[Alopecia Areata] 9 Month Treatment Success Review (Photo Included)

leaving a comment in an obscene manner for convenience.

I am a 32-year-old male office worker who has been treated for about 9 months for circular hair loss. In a situation where people's mind and body are tired from COVID-19, I suddenly thought, "What can I do to give hope to people?" and decided to leave a review of the success of my treatment. When I had circular hair loss, I searched for all kinds of information on the Internet, including this community, and I was despair that there were not many successful reviews of treatment for circular hair loss. I think many people are still in great despair right now, so I hope you will have any hope after seeing this. Discovery: An outbreak of circular hair loss was discovered in a hair salon in April 2019. At first, it was only about an oval with a long diameter of 0.8 cm and a short diameter of 0.5 cm, and it appeared in the left common water. When I was in middle school, I had a very small circular hair loss of about 0.5cm in diameter on the back of my head, and at this time, I didn't pay attention to it, but it got better. That's why I don't think much of it.

Aggravated: So I left it unattended, but it got bigger little by little. I felt it was growing to 500 won coins (2.5cm in diameter). Even then, I was relieved that my hair was growing a little like fluffy as it got smaller. Later, Dr. Sam said that the patients themselves become insensitive without knowing how big and small they are. Fluffy isn't a clear sign that it's getting better. Eventually, the hairdresser who first discovered it four months after the outbreak became too big, so I think I should go to the hospital. When it grows like this, it's already 4.0cm in diameter and 3.5cm in diameter, so it's hard to cover it with other hair. Visit Gangnam ㅁㄷ방문: At first, I visited Gangnam ㅁㄷㅁ at the recommendation of an acquaintance. This is like a therapy/democlinic place. I made an appointment and visited early on Saturday morning to show the circular hair loss part and hear the explanation of the treatment. It is said that a few strands of hair are collected and examined here. If it is determined to be treatable, you will receive the medicine at a cost of 600,000 won to 700,000 won a month for three months, and if it is not treatable, just bye. After washing your hair in the morning/evening, this medicine should be applied by pressing hard on the affected areas of hair loss. Visit every month to check the treatment status. If it does not improve, treatment will be stopped from then on. He further explained that circular hair loss is a terrible disease with a very poor prognosis, so the price of medicine is expensive. When I went there, there were many general hair loss patients from the morning, and some elderly people seemed to have visited for a long time. The elderly man, who seems to have visited for a long time while talking to patients, came here and said that his hair grew a lot. The adult who introduced me to me also said that it had a significant effect. That's how much I believed in it. First, I took a few pieces and went home to see if it was treatable.

Visit the Hongik University branch of the Bㅁㅅ Oriental Medicine Clinic: I also visited the Hongik University branch of the Bㅂㅅ Oriental Medicine Clinic, which specializes in hair loss treatment, because I wanted to catch straws. I also trust oriental medicine clinic to some extent. An oriental doctor examined it and said it was a very bad situation, and it was a scalp test and a biological rhythm test. This is the first time I've seen an oriental medical clinic inspect with such a state-of-the-art device. There were quite a lot of patients, so I trusted them to some extent. The medicine costs 700,000 won a month, and I have to get acupuncture. I'll think about it first and then go home.

Treatment concerns: Then I start looking for information on the Internet, calling my doctor's friends and asking them about this and that. This is where I come to the conclusion.
Circular hair loss is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system is broken for some reason (mainly stress) and the root of one's hair is recognized as an external factor and attacked. Therefore, it is different from the general hair loss caused by heredity and it is a disease that must be treated, not managed. In the case of Gangnam Mㄷㅁ, it may be effective in managing general hair loss caused by heredity, but it is necessary to go to the hospital to treat 'disease' such as circular hair loss.
ㅁㅅ In the case of oriental medicine clinics, the price of drugs is high and they are not accessible to themselves. In addition, according to doctors' friends (including oriental doctors), there are few cases of circular hair loss treatment with oriental medicine so far. This should also be understood as helping with self-treatment of circular hair loss through 'management' of the mind and body using oriental medicine, and similar words were directly said by oriental medicine clinics.
Therefore, I decided to visit the dermatologist for "treatment." Treatment begins (Photo 1): I visited the dermatologist in the neighborhood (Bucheon Middle East) with the opinion of my friends that although I reserved a joint Severance, I have to take a day off every time I visit, and why do I go to a university hospital when the treatment method is the same as that of the local hospital. This dermatologist has been around for a long time and has many regular patients. Above all, there is a dermatologist who can check it out at the Korea Dermatologist's Association (http://www.akd.or.kr/) ). Nurses make an appointment mistake and receive initial appointment from a general practitioner, not a specialist. She's in a very bad situation, so let's take shoe medication, hip injections, hair injections, and hair ointments. But I told you not to do everything from the beginning, but to start with the most basic hair injections and hair ointments. I'm going to visit you every week after I get a head injection and get a steroid ointment prescribed.
On my second visit, I see a doctor who is a specialist. It is a very bad situation, but it is said that it would be good to start with a head injection and ointment. It's going to be a very long battle and if things are bad, you can get extra medication or hip injections. At this time, it was my first time getting a proper hair injection, and it stung quite a bit. The affected area is wide, so I got it 6 to 7 times a time, and I was told to apply steroid ointment well in the morning and evening and continue to visit every week. You should manage your stress well and keep trying to think positively. It is said to take lactobacillus regularly and avoid irritating food or instant food. Looking back, it seems that there was a lot of stress. I always felt sick, I felt under-digested, and I always had bad breath. As mentioned above, circular hair loss is an autoimmune disease caused by a breakdown in the immune system, and the stomach is responsible for the body's immunity, and the immune system is restored only when the stomach is healthy. This is because gastrointestinal disorders caused by stress make the immune system abnormally strong and attack hair, resulting in circular hair loss. Perhaps that's why it's funny that you haven't had a terrible cold once a year (maybe COVID-19?) since March 2019 and even to this day, you haven't had a shallow cold. Because of indigestion, the amount of food eaten is also significantly reduced, and at this time, 7kg less than usual weight.

