I don’t know why I’m typing this, maybe as a warning or maybe for suggestions if there are any… I’m very open to support and advice despite the flair.
I have always had thin and fine hair. It has been an insecurity my whole life but as I got older I started to accept it and my apperance in general. However when I was diagnosed with ADHD I thought maybe medication could help me. I saw hair loss as a possible side effect, something I wish more than anything that I had heeded, but I was in a desperate situation, and I thought it’s only superficial. i should have known how important this was to me, but I also read online that in cases of hair loss, the hair will most likely grow back, and only in rare cases it doesn’t. So I proceeded.
I noticed shedding at once but it was also said this side effect was likely only in the beginning and that it would calm down. I tried concerta at first then elvanse, I have another more detailed post on this. I only took the meds for a couple of months.
Scared, I decided the hair loss was affecting me to the point of quitting. So I did. I waited for it to grow back. It could take some months, and at first I still had hope. Here I am several years later it has not grown back.
Maybe the meds triggered something genetic that would have happened eventually to me but I can’t say how much I have regretted ever trying these meds. It’s something that hurts and affects me every single day. I would do anything to get back the hair I had, and I would be happy with my hair and love it forever. I have tried to cope in so many ways, but I just can’t not regret this more than anything else in my life and it burdens me everyday. I have felt that I don’t know if there is even any use in living if this is my hair now
After this, another thing that has happened is I have sebderm or dry scalp I honestly don’t know which, but my scalp is itchy and flaky, I have anti fungal schampoo and another one to calm the scalp and it barely helps. This is also something that can cause hair loss but I know the dramatic hair loss I faced was due to the medication.
I have considered minoxidil but other than the hassle, there are three reasons why I haven’t tried it: 1. what if i lose more hair from it? what if i lose in beginning like they say happens but it doesn’t grow back like it should?, 2. cats can die from it, and 3. because of my scalp issues, i don’t know if this would be bad for my scalp? oral form isn’t something doctors prescribe in my country because of the side effects
I don’t know how to conclude this but, if you are prone to hair loss or have a genetic predisposition to it, etc, I’m not sure, but this could happen if you take adhd meds, and I know it’s probably rare and that it’s probably worth it for some. Most people have a lot more hair than I did in the first place and can ”afford” hair loss in a way I couldn’t.
I just wish I could go back. I would do anything
edit:
also, to make matters worse, I was never properly evaluated for adhd in the first place. Im scared that if i did all the proper tests i would have gotten a negative result and would never have gotten the chance to take these meds in the first place. I should have seriously demanded that first at least! The reason i didn’t do the tests was because I was tested for autism and adhd at the same time but primarily autism. When was diagnosed with autism and then only interviewed for adhd rather than doing all the standard practical tests, they diagnosed me with both because a high percentage of autistic people also have adhd (but not vice versa).