Pipping

My hair began falling out in patches and my scalp was very dry and flaky. I have thin hair anyway and I am a female so you can imagine how obvious it was. I have been four months sober and my hair is growing back in and the patches have all but disappeared. It is thicker, it shines and my dandruff has almost completely gone. I invested in a very good shampoo and conditioner which costs a small fortune but I believe it has made all the difference. I used to bleach my hair white blonde and now it's a dark brown which is a lot more flattering. The one big physical improvement from sobriety is the change in my hair. My Mother who never gives compliments couldn't believe how thick and shiny my hair was. Trust me, coming from that woman it has to be true, no chance of her saying it for the hell of it!

Spinach

Hair loss and thin hair is common in heavy drinkers, it sorts itself out as long you don't pick up and eat well, and with all that extra life you've given yourself that should be easy.
John.

Marcher13

Toodie I'm female, although I didn't have bad hair loss when drinking I did find that a lot of hair was on the bathroom floor after brushing. Eleven months later my hair is in a lot better condition, in fact my hairdresser has actually commented that my hair is noticeably thicker. I still have fine hair of course but there is more of it and it's in better condition.

The same applies to my skin and nails. I've always had reasonably good skin but it's way better now in colour and texture. For years my nails have been horrid -- brittle, peeling, hangnails and dry torn cuticles -- but in eleven months all of that has cleared up. I put this down to three things -- way better eating, improved self care but most of all sobriety.

BTW I'm 58 so your improvements will probably be even greater.

silentrun

Mine thinned out too. I didn't notice it filling in right away but it definitely has been. It is not dull anymore either.

Zebra1275

I thought I was losing my hair, but then I found it...

...on my back and ears.

I can relate. As a man I have a theory that men don't really lose any hair as they grow older. It just inverts itself and pops out of the most unexpected places.

Marcher13

So does Nonsensical.

So do I.

Randummy

I am so grateful for this thread. I'm on day four and when I was drinking I didn't pay any attention at all to my hair; didn't wash it often, never combed it or looked after it and my hair is naturally quite thin anyway. Then over the past couple of days I've been paying attention and noticing that it feels thinner at the back of my head and that a lot of hair has been coming out. Not huge clumps or anything, but more than I've noticed before. Just washed my hair and it does definitely feel thinner.

Trigeek

I'm interested to see what mine does. 37 yo male and I have noticed some thinning over the past few years but attributed it to age and not the drinking. It has also gotten more brittle. Part of my renewed exercise regimen involves lots of swimming though, which is tough on hair. I guess I'll just have to see which is worse, killing it from the inside, or from the outside. Lol!