November 4 2005, 3:35 pm PT | Posted in: Drugs (Cause Hair Loss)
Do any anti-depressants such as lexapro cause hair loss?
Antidepressants do cause hair loss (see Lexapro information on drugs.com). Stress is also a cause of hair loss on those who are impacted with the genetic balding defect. There is a chicken and egg scenario here; which comes first? Speak with your doctor about switching medications or in helping you deal with the stress of life that may be accelerating your hair loss if you are genetically prone.
Update: This link was brought to my attention — ultimate-cosmetics.com.
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Balding Forum
As your link above shows, Lexapro has not been shown to cause hair loss. Some of the other SSRI drugs may cause some diffuse thinning as a rare side effect. It is not the norm.
ACCORDING TO MY DERM, DR., GYNO, AND PHARMACIST, LEXAPRO CAUSED MY HAIR LOSS. I’VE BEEN OFF OF LEXAPRO FOR 4 MONTHS AND IT HAS STOPPED COMING OUT IN CLUMPS–THANKS GOD!
DEBBIE (34 YRS. OLD)
P.S. LEXAPRO WAS THE ONLY MED I HAD BEEN ON.
I’ve always had a full head of glossy thick hair. I’ve recently noticed how thin my hair got…starting to panic over here. I’m young single girl. This can’t happen. The only drug I’m on is Lexapro too.
I have been on Lexapro for months and have had a major loss of hair. I have always had to get a hair cut every three weeks but have lost so much hair, I am afraid to cut it. I am weaning myself from the antidepressant now.
I just started taking lexapro 3 days ago. This morning I was combing my hair after a shower and noticed about two dozen hairs in the teeth of the comb. My immediate suspicion fell on the lexapro. Nothing like this has ever happened to me before and it was quite a shock since the list of side effetcs never listed hair loss. If this keeps up, would it reverse itself if I went off the drug? I’m really tempted to just stop taking it now since it’s only been a few days.
I’m a 36 y/o male, full head of hair, good health, not taking any other drugs.
Any comments would be appreciated.
Thanks
Same for me! I have always had a great head of hair. Super thick and real healthy. Since taking “LEXAPRO” for about 6 months now, my hair looks like crap! There is no other way to explain how my hair has become so thin you can see my scalp! My Dr. thinks it’s Male Pattern Baldness. B.S. that does not happen in 6 months.
Note: It’s not falling out, it’s just thinning like crazy.
I have been taking lexapro for 4 months now and I too am a victim of thinning hair. I thought I was going crazy at first but finally realized that lexapro has to be the culprit. My hair has never looked this bad, I literally look like Kramer in the soft flow shower head episode. I stopped taking it a week ago and hopefully after a new haircut things will change.
I was switched to lexapro from prozac. My hair is fine anyway but within 2 days of starting treatment with lexapro my hair has never looked so thin. Its not coming out in clumps but just thining all over. I didn’t experince this with prozac.
In the list of side effects this was not listed. I did my own research when i noticed my thinning hair.
I will try to come off this drug. Anxiety and depression are hard enough to deal with without added problems making you feel worse
I’m a 31 yr old male.
I have been on Lexapro for depression for the last two years. I used to have hair so thick that I was charged extra at the beauty shop. Now my hair is so thin and is falling out all over. This has been going on for as long as I have been taking Lexapro. I used to take Celexa and didnt have this problem. Lexapro is the only medication that I take. I will ask my doctor to switch me back to the celexa.
I have been on Lexapro for several months and have noticed my hair seemed thinner. I took a good look and to my horror, on the back of my head the hair is considerably thinner and I can see my scalp! I also have 2 semi circles of new growth where I have lost hair at my forehead!! Is this supposed to help my depression!? I am horrified. This is the only thing I can contribute this sudden loss of hair.
I have been on Lexapro for over two years. I started with 5mg and increased it to 10mg six months ago. I began seeing hair loss immediately. I used to have a thick head of hair and now am afraid to wash it. I lose handfuls and brushloads. At the rate I’m going I will probably be totally bald in a year which lead me to stop taking it a week ago. If Lexapro is the culprit (which I think it is) will things reverse and will my hair begin to grow back? I hope to God it will.
I have been taking Lexapro also for maybe 5 months and have noticed hair thinning. The drug work good but I have noticed that my hair is so much thinner. I really feel that the side effect need to be listed but it is not. I am going to take myself off of the medication
OMG!! My hair started falling out too! I am sitting here ready to cry because I had a crowning glory of thick hair then all of a sudden my hair just started dropping out.. I just recently got a new prescription for celexa and I pray this stuff doesnt do more damage to my hair. I went to the doctor and told him what was happening and he gave me some cockamamie story.. I thought maybe it was me but now after reading these posts I am realizing it is this damn drug.. If my hair continues to fall out with celexa I am going to stop COLD TURKEY and just deal with the damn anxiety..
i have been taking lexapro for four years and have had terrible hair loss. i took steroid shots in my head every six weeks for a year trying to stop the hair loss, no doctor ever thought it could be the lexapro. im sick about the money and time spent, i have stopped cold turkey…. waiting to see what happens.
