Conference moira::parenting

    
          Hi Karen,
    
        I thought of this yesterday but I don't recall this happening to
    any of my children. I would say the best bet would be to call the
    pediatrician and ask there. I know as a mother, if I'd noticed this
    going on I would be asking also. Just to ease your mind I'd call the
    doctor.
    
         Take care,
    
         Rose Marchand

	Thanks Rose.

	By the lack of replies here, I'm figuring it's not that
	common.

	I will call the pedi.
	
	Karen

    	My son was born with a full head of long, dark, hair.  However, 
    almost like a baby chick with fuzz, a lot of it seemed to leave in 
    patches (at times he looked like he had "male pattern baldness").  
    He then got his "second set" of hair, which has been even thicker.
    
    	I'm pretty sure that all of this happened within the first year, 
    though.  I don't know what the cause might be at 26 months.
    
    	Peggy

    Could it be a lack of a certain vitamin?  I've heard that can be 
    the cause of hairloss.  I know that when my diet is less than
    adequate in the vitamin department, my hair comes out in clumps!
    Mention that to the pedi as well, maybe she needs supplements?
    
    just a thought - call the pedi & and let us know what he/she says.
    
    Julie
    

	Thanks for your replies.

	I had to call the pedi today anyway to schedule an appointment
	for my son, so I asked for one of the nurses.

	She said as long as she's not getting bald patches, I shouldn't
	be concerned.  She said it sounds like just a phase.  

	I can talk to the pedi about it at Andrew's visit in September
	if it's still occuring.

	Karen

    
    
           Hi,
    
        I'm glad it's nothing to worry about. 
    
        Rose

    
    One thing that can cause this, is an untreated case of diabetes.  Does
    your daughter show any other symptoms?  Thirsty, urinates frequently,
    rapid weight loss, tired/lethargic, hungry ?
    
    

	Not out of the ordinary.  She's got TONS of energy.  She is
	more hungry and thirsty on daycare days, but not on Friday-Sunday
	when she's at home.  Her weight is good, in fact, I think she's
	just recently gone through another growth spurt.  She's 30 pounds
	at 26 months of age.

	Thanks for the info - I'll bring it up to the doctor next
	month.

	I had put htis to rest in my mind, until Saturday when I put
	Emily's hair up in a ponytail, and noticed a thinned out patch
	on the left side.  It's the only patch, and is also in the
	same spot where she twists her hair when tired or bored (especially
	in her car seat!)  I'm going to give it another couple of
	weeks to see if things change (I figure if this is just a phase,
	I should notice a reduction in the hair loss).

	Karen

    Karen,
    
    Glad to hear she doesn't have any of the symptoms I mentioned
    previously!  If she's not getting a vitamin, it may be helpful to start
    one of those children's-chewables.  As a previous noter pointed out, it
    could be a vitamin deficiency ??
    
    Aren't kids fun?! (-:
    

    Karen,
    
    does it seem like just the one spot where she twiddles it?  If so, it
    could be traction baldness and will resolve itself when she lessens on
    the twirling on the hair, or if you change where her ponytail sits.  I
    had traction baldness for a short time because of how tight my
    grandmother braided my hair when I was about four.  When she went on a
    visit to my aunt's home for a few months, my hair grew back.
    
    meg

	Yes, that's the only spot where she's noticably thinning.  However,
	she's twisted her hair ever since it's been long enough (10 months?),
	and this is the first time it has thinned.

	Also, the "falling-out" hairs that I see hanging from her
	head are all over (both left and right sides, and the back).

	I'm trying to figure out if the overall hair loss has combined
	with the twisting to create the "patch", or if it's merely
	the twisting causing the hairloss.

	I'm trying to not get too concerned about this, but if it
	*is* an indication of something else, I'd like to find out
	as early as possible.

	Karen

    I know exactly how you feel.  This happened to our daughter at 3 1/2.  It 
    started with strands, then turned into clumps, finally she had several 
    large balding spot on her head.  I brought her to the Dr and it was 
    diagnosed as Alapheca Areata(sp) (there is a note in here about it).  We 
    were told that the hair would probably continue to fall out for a while, 
    and would take about 9-12 months to grow back.  Fortunatly for her, it 
    didn't take that long, and it didn't get too severe.
    
    
    -------------------------------------------
    As a side note, is she upset about anything?  We have found out since,
    that our daughter was very distraught about her day-care situation.  We
    knew she didn't want to go, but we thought she just wanted to be with
    Mom and Dad.  It was much much more than that.  We now believe that it was
    a contributing factor if not the main reason for the hair loss.  Like I 
    said it didn't go to the extent that they thought it would -- I believe it
    didn't because soon after it was diagnosed she left that sitter's care.  
    And we have not had another outbreak since - and we were told that it was 
    very possible we would.
    