1 month (Picture 2): I went to the hospital once a week, got my hair injected six to seven times, washed my steroid ointment in the morning and evening, and applied it. It didn't seem to have any visible effect. Rather, the affected area is a little itchy and sometimes a little sore. When I wash my hair in the evening, I keep losing about 50 of them. For two months (Photo 3), the pain was stronger than the itchy part of the affected area. There was still no visible effect. On the contrary, the affected area turns red. There were also symptoms of what people call "hammole," which dents in preparation for the surrounding scalp when pressed on the affected area. It is said that the doctor's gland will be fine as a natural phenomenon caused by steroid application. It is a phenomenon that occurs when steroids weaken the immune function of the area. If you keep washing your hair, you lose about 50 of them. Starting a light weight workout once a week. 3 months (pictured 4) A time when I couldn't sleep well due to stress at work. I can't sleep well, so I get more stressed as I get worried the next day, and when I wake up the next morning, I get annoyed with fatigue. Then, I lie down to sleep early, but if I can't sleep again, I'm stressed. Eventually, I was prescribed sleeping pills (steelnox) by the internal medicine department. I don't want to rely on sleeping pills, so I cut it into quarters at a time. Still, it seems to be a little dependent, so you have to be really careful about taking sleeping pills. The situation on the affected area remains the same and the hair loss remains the same. Replaced shampoo with lush treatment shampoo. Light weight exercise plus swimming once a week.

4 months (Picture 5) Feeling a little head growing from the side of the affected area. The hair appeared to come up very slightly in the center, but it was not much different from the fluff. Only that area had particularly gray hair, but the original circular hair loss area was said to have a lot of gray hair as it began to heal. And just because you get fluffy doesn't mean your hair is definitely growing. I still felt the pain in the affected area, but it was less. The problem of a bad stomach has improved little by little. I didn't eat any lactobacillus, but I kept drinking one lactobacillus a day at convenience stores such as Bulgaris and Will. It also reduces hair loss, so it reduces to about 30 to 40 when washed in the evening. I gained about 2kg compared to the beginning of treatment. 5 months (Figure 6) When I started to feel that I was improving well. From this point on, visit the hospital and change the head injections from once a week to once a fortnight. Apply the same ointment in the morning and evening. Hair loss is also reduced to about 20 to 30 when you wash your hair in the evening. I feel like I've lost a lot of stress. Digestion is better, too. The application area and frequency of head injections at the hospital are also reduced.

6 months better (pictured 7) and my hair grew quite a bit. The hair that grew from the side becomes quite dense. But I felt a little sick at this time. No wonder... Found another circular hair loss with a diameter of 0.5cm on the back of the head at the salon. The hospital told me to visit once again a week. Both the original and new areas were injected and started applying ointment. The new part is small, so I got a head injection once. Seeing that there was also a new one in the 7 months (Figure 8), my health seems to have gotten a little worse again. At this time, it did not improve much compared to the previous month. Maybe because I felt that I was getting better in the 5th month, I didn't exercise well and I seem to have been a little negligent in managing my mind and body. Continuing to visit the hospital once a week. I'm starting to feel better little by little again.

8 months (Figure 9) It improved sharply again, and the affected area was also greatly reduced. Change to a hospital visit once every two weeks again. The original hair loss that was newly developed also improved a lot. The number of hairs that fall out when you wash your hair is reduced to less than 25. Most of my digestion will be restored and my stress will be reduced. 9 months (Photo 10) treatment completed. All the hair on the affected area has been grown, and the hair has recovered to around 80% of the existing amount. It's hard to know that it's the place where there was circular hair loss unless it's right after washing your hair. The hospital said you can stop coming. It's said to keep applying the remaining ointment. There are no more than 25 that fall out when you wash your hair. Most of the digestive functions have been restored, and the appetite has recovered a lot, so the weight has increased by about 4kg from the beginning of treatment. Currently, all the hair in the affected area has grown, but the hair is thought to be about 85% of the existing amount. The back of the head is 100% restored. I lost 10 to 20 hairs when I washed my hair. The weight is 5kg higher than at the beginning of treatment due to the recovery of digestive function. Make the hairstyle that you kept long to cover the affected area slightly shorter as it was before. I've been neglecting my exercise a bit because of COVID, but I've been feeling that my stress has been increasing again recently, so I started again last week. I'm taking lactobacillus regularly and I'm also using Lausch shampoo. The most ambiguous and difficult thing in taking care of my health seems to be 'stress management'. Each person has a different way of managing it, and there seems to be no correct answer. Like a textbook, I seem to have managed my health/stress well through exercise and positive thoughts. I try to work out at least once a week. Now I think it's not just 'exercise' but just to live. If there are a few points that have helped you manage your health/stress: first, recognize and acknowledge your limitations. If there is anything beyond my limits, I need the courage to give up moderately or lower my goal.
Second, make sure to rest when you rest, and don't feel guilty about resting. When you work and rest, you have to rest to recharge your mind and body. You don't have to be too harsh on yourself.
Third, don't regret leaving or missing out. Life in the present life because you couldn't or didn't do something is what you should cherish and appreciate.
Fourth, watch your eating habits. I used to like spicy tteokbokki, but now I don't even put my mouth on it.


That's enough for me to finish this article. If you have any questions, please leave them in the comments and I will answer them when I have time.