Itching and hair loss need help

[Glutation]

Hi all, I have been suffering from pois for 5 years, in addition to the standard symptoms, I have one more that haunts me ..

I have been suffering from itching and hair loss for a long time. The hair on the head, eyebrows, eyelashes fall out, and the beard has also stopped growing. All this comes precisely from sexual arousal and after an orgasm, I also have a strong irritability at this moment.

Recently, I took 1 antidepressant pill. This caused a panic attack, but the hair began to grow and the itching was replaced by a pleasant tingling.

Help me understand the mechanism, what could be the cause of hair loss, as well as reactions to a panic attack? Perhaps there is someone with a similar problem?

[Progecitor]

Hi Glutation and wellcome to the forum!

Of course nothing really definite can be said about POIS, but the following information may provide some pointers about where to start.

Some supplements may help hair growth. Some of these also helped my POIS, although not uniformly.

Nutritional factors play an important role in hair growth and shedding, with current adjuvant therapies for hair thinning encompassing vitamin supplementation e.g., vitamin D, E, C, folic acid or omega-3 fatty acids, which improve hair density, reducing the percentage of resting hair follicles.

There is increasing evidence that a plethora of plant-derived nutraceuticals including resveratrol, saw palmetto, maca, curcumin, tocotrienols, ashwagandha, horsetail, astaxanthin, kelp, annurca apple fruits, safflower and ginseng, can have beneficial effects on hair growth.
Nutraceuticals with beneficial effects on hair growth, including curcumin, tocotrienols, kelp and resveratrol, also exert an anti-proliferative effect on breast cancer cells.
https://assets.researchsquare.com/files/rs-1167112/v1_covered.pdf?c=1639668824

Another supplement called Fo-Ti is also supposed to help a lot with hair strength. I took it for a few days without much benefit on POIS, however one has to take it for a few weeks or months to see its effect on the hair.

You may also want to check out your DHT level. Some 5a-reductase inhibitors may help in such a case, but be aware that the prototypical drug called finasteride possibly caused the emergence of POIS for some members.
https://poiscenter.com/forums/index.php?topic=458.msg41345#msg41345

It must be noted that a lack of DHT may be similarly detrimental, especially as you mentioned problems with your beard.

Local androgen availability in the skin is necessary to stimulate sebum secretion and hair growth. The generation of DHT is essential for beard growth.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0303720717304525

Methylation issues should be also considered.

DNA methylation also mediates key events in mouse hair follicle development and regeneration. Epidermal Dnmt1 deletion causes uneven epidermal and hair fiber thickness, altered follicle size and an aging-related decline in hair fiber quantity. Focal cell proliferation defects partially account for uneven epidermal thickness. Molecular mechanisms responsible for changes in hair follicle size are unknown largely in part because few molecules are known to influence hair size. Proposed targets include Bmp and Wnt pathway members which can influence hair diameter and thickness. Together these studies indicate that DNA methylation is not only important for cell survival, but can also influence structural morphogenesis and function. DNA methylation regulates estrogen receptor and AR expression in adult prostate and other tissues.
https://sci-hub.se/https://www.futuremedicine.com/doi/abs/10.2217/EPI.15.8

Interestingly long covid is also associated with hair loss and sexual dysfunction.

People experiencing long covid have reported a wider set of symptoms than previously thought, including hair loss and sexual dysfunction. The symptoms with the largest adjusted hazard ratios were anosmia (6.49 (95% confidence interval 5.02 to 8.39)), hair loss (3.99 (3.63 to 4.39)), sneezing (2.77 (1.40 to 5.50)) ejaculation difficulty (2.63 (1.61 to 4.28)), reduced libido (2.36 (1.61 to 3.47)), and shortness of breath (2.20 (1.57 to 3.08)). Other common symptoms were chest pain, a hoarse voice, and fever. A wide range of comorbidities were also associated with an increased risk of long covid symptoms including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, benign prostatic hyperplasia, fibromyalgia, anxiety, and depression.
https://www.bmj.com/content/378/bmj.o1887.short

By the way where do you feel the itch? Is it on your head or all over your body?

Regarding your panic attacks it is hard to say anything sure. Maybe you could have mentioned the exact medication you took as anti-depressants are a quite broad category. Regardless you could try some natural anxiolytics like some that were mentioned before and see if something similar happens.
https://poiscenter.com/forums/index.php?topic=4111.msg43981#msg43981
https://poiscenter.com/forums/index.php?topic=2219.msg45820#msg45820
The possible role of 5-HT2A could be explored as well especially in relation to testosterone.
https://poiscenter.com/forums/index.php?topic=4061.msg43858#msg43858

[Glutation]

Hi, thanks for such a great post!