    
    		Robin
    
    

	Well, Emily's got a new brother, a new daycare, a new bed...

	other than that, nothing new ;-)

	She doesn't seem to be upset about any of the above, however.
	Once we hit daycare, she can barely be bothered to say goodbye
	anymore.  She adores her new brother - a live toy!

	Her bed is just 3 weeks old.  She is taking some time adjusting
	(getting out repeatedly), but seems to like it.

	I had heard bouts of alopecia were commonly brought on by
	stressful situations.

	Karen

    
    
    How is Emily doing with her hair problem?
    
    
    

	Well, she's still got the patches where she twists her hair, but
	the falling out seems to have subsided quite a bit.  I don't
	see stray hairs hanging from her head, and when Andrew grabs
	a handful, only one or two come out ;-)

	I still plan to mention it at the doctor's next week (Andrew's
	appointment).

	Karen

	A final (I hope) update on Emily's hair loss:
	
	We finally got to see the dermatologist today.  Emily
	still has some thinned patches, but most of the hair
	had grown back in before the appointment.  The doctor
	could diagnose the problem quite quickly.  It appears
	that the hair loss was caused by alopecia, then the hair-twisting
	that Emily does created two bald spots on the sides of her
	head.  By looking at the re-growth of the hair at the sides,
	the doctor felt fairly certain that the hair-twisting alone
	would not have caused the baldness.  She also felt that the
	alopecia alone would not have been too severe if Emily wasn't
	a "twister".  Her re-growth looks good, and chances are she'll
	never experience a hair-loss due to alopecia again.  

	The dermatoligist does recommend that we try to break Emily
	of the hair-twisting, by pointing out to her when she is
	doing it, distracting her, providing things for her to hold so she won't 
	twist (things Daddy has been doing recently) and positive reinforcement.

	Karen

    
    Why not cut her hair real short?  That way, she wouldn't be able to
    twist it.  By the time it gets long again, she will have probably
    outgrown the habit.
    
    Good luck!
    
    Karen

    Funny you mentioned twisting short hair....we just got Chelsea's cut
    last week, about 4 inches off the baby hair which put it slightly
    above her ears.  When it was longer she never twisted, now she just
    started twisting.
    
    Are words might seem a little harsh, but it seems to be stopping her
    when we catch her doing it.  We just tell her that she is hurting
    her hair and that she is going to break it, when it breaks we will
    have to throw it in the trash can....she stops twisting, we add the
    positive reinforcement on how proud we are for her not twisting.
    
    I thought about using distraction, but decided the plain bold truth
    was worth a shot.  She understands so well the meaning of hurt and
    broken, that it seems she can associate what this action will do to
    her hair....who knows if it will last, but for now the twisting has
    slowed down lots.
    
    Good luck Karen!
    
    ...Lori

	Thanks, Lori.

	Emily's hair is to her ears, and a wedge in back.  Any shorter,
	and 75% of the people we meet would assume she's a boy (vs. the
	40-50% who do since her haircut - guess long eyelashes and pink
	clothes aren't a give-away!)

	I will try to explain about breaking the hair - good suggestion!

	Karen

    Sounds like Emily and Chelsea have the same hair style.  Chelsea got
    hers cut to the ears with a wedge in the back....it looks soooo cute!
    Very big girl stuff and she was so good at the kid's cutting parlor.
    This was her second cut and the first one back in July was the hair
    cut experience from you know where!?!
    
    It's so strange that Chelsea just started twisting out of the blue,
    but then she recently discovered the attraction of inserting finger
    into nose and back to mouth....yuck!  Haven't figured out a good 
    way of breaking that habit, kinda figure it's just a kid thing and
    hopefully she will grow out of it in time.  Guess I could tell her
    it's gonna break her nose and we will have to throw it away in the
    trash....just kidding.
    
    Even though this is a hair note....just have to add my congrats real
    quick on Emily's potty training, I think she is doing wonderful.  
    Chelsea on the other hand could give a hoot about the potty, so we
    are just going to put it on hold for a little bit and then of course
    try again...and again....and again!
    
    ..Lori

This is one of those memos I'm not sure I should write, because I don't know 
what to expect for answers.

