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Can Hair Loss Be A Sign Of Depression

How Stress And Anxiety Are Linked To Hair Loss

Zinc Deficiency Signs & Symptoms (ex. Hair Loss, Acne, Infections) & Why They Occur

Hair loss itself is not directly caused by anxiety, but rather the stress brought on by everyday difficulties for those suffering from anxiety. Anxiety and stress are similar conditions, but anxiety itself can be a lifelong struggle. Studies have shown that stress and anxiety-induced stress can contribute to specific hair loss conditions.

Alopecia Areata. Large clumps of hair may suddenly fall out for no apparent reason, causing patches of hair loss. Some people may experience hair loss in other parts of the body. Although the hair will grow back, continued anxiety and stress can cause the hair loss to continue leading to different patches of hair and baldness.

Telogen Effluvium . This is the second most common form of hair loss. In essence, it occurs when there is a change in the number of hair follicles growing hair. The number of hair follicles producing hair will drop, which means an increase in dormant hair follicles, with the end result being hair loss. TE can appear as thinning hair with the hair on the top of the scalp thinning more than the sides or back of the scalp.

Not All Hair Loss Is Anxiety Related

Its also important to note that not all hair loss is anxiety related, but the two may occur at a similar period of time. Some people that start to suffer from hair loss are at an age with many other stresses, like kids, work, and finances. Because they happen at the same age they may seem related, but are technically different conditions.

Furthermore, some people start to feel anxiety**_ because_** theyre experiencing hair loss. In a way, hair loss is their anxiety trigger, and they experience greater levels of anxiety because they are so worried about losing their hair.

Finally, sometimes those with anxiety simply see more hair loss where it doesnt exist, because of their fears. Its not uncommon for hair to look exactly the same but anxiety plays tricks with the mind to make it seem or feel like more fell out than usual.

While anxiety can absolutely cause hair to fall out in some cases in very large clumps anxiety is not always the problem. Sometimes the problem is simply that your anxiety causes you to think more and care more about your hair than necessary, giving the impression that the two are related.

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Why Do Antidepressants Cause Hair Loss

The type of hair loss generally caused by antidepressants is called telogen effluvium. Telogen effluvium occurs when your body is stressed in some wayperhaps by childbirth, illness, surgery, mental stress, poor nutrition, or medicationwhich causes hair follicles to enter into the resting stage prematurely. Because more hair follicles are now in this resting stage, more hair is shed, leading to diffuse hair loss all over the scalp.

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Facing Up To The Loss

The only way to improve low mood caused by hair loss is to confront it head-on. Any loss or change can be traumatic, and acknowledging this is the first step to psychological recovery.

There isnt always an obvious reason that youre feeling low and this is valid, too. No matter why youre feeling depressed, the best response is to acknowledge it and take the appropriate steps to recovery.

Advice From Someone Whos Been There Done That

Is Your Stress Getting The Better Of You?

My best advice is to firstly, remember that hair loss is not caused by anything thats your fault. Secondly, the sooner you seek proper medical help, the better the outcome should be. Better in terms of keeping your mental health intact and in terms of treatment results. Thirdly, do not fall victim to dodgy operators.

If it looks too good to be true, it absolutely is. And finally, remember that you are not your hair. You are the same person inside, no matter how many strands of hair are on your head. Seek help and look forward to looking and feeling better.

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How To Cure Hair Fall

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  • After 20 minutes wash off with a mild shampoo.

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Depression And Hair Loss

Depression is the predominant mental health problem worldwide, and many people do not realise that depression can actually have an impact on your hair loss. Depression and hair loss are linked and those suffering from depression can notice that hair can become dry, brittle and can break easily.

The physiological states of depression such as low mood, discouragement, low self-esteem and feeling drained can be a factor in reducing the hair growth phase, leading to hair loss. It is also important to note that some anti-depressant medications such as Prozac can have side effects that can cause hair loss.

If youre suffering from depression and noticed hair loss and its something that youre worried about you could take to your GP to see if your medication could be altered.

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Assessment Of Depression Anxiety And Stress Symptoms

Mental health status of the participants was assessed using the Depression and Anxiety Stress Scale questionnaire . The DASS21 questionnaire measures three dimensions of mental health Depression , Anxiety , and Stress . The essential function of the DASS 21 is to assess the severity of the core symptoms of Depression, Anxiety and Stress. Each subset comprises of 7 items with responses reflecting four severity levels: did not apply to me at all applied to me to some degree applied to me to a considerable degree and applied to me very much. To yield equivalent scores to the full DASS 42, the total score of each scale was multiplied by two and scores ranged from 0 to 42. Cronbachs alpha for the 21 item DASS questionnaire was 0.95. The three scales were categorised into mild, moderate, severe, and extremely severe using the cut off scores from the Manual for the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales allowing scores to be classified as symptomatic or symptomatic .

Hair Loss And Depression:

7 Signs Of Depression

Depression is among the most common mental illnesses. The link between hair loss and depression is such that depression not only causes hair breakage and fall, but also changes the texture of your hair by making it dry and brittle.

Depression can change or alter your hair growth cycle, making hair loss prominent. Further, certain medications prescribed as a treatment for depression can also have side effects like hair loss.

