I know what alopecia is. Dog gone...that's rough. I have a lot of hair, but my grandmother had thin hair. She was 1/4 Indian and it was course. I know what you mean about those kind of websites. My experience has been they're either just support groups or strictly informational. I like kind of knowing who I'm talking to so tend to derail a lot.... (Sorry folks!) It's ok.... : )

I hope you find your answers and that the mercury is it. I have autoimmune issues, too, although it appears to only be affecting my thyroid at this point. At one time they couldn't figure out if I was hypothyroid or hyper... My T4 was low but my TSH was really low... Its supposed to be one or the other. I'm more normalized now for some reason. I have a book on autoimmune issues. I gather it comes from foreign chemicals on a cellular level (mercury or toxins) that the body doesn't recognize as natural/friendly. I told a friend with Lupus once that she could rid herself of Lupus by detoxing her liver (had just read a book on that) and she didn't like that but also turned out to be bi-polar. I wasn't belittling her condition or blaming her but guess it sounded like I was. Later a friend who I use to love to swap natural remedies with went too far with someone who had cancer and tried to tell her how to detox. She meant well, but with what they were going through she didn't want to hear that. This lady was like a bull in a china shop, though, already. The one with cancer actually kicked it with conventional means after going through hell...but now it has shown up again about 8 years later. That happens.... You really do need to make serious permanent lifestyle changes. Actually, Modifilan which is a super seaweed was developed for victims of Chernobyl and I've known of folks who swore by it. I used it for a while - my detox method of choice. But need to get serious. I posted on the toothpaste issue I wish I could get some DMPS. Maybe I could talk my endocronologist into that.....(A prescription...) He gives me biodentical female hormones.