My wife was combing my almost-7-year-old daughter's hair last night, and was 
stunned to see that on top of her head about an inch from the front hairline, 
smack in the middle, there was an egg-shaped bald spot, about 2 inches long and 
1 inch wide.  I got a look at it, and it took my breath away.

We asked my daughter how this might have happened, and she said that earlier in 
the day she had slipped on some wet grass at a friend's house and banged her 
head on a 'sharp rock' in about the place where the bald spot was.  But she 
hadn't mentioned this to us at all, so the fall couldn't have been that bad.  
Plus, there is no sign whatsoever of any bump, bruise, discoloring, scrape, 
blood, or swelling anywhere on her head, let alone around the bald spot.  So 
just like that she's got this spot -- no hair fuzz of any sort coming out of it.

God knows how long this has been there; I've got to believe we would have 
noticed it had it been there, say, the day earlier.  It is that noticeable, and 
in fact while she was waiting in line at school this morning, the wind blew her 
hair so badly that my wife could see the bald spot from where she was standing 
20 feet away.

I can't allow myself to think frightening thoughts, but this has frightened us.  
We've called our pediatrician, and the nurse who answered said that 'the spot is 
probably due to the fall she took.'  Whatever that means.  Needless to say, I'm 
waiting to talk to the pedi and a more detailed conversation.

Does this sound familiar at all to anyone?

    I don't know if this could apply to your situation or not but when my
    son Chris was about 7 years old, he developed a nervous habit of
    'twirling' his hair with this finger.  I noticed him doing quite a bit
    and never thought anything of it until I was helping his wash his hair
    and when I rinsed it, I couldn't believe what I saw.  He had twirled
    his hair so much that he left a huge bald spot towards the back of his
    head!  It obviously didn't hurt him at all otherwise he would have
    noticed and stopped but I was amazed that doing this could cause such a
    spot.  I remembered how much it scared me at first thinking only the
    worst but was relieved when I 'caught' him doing it again and put
    two-and-two together.
    
    May not be your experience but if so, it may help.
    
    Susan

    
    Check out note 804, and see if that helps any ...
    

I know a boy who got a bald spot on the top of his head from ringworm.  The 
spot (about 1 inch in diameter) was completely bald -- not even fuzz growing --
and it took about 18 months before it started filling in.  Now it is not
even noticable.
						Tracy

    Is the daughter under alot of stress right now (new home, school, lots
    of homework, family problems, etc)?  
    
    When my oldest (now 8) was 6, her father and I seperated.  She seemed
    to be handling things pretty well, but one day brushing her waist
    length hair, I notice a bald patch just off of her "center part".  It
    was about the size of a quarter and like with your daughter it was
    completely smooth.  She didn't have the faintest idea how it could have
    happened and I had never found any "clumps" of hair anywhere.  So I 
    talked with her doctor.  He said that it was probably from the strain
    of the seperation.  I had to make sure that when I did her hair, I
    adjusted the part to keep the area covered.  It probably took about 8
    months for the hair to start coming in.  She now has hair down the
    middle of her back, but one day I found a section that is shorter.  I 
    forgot about the hairloss and asked her if she had cut some of her hair 
    and then I remembered that the "new growth" would be in that very section.
    
    Good Luck,
    
    Roberta
    

    My then 7-yr-old daughter had the same thing happen, hers was just a
    bit off the part area.  I never made it to the dr with her [ :>} ]
    , but did ask the hairdresser, who looked and said there was new hair 
    growing in, just much finer than I could easily see.  No other spots ever 
    showed up, it was not in a place where she could easily twirl it, and now I
    have to hunt to see it.  I'd forgotten about it, and she just had her
    physical.  oh well. 

Wierd,, but ya know, I just I hate it when you call your
Kids Dr. about something, and the Nurse decides what
your problem is...  

A fall on a rock I would think would leave a mark,
bruise, cut,, something to indicate impact wouldn't ya
think...

Good luck, try not to worry too much,

/r

    
    	My daughter had bald spots on both sides of her head at age 2.
    	We took her to a dermatologist, who determined that the cause
    	was two-fold - alopecia and trichotillomania (sp.) - twisting
    	of the hair.  She showed us how to tell if it was one or the other.
    	Alopecia showed up a smooth bald spot, whereas the hair loss due
    	to twisting alone had hairs of differing lengths around the area.
    	Also, I noted tons of hair on her clothing and car seat during the
    	alopecia phase, like she was shedding.  
    
    	It took several months for the bald spots to fill in, and they
    	have not returned.  Emily still twists her hair, mostly when tired,
    	but doesn't seem to pull it nearly as hard.  
    
