Colleen

I used to pull out my hair (trichotillomania) and use chemical straighteners. I didn't pull it constantly, though. I had an episode about 6 years ago where I pulled out a lot of it from both sides, and about a year later the right side had more or less fully recovered but not the left side. Since my uneven hair was driving me crazy, I pulled out hair from the right side about 5 years ago and ended up pulling way more than I wanted to. I haven't pulled it since and stopped using chemical straighteners about a year after that, and my hair has fully grown back on the left side. Now, my hair is a lot thicker than it was right after I last pulled it, but it still has a thin patch on the right side. I started treating it with Nioxin products about 5 months ago and my hairdresser said it's improved, but I'm still worried it won't fully grow back. I went to a dermatologist and she looked at my scalp and said it looked fine and I didn't have hair loss, but I'm not convinced and am going to get a second opinion. In any case, my scalp has been feeling better and less sensitive since I started using Nioxin.

Anyway, my hair is still driving me crazy and I hate that it still feels uneven. I spend way too much time every day obsessing about it in front of a mirror, trimming the scraggly ends, and putting in more products. Does anyone know if there's any hope that it will regain its original thickness?

I'm going with two friends to the Amanda Palmer concert as part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and I was wondering what other performances we should see while we're there. Also, what are the best bars and restaurants? We're only there from Aug. 21-24, so we don't have loads of time, but we want to make the best of it! None of us has been to Edinburgh or even Scotland before, so any advice would be appreciated. We are all in our mid-20's if that helps at all. Thanks!

Two weeks ago, I kissed a rock star after a concert. Today, she twittered that she has a cold sore. Should I be concerned about this?

It wouldn't be the only thing I'd be giving - I'm also giving him an autographed and personalized Amanda Palmer bandanna that I got at a concert (she's one of his favorite artists). It only cost a dollar, though. I'm also probably going to make him a card. Should I go ahead and buy the CD? I don't think he's even expecting anything from me, and it was more of an afterthought to include the CD, but I like this guy, so I don't want to screw up!

I've found that when I use my (fully charged) iPod Mini at the gym, the battery lasts around an hour and a half to two hours, but when I use it when I'm jogging, it only lasts around 45 minutes. Has anyone else noticed this? What could be causing it, and is there any way to make it last longer outdoors? Could it be the temperature? I've only noticed this since the winter, but that doesn't mean it wasn't happening before.

I recently got my ears pierced and just bought my first pair of "real" earrings, and I thought the little circles on the back were just for packaging and I threw them away. Then my friend told me I was supposed to keep them and put them back on the earrings. But there was no way I was going to fish them out of the trash, so is there any way to buy them separately? Do I really need them? Thanks

In an economic context.

I bought basil and chives and cut them a few inches from the base to use them for a recipe. If I keep the pots and water them, could the herbs grow back? How should I care for them? Thanks!

When I first turn on my computer, the sound is fine. But then, a few hours later, I'll try to watch a video or something and there's no sound. I have to restart the computer to get the sound to work again. Why is that, and how can I fix it without having to restart my computer every time? I've checked the sound settings and volume so that's not it.

We get CNN, but I think it's a different version. Does anyone know if it will be shown live in Germany just when it's shown in the States? That would be at 3:00 am for us. Thanks!

It was a great hobby that I stopped doing because school started to get in the way. I'm still in school but have a little more free time now, so I want to try to pick it up again. How should I go about doing this? I don't listen to the same music I used to listen to (and play) 10 years ago, and I don't know if I'll be able to take lessons in the very small town I'm moving to. I hardly remember any of the chords (I mostly played lead, though). I'm having a hard time getting motivated, too. Any suggestions?

I've heard that paper bags help ripen fruit, but I don't have one. Would paper towels work? Should I put the mangoes in the sun? I don't have any other fruit. Thanks for your help!

I had been taking the birth control pill since around September, and I just stopped taking it. I would have started a new pack on Friday. Anyway, on Friday my period stopped, as usual, but on Saturday night I saw light red blood on the toilet paper, so I wore a pad to bed. When I got up there was no blood on the pad, and I didn't bleed at all during the day. But I just used the bathroom (it's 9:30 pm where I am) and there was blood on the TP again. Is this just a result of stopping the birth control pill, or something else? It can't be pregnancy since I haven't had sex for 3 months and we used protection, and I'd been getting normal periods since then.

Also, I'm still hurting from using tampons during my period. Could something be wrong there?

I've been accepted at all three of the schools for which I applied, and I've been seriously considering two and corresponding with professors and students from both. Everyone has been really helpful, but of course I can only choose one university. What's the most polite way to inform the faculty of one of the universities that I will not be attending, especially after they've gone out of their way to answer my questions and put me in touch with students? I also don't want to provoke questions like, "well, did you think about [some aspect of our program]?" These are graduate programs I've been talking about, if that makes a difference.

In my dream, we didn't even break up, he just married some woman I didn't know, and I was invited to the wedding. People at the wedding asked me why I looked so sad, as if it weren't obvious.

In real life, the only problem we had in our relationship was that up until last night the sex wasn't good, but last night was full of love and passion. So I don't know why I'd be having this dream right now. Maybe I'm jealous? Any ideas?

First of all, if you don't like to read about people's sexual experiences, please stop now. I'm not trying to be lewd, just trying to figure out what's going on.

Anyway, I have heard about a so-called "missed orgasm," which means that your body goes through the physical manifestations of an orgasm, but it doesn't register in your brain and you don't feel any of the pleasure. I think I may have experienced this.

About an hour into using my Rampant Rabbit vibrator, I got to the point where my my pulse was racing, my breathing was heavy, my muscles contracted, my toes clenched, and I felt all numb and tingly. But I didn't feel any of the pleasure I keep hearing about. Are these the physical signs of an orgasm (minus the no pleasure part), or the state preceding an orgasm? When I was in this state I just kept doing what I was doing but I came back down from it.

Any advice would be appreciated, as I am 24 and have never experienced the pleasure of an orgasm. Mature answers only.

I either read or deleted my other previously unread messages, but there's still apparently one left and I can't find it anywhere in my inbox! Is there any way to search on it? I check my email several times daily so it's not like it's some old message I never read. Thanks!