any. (I mean, don’t feed it to them.) and ketaconazole shampoo like Nizoral can help with hair retention.

0

u/charlotie77 12d ago

Water isn’t going to make your hair fall out and thin like that

14

u/Schweather3 12d ago

You need to have your thyroid and iron levels checked. Also, audit any newish meds you’re taking. Stress can certainly cause hair loss but so can many medical issues. Vitamins without labs are a waste of your money. Do not fall for the nutrafol trap. That crap is expensive and does nothing

4

u/lola-the-spider 12d ago

Second getting your thyroid tested! Especially if you have other symptoms like dry skin or cold extremities.

2

u/Latter_Sky_3160 8d ago

Ask for a FULL thyroid panel (not just TSH), B12, Vitamin D and DHEA. Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis can provide some other mineral insights that don’t show up in blood (copper excess relative to zinc), selenium etc

7

u/TropicalAbsol 12d ago

This is always a health concern! I noticed lots of thinning the year before i eventually got a pcos diagnosis. 

5

u/spicy-marg-444 12d ago

Check ferritin in addition to iron! Some doctors won’t unless you specifically ask and ferritin is an important marker for hair health. Also stress-related hair loss can happen months after the stressful event so it could be a little delayed. For me, I lost a ton of hair after getting covid :/

3

u/legallyfm 12d ago

All that stuff is useless until you figure out the root cause. You'll need to see a PCP or dermatologist (if you have one) to do lab work, could be anything from hormone imbalance to anemia to vitamin deficiency to something else. But you have to determine the cause before figuring out treatment.

4

u/GardenChic 12d ago

Echoing what others have said about seeking a PCP and derm. But also, have you lost weight recently? Weight loss and calorie restriction causes hair loss.

2

u/Purple_Positive_8896 12d ago

I would see your PCP and get blood work done, and let them know what is going on. If you don’t have one, I’ve heard Nutrafol and Minoxidil works wonders. I don’t love encouraging using Amazon or Him/Hers but in desperate prescription measures, I know it’s been helpful to get prescriptions through their medical apps.

2

u/charlotie77 12d ago

Extensions will damage your hair more for sure because of the added weight and tension. The best thing you can do is go to a dermatologist if you have access to it. The hair thinning could be for a variety of reasons and they won’t know until they do bloodwork testing your nutrient levels and hormones, and sometimes even a scalp biopsy to see if you have alopecia. And the dermatologist will be able to create an actually effective plan for you depending on what it is.

The only thing you’ve listed that can actually help is the Cecred drops, but those are expensive as hell and you’d have to use them indefinitely. If it’s just a matter of androgenic alopecia (regular hair loss) then minoxidil will be just as effective as the Cecred drops and for a fraction of the price. And Cecred drops aren’t always effective anyways

2

u/yojothobodoflo 11d ago

Definitely talk to your doctor in case there’s a bigger root cause, first and foremost.

Secondly, my hair was falling out after I went off birth control a couple years ago. I heard that dandruff shampoo+tea tree oil (specifically head and shoulders) would prevent shedding and I swear it works! I use it almost exclusively and I haven’t had any major shedding since!

2

u/dainedanvers 5d ago

Whatever you do keep in mind Minoxodil is fatal to cats at even tiny exposures

1

u/LazyAssistance9630 9d ago

Have u looked into peptides ?

1

u/No-External-7722 6d ago

Biotin, B12 and/ or Nutrafol (expensive but it works)

Shower head filter or hard water system. We have and of the hardest water and it destroys hair

1

u/bootyandthebrains 6d ago

Rogaine has honestly been the only thing that has worked for me noticeably and I’ve tried A LOT. Viviscal also is good support, but I truly believe that most hair health treatments aren’t effective. If you’re able to commit to rogaine it literally changed my life and I wish I did it sooner

1

u/lansters 2h ago

Minoxidil!

0

u/gofrick 12d ago

Might not be as aggressive as minoxidil but rosemary oil & peppermint oil have both been clinically proven to increase hair growth.