Help with reason for hair loss :-(

[MomInApril]

At the end of July I went to the doctor due to hair loss & feeling a lump in my throat. I didn't think much of the hair loss since I had a baby at the end of January. They tested my thyroid and said everything looked normal except my thyroglobulin antibodies were high. (They did not test the free T3 & free T4, just the TSH & total T4 - ack). Also, my iron numbers were:

Iron: 48 (range 40-175)
RBC count: 4.67 (range 3.8-5.1)
Hemoglobin: 12.4 (range 11.7-15.5)
Hemacrit: 37.3 (range 35-45)
MCV 79.9 (range 80-100)
MCH 26.5 (range 27-33)
ferritin: 10 (range 10-150)

I have a 6mm thyroid nodule and an enlarged thyroid. Over the phone they told me I needed a biopsy, and I freaked out. I went 5 days later for the biopsy and the radiologist explained my nodule was too small, and didn't warrant a biopsy - but since the doctor was out of town he couldn't check with her to see if she really wanted it. So he didn't do it.

I flipped out. The next day we drove out of state for a wedding and I stayed there a week. I was a total mess. Panic attacks, ridiculous anxiety, racing thoughts...I'd never been so stressed in my life.

I went to the doctor for a follow-up when I returned and his simple response was, "I guess we jumped the gun on that biopsy!" I told him it caused me major anxiety - but he assured me my thyroid was fine for now and we'd follow up in 6 months. Fine.

Well on Sept. 9th my hair started falling out LIKE MAD. It is like a switch was flipped, and it just started shedding. I'm losing upwards of 150 hairs a day (I'm neurotic, I counted). This all came on in an instant. I went back to the doctor and showed him a picture of my hair loss and he put me on 50mcg of Levothyroxine to treat the thyroid situation and also iron supplements (325 ferrous sulfate a day).

I know low iron/iron deficiency can cause hair loss, as can thyroid issues. But since my hair loss came on in an instant, my theory is that the severe stress caused it - and having low iron is not helping matters.

Does it sound like my hair loss was prompted by stress, and only exacerbated by the low iron?

[Audrey-B]

Abnormal hair shedding is linked to both low ferritin and thyroid related issues.

It's common for thyroid problems to arise after hormonal changes within the body eg: puberty, pregnancy and menopause.

I'm glad you are on thyroid med's but they ought to be checking your Free T3, Free T4 and Thyroid Antibodies just incase you have a thyroid auto immune disease eg: Hashimoto's or Graves and some people can have both.

For now, give your thyroid meds a chance to kick in, it can take 4 - 6 weeks to see any changes. Just be careful not to take any other vitamins/supplements etc too close to your thyroid meds. Usually it's advised to wait 4 hrs before taking other supplements.

You can get much more information and assistance on the thyroid section of the Healthboards. If you still feel unwell and your doctor wont assist you further then don't be afraid to find a new doctor. Make sure you keep copies of ALL your test results so you can take them to a new doctor if need be and to get help off the boards.

Keep taking the iron supplements and sometimes it can take a little while for ferritin to rebuild iron stores in the body.

Lastly, get another blood test to check your Vitamin D and B12 levels if you can. Low Vitamin D in particular is often linked to thyroid issues as is low ferritin. All these things need to be at the high end of the lab range.

You will need to be patient, but good luck and i hope you feel better soon