I think I should say, I tried finasteride, minoxidil and ketoconazole and it didn't work, I don't think it's the DHT. My baldness is not like norwood, they fall out diffusely, which is strange, so do my eyelashes, and they are not affected by DHT. Hair also becomes thin, weak and dry after orgasm despite sebum.

From an antidepressant, I took an SSRI (zoloft), it caused a severe panic attack and I think it was the panic attack that caused hair growth, this was repeated after the pills, the mechanism is still not clear to me. Maybe it's dopamine / serotonin / GABA ..

I feel a point itch, an itch of a particular hair, namely on the head, on the eyebrows, eyelashes and beard, and precisely from excitement and after orgasm.

I have tried many supplements. Omega 3-6-9 (omega 3 does not work separately) and glycine (GABA?) had some effect on the hair.

It is quite possible that there is some problem with the intestines, my POIS began after antibiotics, at that time there was no covid yet

[Progecitor]

It may be possible that in your case the onset of POIS induces an anagen-to-catagen transition, which is part of the hair growth cycle. My personal opinion is that the transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGFB1) could be an important regulator in your case.

Some molecular regulators of the anagen-catagen transition have been identified, although how they work together to promote catagen or terminate anagen is not yet understood. Molecules that promote the transition to catagen include the growth factors FGF5 and EGF, neurotrophins such as BDNF and possibly the p75-neurotrophin receptor, p53 and TGFbeta-family pathway members such as TGFbeta1 and the BMPRIa. Factors known to maintain anagen include SGK3 and Msx2.
https://journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/119/3/391/29231/The-hair-cycle

Some TGFB1 inhibitors were effective for POISers and may mean a connection to covid induced hair loss.

In summary, spirulina/PhyCB, phase II inducers such as lipoic acid, ferulic acid or broccoli sprout powder, melatonin, berberine, high-dose biotin, soy isoflavones, taurine and NAC may have potential for downregulating TGFB signalling, and thereby decreasing risk for, or improving clinical control of, a wide range of pro-fibrotic pathologies. Suggested dose schedules for these agents are presented in box 1. With regard to post-COVID-19 syndrome specifically, the antioxidant/anti-inflammatory effects of PhyCB, phase II inducers, melatonin and NAC might address neurological aspects of this syndrome thought likely to reflect chronic inflammation of cerebrovascular endothelial cells and microglia.
A more complete list for TGFB downregulation: spirulina/phycocyanin/phycocyanobilin (PhyCB), biliverdin/bilirubin, lipoic acid, ferulic acid, broccoli sprout extracts (sulforaphane), melatonin, NAD+, berberine, metformin, citrulline and/or high-dose folate, sodium nitrate or of nitrate-rich beetroot juice, soy isoflavones, equol, genistein, hydrogen sulfide (H2S), taurine, high-dose biotin, N-acetylcysteine (NAC).
https://openheart.bmj.com/content/8/1/e001663.full

An overview of TGFbeta can be found on wiki.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transforming_growth_factor_beta

While biotin (vitamin B7) is specifically indicated for the management of hair loss you should be aware of possible adverse effects. (Just search the site about it.)

One other supplement that may strengthen hair is silica which is abundant in diatomaceous earth, but this may not prevent hair loss.

Also have you yet searched the site about this issue?
Some posts that may interest you, but of course you may find more with a throughout search:
https://poiscenter.com/forums/index.php?topic=2993.msg40825#msg40825
https://poiscenter.com/forums/index.php?topic=3312.msg35674#msg35674
https://poiscenter.com/forums/index.php?topic=1437.msg13386#msg13386
https://poiscenter.com/forums/index.php?topic=229.msg32711#msg32711
https://poiscenter.com/forums/index.php?topic=458.msg5166#msg5166

In regard of the psychological problems I also had a kind of perpetual panic attack in the past, but in my case it was not a POIS induced feeling, but due to a certain unresolvable thought related to POIS, so I can’t really make a comparison to others. I got somewhat used to this in the past two decades, so it doesn’t bother me that much anymore unless certain circumstances conspire.
I also took Zoloft at a time and as I remember it actually helped a little with POIS, although it was most useful while I was undergoing its deprivation syndrome which is rather perplexing really.