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Hyperthyroid (Thyroid Conditions & Hair Loss)

posted by mp4, 14.10.2007, 13:35

» » Hi Everyone,
» »
» » I've been lurking on this board since the summer. I started shedding
» in
» » mid-June. I had a biopsy and was diagnosed with TE in August. My
» blood
» » tests so far:
» »
» » 12/06 TSH - 2.61
» » (before the shed - part of routine exam - no ferriten at this test, but
» my
» » serum iron was high then...)
» »
» » 07/07 Ferriten - 24
» » TSH -0.469 (0.465 - 4.680)
» »
» » 08/07 Free T3 - 4.48 (2.77 - 5.27)
» » Free T4 - 1.05 (0.59 - 2.19)
» »
» » 10/07 Ferritin - 31
» » Serum Iron - 95.0 (37 - 170)
» » TIBC - 342 (260 - 490)
» » %Saturation -28 (20-55)
» » TSH - 0.093 (0.465 - 4.680)
» »
» » I have so many TE triggers, it is hard to figure out which one did the
» » trick or was it a combination:
» »
» » - Off BCP 04/06
» » - Major Stress over the last 10 or 11 months - work and very sick
» family
» » members (illnesses were very upsetting)
» » - Surgery 02/07
» » - Back on BCP 04/07
» » - Thyroid problems - summer 07
» » - Food allergies (including gluten) - since 1998
» »
» »
» » Anyway, I digress.... I was hoping that some of you knowledgeable
» ladies
» » could help me with the hyperthyroid issue. I have an endo appointment
» in
» » November. I saw a naturopath and she advised me to take copper
» » supplements. I can't find anything on the internet associated with
» taking
» » copper for thyroid issues... Also, what should I expect from the endo
» » appointment? Will they check my sex hormones? Should I have them
» » checked? I read that when your thyroid is out of whack it impacts your
» » other hormones. Will the endo suggest a watch and wait for the hyper
» » condition?
» »
» » Before the shed, I had a hair texture change, but so did my husband...so
» I
» » thought there was something in our water. I tested the water and there
» was
» » nothing suspicious. Since the shed started my head has been red and
» very
» » sensitive. Over the last couple of weeks, it has calmed down - it is
» not
» » red and does not hurt very much (I can wear it in a ponytail all day).
» I
» » hoping this is a good sign....but haven't seen anything too dramatic in
» » terms of shed reduction. I'd say I've lost half my hair density, but
» my
» » loss is most noticeable to me. The right side, front and back (below
» the
» » crown) wer hit hardest, but I have diffuse loss all over.
» »
» » Sorry the post was so long...
»
» You do have several triggers...
» It could be your low ferritin. It needs to be above 70. If you have low
» ferritin but high serum iron, then some invesitgating needs to be done.
» Your body is taking in iron but not storing it for some reason. Perhaps
» absorbtiopn issues or thyroid.
»
» As for your thyroid, what did your doctor say about your TSH? Are you
» under treatment for that? It could definitely be a cause for hair loss.
» Have you had your anti-bodies tested? You could possibly have Hashi's. I
» say this because your first TSH was slightly eleveated and your next one
» was WAY hyper.
»
» Also the food allergies? Are you on a gluten free diet?
»
» And the surgery...could definitely cause a TE. If you had te surgery and
» then a few months later your hair strtaed to shed then It would definitely
» be a suspect.
»
» Perhaps you you could answer some of these questions, we could help you
» decide what would be the best way to go???

Actually I had high serum iron and % saturation during my 12/06 blood tests - but my doctor never ordered any more tests (and I didn't see the results until recently) - now the levels are low - so I'm not sure what to read into that... I posted the ranges next to the results so you can see them. My ferriten was tested in 2001 and it was well over 100...so the low ferriten is something new.

My TSH before all this wackiness was always between 2 and 2.6 - I felt fine and had NO hair issues. My derm ran these last tests. She advised me to see an endo to discuss the hyper situation. My appointment is in November. I'm on the fence about seeing my regular doctor about the new results. I am not getting any treatment except for the copper supplement that the naturopath recommended for the hyper. I have not had any other hyper related blood tests since the last TSH. I figured the endo would run all those tests. Should I wait for the endo appointment or go to my regular doctor to have more tests?

Yes, I've been on a gluten free diet for quite some time. However, I still eat out and often get sick afterwards. Additionally, I'm pretty certain that I have other food allergies that haven't been identified. I recently took a food allergy blood test to see if that could get figured out. Since my diet is so resticted by the gluten and mostly vegetarian diet (I eat fish), I'm almost afraid to know I need to eliminate something else.

My surgery was in February and the shed started in June. I've had surgery before but never had a massive shed. I don't know if that matters.

One other item of note...I highlighted my hair in June (right before the big shed started) and experienced a lot of hair breakage. This never happened to me before. The whole front of my hair broke at varying lengths.

It bothers me that my body could change so drastically in less than a year...

Thanks again for your pearls of wisdom!

Complete thread:

• Hyperthyroid - mp4, 13.10.2007, 17:16
  • Hyperthyroid - V, 14.10.2007, 08:07
    • Hyperthyroid - mp4, 14.10.2007, 13:35
      • Hyperthyroid - V, 15.10.2007, 15:58
        • Hyperthyroid - mp4, 16.10.2007, 10:51