Well, I am the reverse here as I have been on Celexa for about 2 months and my hair (which is beautiful I must say) is now thin enough to see my scalp on both sides of my forehead (think male pattern baldness)…while I’m not bald and no one can see it unless I point it out, I could never see my scalp before.
Problem is I am also taking Seasonale birth control with a side effect of …(you guessed it) hair loss!
I’m thinking though…it’s the Celexa. Already left a message with my Doc.
Gosh, I’m amazed to see so many people with this problem. I have always had fine hair, but I started taking celexa (10 mg daily) about 6 months ago and have lost so much hair around my temples and behind my ears that I don’t even want to put my hair up anymore. Hair loss IS listed as a side effect but an uncommon one - I suspect it’s more common than the drug makers think.
I have taken Lexapro for 18 months and noticed the thinning of hair. I never had this problem before. Doctor will not admit it is medication. I do not take any other medication. I am about to stop taking Lexapro this week and will see what happens. I am doing this under the care of my MD. Went from 10mg of Lexaprog to 5mg for two months.
My 27 year old daughter has been on lexapro for about a year and a half and is now totally bald. I am convinced it is the lexapro although the doctor says it is alopecia. She has had shots to no avail and they have now put her on metatrexate. Has anyone gone totally bald from lexapro? I would appreciate any info.
Hi all,
I have been taking Lexapro 5 mg for nearly two months, and, honestly, during these two months I have lost nearly half of my hair. Is it a coincedence? I don’t know. But that is the only change in my diet during these two months.
I just started taking lexapro 1 day ago. is it true that it causes hair loss in men? im 30 yrs old with a pretty good head of hair and id like to keep it that way. im taking a 10 mg dose along with a low dose of xanex for anxiety. the lexapro isnt totally necessary, it was just an option, but i dont really care to go bald just yet. any feed back would be forth coming.
I have been on Lexapro for approx six months and I am devistated at my hair loss. I have been in tears and am weaning myself off of the drug. My depression is worse now that my hair is thin! I had to get about 3 inched cut off the back because it is soo thin, I cant believe this! I am absolutely devistated! I have acne on my scalp as well as severe itching that has been persistent since I started Lexapro. I talked to 3 doctors including a derm and they did not tie the hair loss to the drug, they say stress but I believe it is the drug. Not only is my hair falling out and thinning, it is thinning more in areas, like at my temples and behind my ears. The texture has comletely changed as well.
My hairdresser said yesterday he has never seen my hair like this…it used to be sooo thick that that was the first comment he would say and he said it is thinning, lifeless, dry and lacks the shine it used to have. This sucks! I am looking for anyone who has taken the drug and found that their hair grew back in time like it was or remotely close.
Is there anyone else out there with the same symptoms? The doctors need to be aware of this more….the statistic books are not stating this as a side effect.
I am very concerned.
I started taking Lexapro 10mg in October 2008. My hair loss started right after, but the doctor said it was due to stress. I had a lot of really thick hair, so I didn’t worry too much at the beginning. After 8 months it got so thin that when I put my hair back in a ponytail you can see my scalp. Finally the doctor said it could be the Lexapro causing the hair loss and he got me out of it. It has been 4 months since I stopped taking Lexapro, my hair is still really thin but not falling off anymore. Hopefully will regrow. I’m convinced Lexapro was the cause.
I took Lexapro and then Celexa for about a year. I have always had fine, thin hair. My mother has female pattern baldness and my brother is going bald is well. When I noticed hair loss at my hairline earlier this year, I figured it was genetic. Now, six months after going off Lexapro, the little bald spot that was forming is filling back in with hair. I suspect the hair loss was related to the Lexapro. I’m glad I went off it when I did–further hair loss would have been quite devastating.
I posted previously on Sept 19 about my devistation to the my hairloss that I was experiencing due to Lexapro. I weaned myself off of the drug after realizing that my hair thinning was from the drug, doctors said it was stress. I want to encourage anyone suffering with this hairloss from Lexapro that it has been about 2 months since starting to stop Lexapro. I noticed the hairloss stopping almost immediately after starting weaning and I now have tons of new growth all over. I am very encouraged that my hair will go back to its normal fullness. I hope this will be encouragement to others.