Hey guys,
Just quickly I wanna ask a question about Accutane.
So Im on 30mg a day currently and on my second week.. the thing is I have been experiencing an EXTREMELY itchy scalp right which is okay for a few days when i use dandruff shampoo BUT when i wash my hair (every 3rd or 4th day) I notice more hair coming out. I counted 60 hair strands just an hour ago after washing my hair.. apparently its normal to shed upto 100 per day? But obviously I have read many HORROR stories about hair loss on accutane and I am pretty nervous O guess.. I really dont wanna lose my hair, but maybe Im just being paranoid?
I was wondering if its normal to shed more hair INITIALLY on accutane amd maybe it stops? Or have any of you got experience with how to handle it?
Hey I posted about my terrible hair loss on here last night. My scalp started out very itchy for the first two weeks, this is due to the dryness though and it doesn't mean you're going to lose your hair excessively. My scalp wasn't itchy at all after those first two weeks, despite being quite flakey. The flakiness disappeared immediately after I finished my course. My hair started shedding more than normal (around 50 a day) around 3 months in to my course. Unfortunately I am still shedding, around 600 a day at the moment.
My advice to you would be to do what I wish I had done myself from the beginning. Use natural shampoo and conditioner, and use a natural oil on your scalp as an overnight treatment before you wash it. I use Aveda Scalp Benefits shampoo and conditioner but honestly anything natural will do, there are certain ingredients in normal shampoos that will severely irritate a dry/sensitive scalp. I also use Aveda Beautifying Oil as my treatment oil but again, anything natural with the right ingredients will be fine. Since using these products my red, irritated scalp is almost back to normal in around 2 weeks but I expect it will take a while before it's back to pre-accutane condition.
Accutane depletes certain nutrients in your body. Iron, biotin, B12 and vitamin D to name a few, but they are also essential for healthy hair growth. This is why a lot of accutane patients take hair supplements during their course or immediately after finishing. I'm not actually sure what supplements you are allowed to take during your course so I recommend speaking to your derm about it, and doing a bit of research to see if it's something you want to do.
http://www.philipkingsley.co.uk/hair-guide/hair-loss/telogen-effluvium/
The above link provides several pages of good info on telogen effluvium (the type of hair loss that medications such as accutane can cause) as well as info on general hair health. "Telogen effluvium resulting from short-term illness, such as a high fever or stomach upset, will usually resolve itself. However, chronic telogen effluvium due to nutritional deficiencies often needs to be treated with appropriate nutritional supplements."- The important thing to note here is that accutane causes nutritional deficiencies.
Just to clarify, my course ended 4 weeks ago and I have been shedding since week 12 of my course, it is still getting worse but I'm trying to keep positive that it will eventually come to an end before I go bald!
Hi Miss Sac 17,
I'm just wondering how your hair shedding is going? I noticed hair shedding (150-200) hairs a day since week four of month one. Currently, on the second week of month two. I'm crossing my fingers that this stops as I'm seeing progress with the treatment. Has your hair shedding slowed down?
On 10/1/2016 at 3:16 PM, zgw said:Hi Miss Sac 17,
I'm just wondering how your hair shedding is going? I noticed hair shedding (150-200) hairs a day since week four of month one. Currently, on the second week of month two. I'm crossing my fingers that this stops as I'm seeing progress with the treatment. Has your hair shedding slowed down?
Hows it going w/ you? Do you think you are still shedding? Do you think there is a noticable difference in your hair? An update would be great. Thanks!