taking a stand for my strands. my current alopecia areata treatment regime.

since my alopecia areata has gotten worse over the course of the last year, i've tried to be pro-active about treating and seeking alternate solutions. sure, none of them have really worked so far, but at least if i lose all my hair, i'll know it didn't happen for a lack of trying to keep it. or maybe, hopefully, something will help.

shampoo:
i try to stick with natural shampoos. i alternate between:
- ferlow botanicals, neem shampoo
http://www.ferlowbotanicals.com/12.48.0.0.1.0.phtml
and:
- giovanni, tea tree triple treat shampoo
http://www.makeupalley.com/product/showreview.asp/itemid=17629

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vitamins + minerals:
- iron, thorne, ferrasorb (1 cap, 2x/day)
http://www.thorne.com/
*this iron supplement is great. i had a hard time getting my iron levels up. this did the trick.

i always take my iron with
- natural factors, vitamin c (1 cap, 2x/day)
http://naturalfactors.com/caen/products/detail/2838/vitamin-c

- vitamin d, genestra, d-mulsion (2 drops in the am)
http://www.rockwellnutrition.com/D-Mulsion-1000-Liquid-Emulsified-Vitamin-D-by-Genestra.html

- biotin, natural factors (1 cap, 1x/day)
http://naturalfactors.com/caen/products/detail/2828/biotin

- fish oil, ascenta, omega-3 (4 caps, 1x/day)
http://www.ascentahealth.com/products

- magnesium (helps you sleep and poop), rx balance, magnesium bisglycinate (3 caps @ bedtime)
http://rxbalance.com/products.html

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blood, liver + kidney cleanse tea: from the herbalist / 300 year old witch doctor

contains:
blood root powder
golden seal root
blessed thistle
parsley

1/4 tsp in 1/2 cup water on an empty stomach. 2x/day. disgusting.

i've been drinking this since december 17, 2012. i'm supposed to drink it until it's gone, which will be months and months from now. i'll probably give myself another month on it and then send it down the toilet. the same way that it's sent my food down the toilet more than once.

*there is no link for this because this remedy is older than time. and time is pretty old. 
**when the 300 year old witch doctor gave me the tea, i asked if i could still drink (i don't drink super often, but i've been known to put back some jagermeister). her response was, "drink? do you mean table wine?" cute. i didn't tell her about my flask.

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topical:
cortisone applied to affected areas 2x/day. 

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food stuffs:
i love eating! especially sugar and popcorn. and cheese.

i try to eat lots of protein, fruits and veggies everyday.
in reality, i eat lots of protein, candy, fruit and some veggies. i also drink a ton of water, and rarely have caffeine. i'm naturally annoyingly hyper.

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other things:
i try to be positive and focus on stuff other than alopecia (which is in complete contradiction with having a blog about alopecia and constantly seeking various treatment options). when i'm not blogging / taking photos of my bald spots / seeing my naturopath, i am volunteering / out with friends / watching tv / at work talking about tv (i work in broadcasting, so this is ok) / indoor rock climbing / biking / baking (and trying to not eat cookie dough) / watching animal videos / designing things...

i also try to keep things in perspective and focus on what i do have instead of what i don't.