Shea Butter ?

[deafsinger]

Hi ,
Since SHEA Butter heals cracked hands & chapped skin , allergic breakouts , ,any irritating skin condition has anyone used it on their scalp ?

I saw a website where I can buy it direct from Africa pretty cheaply.

I just wondered if any of you have the problem of the sores on your scalp & hardening thickening of the scalp & if you had tried anything like pure shea butter? If so , what were your results?

thanks ! :p

[feelingwiggy]

I love shea butter for my dry skin, but don't think I would put it on my head, it has other stuff in it like maybe fragrance that would help things out. It's thick, but I did read somewhere about olive oil and it's natural. You might want to research that. Let me know. My grandmother used to rub olive oil on her hands every night. She had beautiful hands... Judy

[Angela]

Hi ,
Since SHEA Butter heals cracked hands & chapped skin , allergic breakouts , ,any irritating skin condition has anyone used it on their scalp ?

I saw a website where I can buy it direct from Africa pretty cheaply.

I just wondered if any of you have the problem of the sores on your scalp & hardening thickening of the scalp & if you had tried anything like pure shea butter? If so , what were your results?

thanks ! :p

Hi,
Have you been to a dermatologist? If you have sores on your scalp and a hardening or thickening of the scalp, you may want to consult with a doctor. There are different forms of scarring alopecia that result in sores and a thickening of the scalp (kind of like tough leather). I have scarring alopecia although I don't get the sores. I do however have a tight leathery scalp due to the atrophy of the skin.

What kind of hair loss do you have?

[Denise B.]

Hi Angela,
Shea butter may sooth your head. You could use it like a conditioner and put a shower cap on your head and let it sit for a while before rinsing it out. I have seborrehic dermatits and if my scalp gets really dry or there is a drasitc change in weather I have horrible break outs.
You may want to check with your dermatologist and try different prescription shampoos til you find the right one for you. I have found that I have to switch up shampoos and conditoners and my breakouts seem to be less severe.
Denise B.

[Denise B.]

Sorry, Deaf singer I meant you too!!!!!!!!!!!
Denise B.

[deafsinger]

Hi Angela,

My history is quite complicated. I have Lupus , and it likes to "jump around" from one area to another on my body. I have undergone bladder biopsies & laser ablation for scarring , uterine biopsies with cervical ablation , I had scarring over several of my knuckles that looked like warts but were not , they itched broke open & bled , even getting so large as to prevent the thumb & 1 finger from bending. I also had sudden permanent deafness in my right ear about 16 yrs ago. Approx 10 years ago I became blind in my left eye & remained blind for over 3 years. I also had a heart attack around 10 yrs ago.

I had a small cyst on the back middle part of my scalp that appeared after nose surgery that lasted approx 6 hours. The cyst itched & would get to be the size of a grape then would re-absorb & disappear. the itch never disappeared , but the lesion would. My scalp would always get hot there if I walked outside , & would begin to sweat profusely & break out in hives. All of this with my scalp began when I was in my late 20's & I am now 52.
What I now have on my scalp is a Giant Cyst / Lipoma/mixed tumor & it is at least the size of a boiled egg , or kiwi fruit. The top layers of it are hard , tough & leathery & feels like a callous. The skin on the sides of the sore are softer , tight due to the skin stretching , and have some hair. the new hair growth that comes in there is ingrown & sore .
The hair loss around the cyst /lipoma /mixed tumor extends up to the crown of the back of my head & to the backs of both ears.
What hair that I do have on my head would not be enough for a baby to make a ponytail with. There is some on the top of my head & a scant bit on the sides.
I look sort of like Driving Miss Daisy did at the end of the movie when she let down her hair on the staircase.

This tumor has been removed twice under general anesthesia. The 2nd time , I bled profusely & the surgery was more complicated than had been expected. It was not just a simple cyst , or a simple fatty tumor. It had a little bit of everything thrown into it. After the last surgery , it stayed somewhat raised over the area, & the surgeon told me that it would need a revision somewhere down the road , as some of my hair would be growing in underneath the suture. It stayed about the same size for years until I had oral surgery , my head flat on the back of a chair for a few hours & it became large again. It's very slow growing , but has gotten larger.

It needs to be removed & I have had it scheduled 3 times , but twice due to my blood work it had to be cancelled for a later date. the first cancellation was because my ex-husband cancelled my health insurance policy.
I was ready to re-schedule and my husband was fired from his job & we had to cobra. But then he got hired by another scompany within 3 weeks , so we did not Cobra.
Problem ...this last company kept telling him we were covered under their group policy. We had paperwork , etc. But they were not paying their premiums , & the insurance company told us yes you have a policy , but no you cannot use it until it is paid up . His boss assured him it would be paid up by Christmas.
It was not , It was cancelled & then he was fired.

So I have no insurance. I have just about lost all of my hair , and I feel mostly because this tumor is now so large .