    	Karen
    

    Well, we took my daughter to the doctor late yesterday, and he
    determined that her condition indeed looked like alopecia.
    
    Unfortunately, it doesn't sound like there's anything we can do but
    wait, and hope that it doesn't get worse.  The doctor said that the
    hair on either side of the bald spot looked long, healthy, and firm,
    which he said was a good sign.  But he said that the spot may get
    bigger before it starts to fill in, or other spots could develop
    elsewhere on the scalp.  I didn't like hearing THAT.
    
    But he did say that in every case he can think of, all of his patients
    who have had alopecia have had the hair grow back, although some sooner
    than others.
    
    I wish we could DO something, or figure out what we may have done or
    not done in the past to cause this.  Has anyone had any luck with
    vitamin supplements?  My daughter's never been faithful of taking her
    morning vitamins, and she's not a big milk drinker at all.  Now I'm
    grasping for answers that may not be out there.
    
    The spot is really in a noticeable place -- straight on as you look at
    her, and it's more front than top.  So far she's fine about it, but I
    think it's more denial than anything else, because when we started to
    have a detailed conversation on the subject, she yelled, "Do NOT
    mention this to anyone outside of this house!"  So now we dance around
    the subject.
    
    Any more words of wisdom?
    

    Here I go again.
    
    I was talking to one of my co-workers today, and she said that she had
    heard that blow-drying little kids hair is the worst thing you can do,
    especially if the child has thin hair.
    
    Any truth to that?  We blow-dry our daughter's hair all the time.
    

    
    	I doubt it.  My daughter's alopecia was a one time thing.  The
    	dermatologist that we saw said that the majority of cases occur
    	once and only once.  She said there was no link to vitamin or
    	mineral defficiency.  She did say that there seems to be a link
    	to stress.  When Emily's alopecia occured, she'd just become a
    	big sister, moved out of daycare with Grandma, spent 3 months
    	at home with me, then moved into a new daycare.  Also, we were
    	in the process of selling our house and building a new one.  Life
    	was full of changes, so stress could have been a factor.  I blow
    	dry her hair at least once a week, and the condition has not
    	repeated itself.
    
    	Karen
    

    Never heard about the blowing drying thing, Lauren has had her hair
    blown dry probably 5 times in the 8 years she's been around, and all
    times were after the incident.
    
    Can you put her hair in an off center ponytail?  Put it back with a
    headband?  Braid it?  Does she like hats?
    
    Good luck,
    
    Roberta

    It's the Frantic Father again.  I'll probably make this the longest
    running string all by myself!
    
    My daughter happened to mention last night that on Tuesday of last
    week, the day she was having her class picture, one of her prankster
    classmates came along and yanked her comb out of hair when she was in
    the middle of combing it.  The pain was wicked, she said.
    
    This has got us thinking yet some more.  My wife swears that on that
    morning, when she gave Christine a bath and hair washing in prep for
    the class picture, there was no bald spot at all.  I can't help but
    think that there is a connection.  I've heard from several of you and
    others that 'stress' might bring on this condition; I would say that a
    whopping, unannounced yank of a comb through a little girl's hair
    qualifies as a 'stressful' occurrence, wouldn't you?!
    
    I gave Christine a bath last night, and I can tell you that the bald
    spot shows up even more when her hair is wet, even when the spot is
    covered with shampoo.  I'm sure my wife would have noticed such a spot
    last week.                     
    
    Oh well, wait and see, I guess.

    If this helps at all, when I was about seven my hair got caught in a swing.
    When I jumped out, a big patch of hair was yanked out leaving a big,
    round bald spot. It took quite a while for it to grow back.
    
    My husband says that his hair has always been easy to pull out. Whenever
    someone would yank it, lots of hair would be left in their hands. To
    this day he has to be careful on what brushes he uses.
    
    FWIW,
    LB
      

I hope this will be of some help.  When my daughter Paula was
about 3 years old, we had a terrible car accident.  The top of
her head, forehead area hit the dash board, that night and the next
day the hair in that area started to turn white, within days the hair
in that spot fell out and the new growth came in white, the only 
explainatiom the doctors could give was the  trauma of the accident 
and the stress on the area that was smacked caused the hair to fall
out and grow back as white.  She is 28 years old and still has this white
spot as a young child and teenager when under a lot of stress you
could almost see the hair turn white, She is quite use to it now and evens 
enjoys the attention , as a child she hated it, the white hair was 
very hard to color over or perm......

    
    the part I wanted to mention,and forgot, is that this bump to her 
    head caused no bleeding, no bruise,no cuts, not even a blood blister.