Hair Loss with Medications
September 8, 2022 12:40 PM Subscribe
My hair is falling out. :(
I (AFAB) take 3 medications to manage my bipolar diagnosis. Latuda 60 mg, Lexapro 20 mg, and Wellbutrin 300 mg. Sometime during taking all of these I have noticed my hair is shedding A LOT! Like a lot a lot. I am 41 and not experiencing any other symptoms except for dry mouth, which I know is common with these meds. Has this happened to anyone else? Do you know of any treatment besides Rogaine to combat this? I have thick auburn hair that I will admit I'm pretty vain about. The hair I do have left always looks lank now too. My therapist recommended something called Nutrafol but it has such high doses of vitamins that I'm nervous to try it.
I (AFAB) take 3 medications to manage my bipolar diagnosis. Latuda 60 mg, Lexapro 20 mg, and Wellbutrin 300 mg. Sometime during taking all of these I have noticed my hair is shedding A LOT! Like a lot a lot. I am 41 and not experiencing any other symptoms except for dry mouth, which I know is common with these meds. Has this happened to anyone else? Do you know of any treatment besides Rogaine to combat this? I have thick auburn hair that I will admit I'm pretty vain about. The hair I do have left always looks lank now too. My therapist recommended something called Nutrafol but it has such high doses of vitamins that I'm nervous to try it.
Propecia is the standard pill for hair loss in men (I'm not sure if women can take it, or trans men or women or nonbinary folks). Some people, but not all people as is the misconception, experience ED. I do not. I have taken propecia for 16 years now and it works wonderfully. I can't recommend it enough, and since it became generic a few years ago it is a third the price it used to be (I now pay about $20 a month).
posted by BuddhaInABucket at 3:27 PM on September 8, 2022
posted by BuddhaInABucket at 3:27 PM on September 8, 2022
Maybe get your iron checked? I have had this problem via depression --> not eating properly --> no iron.
posted by lookoutbelow at 3:42 PM on September 8, 2022
posted by lookoutbelow at 3:42 PM on September 8, 2022
Sometimes those sorts of drugs can mess with your hormones and thyroid levels. You might want to get them checked to see if something can be nudged back.
It's possible that the shedding will stop and you'll grow the hair back; your body might be trying to adapt to this new "normal." It's also possible that this coincides with peri-menopause, which is often a cause of hair loss. In that case, Rogaine may be just want you need.
I agree that iron may be the issue, as it often is with folks during the phase of life that includes menstruation.
You also might want to look at Viviscal Pro, which is also a supplement, also expensive. I did take it for about a year and noticed it helped the regrowth cycle after shedding incidents, to make those downy hairs into more substantial and thick hairs that grow longer than they did before.
Rogaine is an easy place to start, but if you try everything all at once, you won't know which is working.
posted by typetive at 5:14 PM on September 8, 2022
It's possible that the shedding will stop and you'll grow the hair back; your body might be trying to adapt to this new "normal." It's also possible that this coincides with peri-menopause, which is often a cause of hair loss. In that case, Rogaine may be just want you need.
I agree that iron may be the issue, as it often is with folks during the phase of life that includes menstruation.
You also might want to look at Viviscal Pro, which is also a supplement, also expensive. I did take it for about a year and noticed it helped the regrowth cycle after shedding incidents, to make those downy hairs into more substantial and thick hairs that grow longer than they did before.
Rogaine is an easy place to start, but if you try everything all at once, you won't know which is working.
posted by typetive at 5:14 PM on September 8, 2022
This happened to my bipolar kiddo. With her psychiatrist's approval, she started taking prenatal vitamins for folate (just regular Target ones - way cheaper and easier), along with 5000mcg of biotin daily and it made a big difference. It won't happen immediately, but it does work. I would say we saw a difference in about 2 months.
It also helps if you're careful about not being rough with how you comb out your hair - try to do it when you have conditioner in your hair, so you're not pulling as hard. Don't keep it in ponytails all the time (if it's longer), because you will get those stress breaks in the front of your hair. Braid it or clip it instead. Be especially careful about how you take care of it at night. I bought my daughter silk-lined beanies to wear at night so her hair wouldn't get caught and fray on her pillow.
I had a bunch of hair fall out when I had lap band surgery almost 10 years ago, and switched to the same supplements. They did help me - again almost 2 months to see a noticeable difference. So, fingers crossed for you!
posted by dancinglamb at 5:43 PM on September 8, 2022 [1 favorite]
It also helps if you're careful about not being rough with how you comb out your hair - try to do it when you have conditioner in your hair, so you're not pulling as hard. Don't keep it in ponytails all the time (if it's longer), because you will get those stress breaks in the front of your hair. Braid it or clip it instead. Be especially careful about how you take care of it at night. I bought my daughter silk-lined beanies to wear at night so her hair wouldn't get caught and fray on her pillow.
I had a bunch of hair fall out when I had lap band surgery almost 10 years ago, and switched to the same supplements. They did help me - again almost 2 months to see a noticeable difference. So, fingers crossed for you!
posted by dancinglamb at 5:43 PM on September 8, 2022 [1 favorite]
I also have this issue and take 300mg Wellbutrin XL. To paraphrase as best I can the research I did when I started this medication and began experiencing hair loss, it's a pretty common issue with Wellbutrin and it should reverse completely if and when you ever stop taking it. I can't remember the exact terminology but the hairs that fall out are a specific kind or phase of hair growth, it's not all the hairs all the time. What this means in my experience is that while there's probably some thinning, ultimately it doesn't really look like any less hair, and certainly there's no chunks or patches missing or anything. I'm AMAB and late 30s so YMMV, but I also have very thick hair I'm a bit vain about, and in the end it's annoying to have so many hairs shedding all the time but visually, it doesn't register at all.
That said the texture of my hair has really gone to shit at the same time - that part is the most annoying but I'll also confess I don't so much to deal with it in terms of special product or conditioners.
For myself, just learning that the loss wasn't permanent was a big relief. It's worth it for me. I hope it settles down and is manageable for you!
posted by kaspen at 9:41 PM on September 8, 2022
That said the texture of my hair has really gone to shit at the same time - that part is the most annoying but I'll also confess I don't so much to deal with it in terms of special product or conditioners.
For myself, just learning that the loss wasn't permanent was a big relief. It's worth it for me. I hope it settles down and is manageable for you!
posted by kaspen at 9:41 PM on September 8, 2022
Have you considered spironolactone (typically oral, although I understand there are now topical formulations now available)?
Also, it sounds like you don't want to use Rogaine; is that correct? Is that a firm considered position? For many people, Rogaine is typically very effective and has few if any side effects: a surprising number of women use it but just don't talk about it.
posted by ClaireBear at 3:14 PM on September 11, 2022
Also, it sounds like you don't want to use Rogaine; is that correct? Is that a firm considered position? For many people, Rogaine is typically very effective and has few if any side effects: a surprising number of women use it but just don't talk about it.
posted by ClaireBear at 3:14 PM on September 11, 2022
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posted by misanthropicsarah at 12:55 PM on September 8, 2022