I went to 2 dermatologists years ago here , and 1 froze off the sores on my knuckles told me it would throb a few mins. , but they throbbed for hours , sending my BP sky high to stroke level sending me to the ER It was nearly to the bone, you could see the nerves "Pulsing" . On a scale of 1 to 10 the pain was at a 10+
He denied any wrongdoings & said I was "seeking drugs".

I saw another dermatologist who said my problem with my skin over my knuckles & my cyst/ lipoma / mixed tumor were due to my "obsessive picking at the skin"
He said that my hair loss was due to my obsession with picking at my skin & pulling out my hair. I quickly told him how Wrong he was & he totally dismissed me & wanted to give me tranquilizers.
Oh , by the way , I took in some hair in a ziploc thinking they might want to see how much I had lost , or to view it under a microscope ... I was asked "How long have you been collecting your hair in baggies". he wanted to know how many baggies of hair I had at home !!!! SO he thought I sat at home , picked at my skin , and pulled iout my hair collecting it in baggies. Lord , that visit was a HUGE letdown.

I saw a Rheumatologist when I was having a period of NOT having a flareup. For years with my Lupus , I did not look sick , so as a result , I was told I was not sick.
The doc I was sent to for Lupus , when I showed him my scalp & tumor , he just said that's just a tiny cyst no big deal. When I asked about my hairloss , to him it was nothing significant. It has totally changed now though since it's nearly all gone.

Since I do not have insurance I cannot afford to go to lots of doctor visits.
I had to see 13 (yes THIRTEEN) Opthalmologists before I located the asst head of the Corneal Division at UAB in Birmingham,AL. Finally he diagnosed me correctly & now I can see again.

No one ever knows what to do with my weird "orphan " like symptoms & problems.
I am afraid of going to a surgeon who says not to worry about the scar because I won't ever have hair growing back there again. Well I do have new hair growth in spots , & as a woman every little bit means something!

Well I feel as if I have written my whole health history here in a jumbled up fashion.
I Hate talking about it , I hate explaining it , and I hate being embarassed by it.

Anyway , there , it's out in the open here. My husband knows. My 2 girls know.
And now y'all know.
I am ashamed & I am embarassed by this.
I hide this from all of my friends, I have cut myself off from others, I now am just unavailable most of the time.
I am ashamed & embarassed.

[Denise B.]

Hi Deafsinger,

Wow! That's alot. I have mucho empathy for you. I can very much relate to your frustration with doctors. As a matter of fact, I saw my dermatologist on friday,again telling him about my hairloss, hiturism, and PCOS. He was smug and dismissive telling me that I would not go bald, there was nothing I could do about my facial hair, he didn't understand why my endo was treating the PCOS with metformin and spiro, and that my testosterone was not high but probably too low. He just keep saying that I was just used to having a lower hair line and that because I am getring older and basically to deal with. Needless to say, I will not be seeing him anymore. I think he was pissed because I challenged him. He left out of the exam room and went to his office closed his door.

My major problem with doctors is that if they don't know, say that instead of trying to make me think I'm crazy and don't know whats going on with my own body. I live here 24/7. I'm coming to you for help not to belittled and berated and be dismissed and to go away.

I really hope things get better for you. I have a friend who has Lupus and she has lesions on her nose and a big one on the front of her head. She had to wear a wig because her hair fell out and she had to have multiple surgeries on her head.

I really want you to know that you should not feel ashamed about your condition. It doesn't make you a bad person or any less than anyone else. Just know that EVERONE and I mean EVERYONE no matter how perfect they look an the outside falls short in some area.It may be hard to let people in but I'm sure those that are close to you see past the physical and love you and very much enjoy your company. And those that can't, it's their problem. I know it sounds cliche and I hope I have not offended you. I don't mean to sound patronizing.

Don't let those idoits take your joy!!!!!!

Sincerely,

Denise B.:>

[Angela]

Hi Angela,

My history is quite complicated. I have Lupus , and it likes to "jump around" from one area to another on my body. I have undergone bladder biopsies & laser ablation for scarring , uterine biopsies with cervical ablation , I had scarring over several of my knuckles that looked like warts but were not , they itched broke open & bled , even getting so large as to prevent the thumb & 1 finger from bending. I also had sudden permanent deafness in my right ear about 16 yrs ago. Approx 10 years ago I became blind in my left eye & remained blind for over 3 years. I also had a heart attack around 10 yrs ago.

