Thin skin and still losing hair :-/

[tk75]

I am 2 1/2 years out and my labs have always been spot on but I am having an issue with very thin skin and still losing hair... Has anyone else experienced this? And if so, is there anything I can do to improve this issue? Any advise would be much appreciated... xoxo

[illinids2]

What do you mean by thin skin? I am only 9 months but I have dry skin but hair loss hasn't been much....thinned out a bit but not really any loss.

[tk75]

Meaning, something as simple as my watch getting pushed to hard against my skin will cause me to bleed. I have to be very careful with my arms.

[Joanne]

When were your last labs?

You need to go get a good workup by a doctor. You shouldn't be having those issues at over 2 years out. The hair falling out could be nutrtion related, I've not heard the skin issues. I suppose I it could be something to do with dry skin, or Vitamin E if it's a skin issue, or perhaps Vitamin K if it's a bleeding issue...but both seem like a very extreme response to a deficiency. I would also look into a CBC with your platelet count....there are so many things it could be, and not all DS related.

But definitely a reason to see the doctor to get to the bottom of it.

[tk75]

Thanks! I just had my labs done 2 weeks ago and all is well. I see my doctor Sept 3rd.

[Leonie]

Hey! Its good to see you here. How are you, apart from the fragile exterior?

[bboop]

Please let me know what the doc has to say. I have lost a lot of hair...but have been told it is hereditary. My arms look as if I've been in a fight with a WWE opponent. I can barely bump into something and wa la a big old nasty bruise. In fact my lower arms are discolored from all the bruising and healing. They look awful.

Once when I actually skinned my lower arm, I put a band aid on and when I pulled it off - off came my skin. So yes, I've got thin skin, too. I've been to docs, dermatologists and just about everybody I can think of to find out what's wrong...NOBODY knows.

So again, please let me know what you find out. My labs are fine...had everything checked and it's all ok. Was low on potassium but now that's back up - so I'm clueless.

I take biotin in massive doses, zinc and all the AKED and calcium, plus potassium...nothing seems to help.

[tk75]

I am doing great thanks! Just had my plastic surgery (tummy tuck and breast augmentation) in may. How have you been? I have reached my goal that I set for myself which was 155/150 :-)

[newyorkbitch]

tk75: go see a dermatologist.

[mylittleblackdress]

I am 4 years out and have the same issues. For the first 18 mos following surgery my hair fell out in handfuls--way longer than other new DSers report. I have always maintained my vits, my protein intake--including shake supplementation 2-3 times daily--and have normal lab values. My PMD could find no explaination for the excessive, long-term fallout. Some of my hair has grown back but it is significantly thinner than pre-DS. Even now I go through phases where I lose a lot at once. When I do I evaluate my protein intake and sometimes find it has decreased a bit so I push to get in more. I am super careful how I handle my hair and the products I use. I have tried soooo many different products but can't honestly say any of them made any difference. I recently began using WEN tea tree cleansing conditioner and it may be helping a little--time will tell. I suppose the next course of action may be a visit to a good dermatologist.

As far as my thinning skin goes I think that may be part of the aging process. I treat it as gently as possible and use sunscreen faithfully.

[Gail R]

At five years out, I have the same issues and have noticed this from the first year on. My hair did grow back but I still have some thinning. It is my skin that is a problem. If anything even rubs my arms the wrong way, I get what looks like blood blisters. My personal physician didn't have a clue. I had some on the board suggest Vit K 1 & 2 which seems to help a little. My labs have always been perfect. I will be curious if anyone has the magic answer. I am guessing it might aggravate the issue that I am post menopausal and my skin is thinning, but it shouldn't react like my 90 year old mother's!
Also, I am preparing for some PS and I wonder if your thin skin issues were a problem for you. Did you discuss it with the plastic surgeion?

[bboop]

I'm now taking collagen...I think, now I said I think it may be helping. I really haven't been taking it that long. I have horrible blood blisters on my arms...sometimes if I hit something I bleed also. It is just on my lower arms...no place else. I've been to the dermo, the PCP, the hematologist and none of them know. Great, huh.

I'll let you all know if the collagen works. It's the biggest pill I take, but I take it. I'm so happy, well not happy, but glad to know that I'm not alone.

As a matter of fact I go for my routine annual visit with the hematologist tomorrow. She's the one that said I was getting old...well I am, but I'm not 90 - I'm 69 and I shouldn't have the bruises. I'm going to tell her that I'm not alone in this and several other DSers have the same problem but nobody can tell us why.

