Hello,
I’m newly diagnosed 6 weeks ago, in my early 40s. I was diagnosed while in non coma DKA. My BGLs are in control now for 4 weeks - but my hair is falling out continuously, I’ve lost about 70% of it on my head. I’m taking approved supplements, my endo does not believe it’s alopecia, and that it will regrow with continued BGL control.
Anyone else have this experience?
Hi there!
I had a very similar experience. I was diagnosed in my late 20’s, with an A1C of 14. My endo basically told me my entire body was out of whack, and to expect some weirdness while things balanced back out. For the first couple months, I’d have to clean my bathroom floor every day because I was losing so much hair. Eventually it stopped, and the hair did grow back. Sorry, I can’t remember exactly when the turn around happened. But I know that by the 1 year mark, everything was pretty much back to normal.
It’s great to hear you’ve gotten everything under control quickly. Hopefully that will help things balance out faster.
Has your endo tested your thyroid function? Often, other autoimmune issues arise with T1D, including hypothyroidism. I started taking Synthroid about 15 years ago because I was suffering from the same thing - though not nearly as bad as what you’re describing. I would call your endo and ask about your thyroid levels - this is a possible culprit.
Good to know - I was 14% as well (no symptoms!?!). Thank you!
Yes, lots of testing completed a couple weeks ago - and thyroid levels are normal!
I was diagnosed at 16 about 33 years ago, in DKA and coma. I didn’t have hair issues afterwards, but about a month after diagnosis my nearsightedness improved significantly. I had to dig through boxes to find some old glasses that would work. I was in 11th grade, wearing glasses I’d worn back in 3rd grade! Sadly the effect didn’t last very long and I was back to my current prescription within about 3 months. But it was one of the freaky things that can happen post-DKA.
I had a similar(ish) experience also. About half a year before i was diagnosed with diabetes my hair started rapidly falling out and the doctor said it was Alopecia areata which is also an autoimmune disorder ( like diabetes) 6 months later and i was diagnosed with another autoimmune disorder! However when it grew back it grew back stronger and healthier than it ever was before so i hope this happens to you also!
Hi!
I had the exact same experience! I was diagnosed at 32 almost two years ago and my specialist also had no answers. It lasted about a month, and I did lose about 70% of my hair. I ended up getting an undercut when it did start growing back because I had so many short hairs. Now my hair is back and about as thick as when I was a teenager! So now I’m growing it back out and it is a huge pain. I believe yours will grow back.
I was diagnosed at 52. Shortly after the diagnosis, my hair began to fall out in alarming hand fulls. My doctor put me on ‘slow release’ iron pills. They worked quickly and like magic. I began to see new hair beginning to grow around my hair line, which made me finally take a deep breath! The key for me was slow release, because regular prescription iron has always made me sick at my stomach. You might ask your doctor about trying this, it did work very quickly for me. Being an older adult, having just dealt with the ‘perfect’ diabetes storm of discovering this was to be my new path with insulin shots, etc. losing the hair was like the straw that finally brought me to tears. I had been a warrior up to that point. Hope this helped.
Thank you all for sharing!
I did have to cut my hair drastically to look healthier (it was very long). It’s fragile, but I’m on hair-skin-nails supplements, and I see a bit of regrowth! I may do the iron in addition - good tip.
little by little…