Hello all. I came across this site whilst searching for answers on my diagnosed alopecia areata.
Rewind for a quick bit of history, I had staved off MPB for almost 7 years with finasteride and as such was able to maintain reliably my cherished wild Asian hair. Things were stable until a few months ago when I started to notice patches of round smooth bald spots popping up along with diffuse shedding. After exhausting topical treatments, I'm now getting steroid injections. I don't know when if ever my hair will return. The daily shedding is maddening and making it difficult to cover up my patches.
At 37 years of age, I can accept MPB but alopecia areata is truly devastating and frustrating due to its unpredictable nature. I'm grateful that it isn't a life threatening condition; however, it still hurts.
The shedding is also compounded by patchy scalp irritation and mild dandruff. I'm at the point where I just can't go on being afraid of my own hair and wanting to be done with it all. I feel like I'm a prisoner by my own distressed follicles. If my hair one day returns or a treatment is released--great, but until then, I hate feeling helpless and out of control.
I never thought having a shaved head would ever suit me but it seems that I may have no other choice soon. I'm scared, panicked and exhausted. I'm concerned about the smooth pink alopecia patches after the hair goes... Thanks for reading my rant.