[Gail R]

I think I will start snacking on pork skins again. I stopped when I found out that we couldn't process the collagen as protein. Maybe that form of collagen will help my skin. I would hate to add another pill to my regimen. LOL

[bboop]

I hear ya, and the pill is huge. I now have a new PCP and he seems ok with doing labs and so forth. He said I was getting old but the collagen may help. I'm still taking the huge pill but I swear it seems to be working. Now I still bruise but they are fading much faster and I'm thinking about adding a second (ugh, they are so big), ..the ones I take I got at Walgreen's and they are 4,000mg.

If the bruises go away completely I'll be shouting from the rooftops...you will know. I hate these damn bruises.

[bboop]

I hear ya, and the pill is huge. I now have a new PCP and he seems ok with doing labs and so forth. He said I was getting old but the collagen may help. I'm still taking the huge pill but I swear it seems to be working. Now I still bruise but they are fading much faster and I'm thinking about adding a second (ugh, they are so big), ..the ones I take I got at Walgreen's and they are 4,000mg.

If the bruises go away completely I'll be shouting from the rooftops...you will know. I hate these damn bruises.

[OnMyWay2Thin]

Just a thought, is the collagen pill the same as the collagen protein drink? If so, it's very small, you get a lot in just a few ounces, and it's delicious. It's called Pro-Stat. I had it in the hospital but later found out it didn't count as a protein. It does, however, contain collagen. Just a thought...

Kelly

[bboop]

Thanks, I'll look for Pro Stat. Do you have a clue how much collagen it has in it?

The gargantuan pills have 4,000 mg and I'm thinking about upping the dose to see if that will make it work faster or better. I swear I really think they are working...I may be wrong but it seems to help.

[OnMyWay2Thin]

You're welcome. So sorry, I don't remember the amount of collagen. I found it online somewhere, did a google search and it came right up.

Good luck,
Kelly

[muffinsmom]

I have been following this thread with interest. I too get these mysterious blood blister looking things on my arms, which I've been thinking is just from getting old. But like BBoop, I'm not *that* old - I'm 64. We used to refer to my mom's arms as "tissue skin", same thing.

So the pills at Walgreens are 4000 mg, that's 4 grams, right? The Pro Stat says it has 15 grams of "protein" in one fluid ounce, the recommended dosage. It's sugar free but 100 calories in an ounce, which seems odd - the math doesn't work if protein = 4 calories per gram. There should be 60. Glycerin is the third ingredient, so it might taste a little soapy. Comes in a 30 oz. container, so 30 doses. I'm going to see if they have it at Vitamin Shoppe or GNC. I'll report back!

[jpcello]

Same here. I'm 57 and 11+ years post-op. I only get them on my forearms in about a 4-inch area halfway between my wrist and elbow. Both arms. If I bang myself I get one - i have one on my left arm that's about 1 inch long by 1/4 inch wide. Happened Friday when I banged my arm at work. Happened within minutes. All under the skin - nothing on the surface. Doesn't hurt and it will go away within 3-5 days.

My labs are good except I do have issues with K. Not sure if that's relevant. I'll continue to watch this thread as well. If the collagen works I will definitely try it.

[illinids2]

I have had no hair loss but my hair isn't as manageable as it was in the past (part to side and seems to cowlick bad now.....so I tend to keep it buzzed up to a 3 on a trimmer as it looks better. Actually I had hoped some of my fur would go away but no such luck.  

Regarding skin, I don't have the thin skin like my Mom had really bad her last few years of life but I have noticed a few contusions if I band my arm where the skin is very splotchy with dark red spots from bleeding under the skin.

[OnMyWay2Thin]

They don't sell the Pro-stat in any of the stores in New Jersey that I found, not GNC or Vitamin Shoppe. It actually tasted really good! Not sure about the calorie composition.

[bboop]

The pill is manageable if you don't want to drink your collagen...just saying. I haven't upped my dose yet, but I think I will do that next month when I fill my pill box thingy. I'll let you know.

Online I found some stuff called Shea Moisture...they have one product that says it will strengthen hair, but I'm also going to try it on my arms. It may not work but it's a spray and it actually could help my hair. Can you tell I'm obsessed? Target sells it, but I haven't looked at the store yet. I'm going to try to do that tomorrow.

So many of us seem to have this problem the bruising and thinning hair, I wonder what could be missing in our diets (well that's a silly question) and vitamins? If you are younger you may not have this problem, but getting old isn't a good reason for it either. I mean you need to be really old to get bruising...I assume. None of us are over 70 that have this.

Let's keep this thread going and I bet somebody somewhere has an answer.