I had a small cyst on the back middle part of my scalp that appeared after nose surgery that lasted approx 6 hours. The cyst itched & would get to be the size of a grape then would re-absorb & disappear. the itch never disappeared , but the lesion would. My scalp would always get hot there if I walked outside , & would begin to sweat profusely & break out in hives. All of this with my scalp began when I was in my late 20's & I am now 52.
What I now have on my scalp is a Giant Cyst / Lipoma/mixed tumor & it is at least the size of a boiled egg , or kiwi fruit. The top layers of it are hard , tough & leathery & feels like a callous. The skin on the sides of the sore are softer , tight due to the skin stretching , and have some hair. the new hair growth that comes in there is ingrown & sore .
The hair loss around the cyst /lipoma /mixed tumor extends up to the crown of the back of my head & to the backs of both ears.
What hair that I do have on my head would not be enough for a baby to make a ponytail with. There is some on the top of my head & a scant bit on the sides.
I look sort of like Driving Miss Daisy did at the end of the movie when she let down her hair on the staircase.

This tumor has been removed twice under general anesthesia. The 2nd time , I bled profusely & the surgery was more complicated than had been expected. It was not just a simple cyst , or a simple fatty tumor. It had a little bit of everything thrown into it. After the last surgery , it stayed somewhat raised over the area, & the surgeon told me that it would need a revision somewhere down the road , as some of my hair would be growing in underneath the suture. It stayed about the same size for years until I had oral surgery , my head flat on the back of a chair for a few hours & it became large again. It's very slow growing , but has gotten larger.

It needs to be removed & I have had it scheduled 3 times , but twice due to my blood work it had to be cancelled for a later date. the first cancellation was because my ex-husband cancelled my health insurance policy.
I was ready to re-schedule and my husband was fired from his job & we had to cobra. But then he got hired by another scompany within 3 weeks , so we did not Cobra.
Problem ...this last company kept telling him we were covered under their group policy. We had paperwork , etc. But they were not paying their premiums , & the insurance company told us yes you have a policy , but no you cannot use it until it is paid up . His boss assured him it would be paid up by Christmas.
It was not , It was cancelled & then he was fired.

So I have no insurance. I have just about lost all of my hair , and I feel mostly because this tumor is now so large .

I went to 2 dermatologists years ago here , and 1 froze off the sores on my knuckles told me it would throb a few mins. , but they throbbed for hours , sending my BP sky high to stroke level sending me to the ER It was nearly to the bone, you could see the nerves "Pulsing" . On a scale of 1 to 10 the pain was at a 10+
He denied any wrongdoings & said I was "seeking drugs".

I saw another dermatologist who said my problem with my skin over my knuckles & my cyst/ lipoma / mixed tumor were due to my "obsessive picking at the skin"
He said that my hair loss was due to my obsession with picking at my skin & pulling out my hair. I quickly told him how Wrong he was & he totally dismissed me & wanted to give me tranquilizers.
Oh , by the way , I took in some hair in a ziploc thinking they might want to see how much I had lost , or to view it under a microscope ... I was asked "How long have you been collecting your hair in baggies". he wanted to know how many baggies of hair I had at home !!!! SO he thought I sat at home , picked at my skin , and pulled iout my hair collecting it in baggies. Lord , that visit was a HUGE letdown.

I saw a Rheumatologist when I was having a period of NOT having a flareup. For years with my Lupus , I did not look sick , so as a result , I was told I was not sick.
The doc I was sent to for Lupus , when I showed him my scalp & tumor , he just said that's just a tiny cyst no big deal. When I asked about my hairloss , to him it was nothing significant. It has totally changed now though since it's nearly all gone.

Since I do not have insurance I cannot afford to go to lots of doctor visits.
I had to see 13 (yes THIRTEEN) Opthalmologists before I located the asst head of the Corneal Division at UAB in Birmingham,AL. Finally he diagnosed me correctly & now I can see again.

No one ever knows what to do with my weird "orphan " like symptoms & problems.
I am afraid of going to a surgeon who says not to worry about the scar because I won't ever have hair growing back there again. Well I do have new hair growth in spots , & as a woman every little bit means something!

Well I feel as if I have written my whole health history here in a jumbled up fashion.
I Hate talking about it , I hate explaining it , and I hate being embarassed by it.

Anyway , there , it's out in the open here. My husband knows. My 2 girls know.
And now y'all know.
I am ashamed & I am embarassed by this.
I hide this from all of my friends, I have cut myself off from others, I now am just unavailable most of the time.
I am ashamed & embarassed.

You have been through a lot, but please don't feel embarrassed or ashamed of what you have been through. If at all possible, it is so important to have your husband advocate for you. Being in the position you are in can make you feel very vulnerable. I know I get extremely vulnerable when I have a flare up. My lupus isn't as extreme as yours, but when I am in the midst of a nasty flare up, I'm an emotional wreck! I cry really easy and will not stick up for myself. If he is there to stick up for you at your appointments or even making the phone calls, and they know he won't take their shit at the doctor's office, it may help in getting some answers. A few threats thrown out and saying the "M" word (malpractice) doesn't hurt either, especially if you have something that is potentially physically altering or life threatening and they just "poo-poo" it.