Our hair normally goes through a resting phase. It happens about every three years and lasts about three months before our hair starts to grow again. During this resting phase, more hairs than usual fall out, and our hair looks thinner. This process is called telogen effluvium. It can be brought on quicker by stress, starting earlier and lasting longer in the natural cycle of hair growth and rest.

Three types of hair loss associated with stress of depression include:

Hair loss may also end up becoming a factor in the symptoms of depression. It may give people suffering from such depression a focal point for the negative feelings they are experiencing. In depression sadness may often be unexplainable, hair loss however becomes a socially acceptable reason for such feelings.

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Depression Causes Lifestyle Changes

Those suffering from depression often unknowingly change their diets. They eat more unhealthy foods or lose their appetites entirely. This deprives the body, and hair in particular, of essential nutrients needed to stay healthy. Not only do you lose or gain weight, but hair can thin dramatically or fall out.

Why Do I Get Emotional Every Time I Have To Cut My Hair

Getting a haircut or going that one extra mile to cut a chunk of hair and getting a bob is a roller coaster ride. For women, hair is always associated with gender-based beauty standards. Longer, thicker, and glossy strands of hair of any color are considered to be a gold beauty standard.

Thats the reason when a woman decides to cut her hair or opts for a bold haircut, we know she is seeking a difference. So experts suggest while the change is the reason, people do undergo bouts of emotions.

People are known to experience the feeling of uncertainty and anxiousness associated with their new haircut. And if that decision of getting a haircut is made in an urge or without thinking in peace, people might experience the feeling of guilt, tears, or uneventful sadness.

Experiencing a short feeling of anxiousness while getting a new haircut is common. So if you have decided to get a haircut on an impulse or as an urge from anxiety or depression, you are more likely to suffer from extreme outbursts of emotions.

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Find A Support Group And Online Resources

Youre not in this alone: More than 50% of women will experience noticeable hair loss at some point in life. And about 70% of men lose hair as they age, with 25% of bald men experiencing hair loss before age 21, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

That means there are many folks who have gone through this situation and want to connect and share their experiences and advice. The National Alopecia Areata Foundation has support groups around the country.

Podcasts devoted to hair loss are another way to get guidance and hear from other people coping with hair loss. Note that not all the advice on podcasts is necessarily approved by a doctor. Still, these can provide a powerful way to feel connected. Some popular ones include Alopecia Life, Very Nearly Almost and Hair Therapy. The radio show The Bald Truth, which covers issues affecting men , may be helpful for men looking for support.

Understand The Role Of Stress And The Importance Of Easing It

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It seems like a cruel joke: Hair loss stresses you out and stress can make hair loss worse. In fact, some types of hair loss are specifically associated with stress:

  • Telogen effluvium occurs when many hair follicles are sent into the resting phase and fall out at the same time.
  • Alopecia areata occurs when the bodys immune system attacks hair follicles.

So its important to actively combat stress. I recommend a marriage of medical treatments with lifestyle recommendations such as yoga andacupuncture to reduce stress and boost well-being, says Dr. Mraz Robinson. She also suggests that you amp up basic self-care. This includes eating right, exercising, getting enough sleep and reaching out to your support system.

All these approaches can better equip you to cope with not only the stress that hair loss brings but also lifes normal roller coaster of ups and downs.

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Consult A Doctor Right Away For Information And Support

Worrying about what might be causing your hair loss can add to your stress. The runaway train of negative thoughts can take on a life of its own, often unnecessarily. There are several effective treatments, and just having an appointment on the books can help you feel more hopeful and in control.

A visit virtual or in person with a general practitioner can be a good first step. Primary care doctors see patients with hair loss issues and help make a diagnosis and start treatment. In addition, dermatologists are specially trained to diagnose and treat hair loss. Because they see so many patients with the condition, they understand the emotional challenges involved.

Hair loss is stressful for people, so you really have to acknowledge their feelings and let them know that you understand its taking a significant toll on them, says Stephanie Cotell, MD. She is a dermatologist at Northeast Dermatology in Gahanna, Ohio. The patient needs to feel supported and heard from.

Get discreet care from the comfort of home. No appointments are required and medication can be delivered straight to your door. Plus, we’re open 24/7.

Can Depression Cause Hair Loss

Medically reviewed by Jill Johnson, FNP

Have you ever felt so down that you couldnt find the energy to get out of bed? Depression may be a mental illness, but that doesnt mean it cant be felt physically as well. You may even wonder as weird as it might seem if depression can cause hair loss.

Depression sufferers know that being depressed for any length of time is awful enough, but when combined with other factors in our lives, it can have a greater impact on our bodies than we might expect. And that can include hair growth.

Whether depression is mild or severe, there is indeed evidence that it can affect hair growth and cause hair loss.

And whats worse, both the physical and psychological effects of clinical depression may increase your risk of hair loss .

Management of hair health in the context of clinical depression isn’t impossible, though.

To understand and ultimately manage depression’s role in hair loss, it’s important to understand that depression has a larger psychological impact and physical toll on your body than just feeling sad.

Read on to learn more about depression and how it can relate to hair loss.

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What Illness Causes Hairloss

Medical conditions that can cause hair loss include: thyroid disease. alopecia areata scalp infections like ringworm.Hair loss can also be due to medications used to treat:

  • Thickening or lump in the breast or elsewhere.
  • Indigestion or difficulty in swallowing.
  • Obvious change in a wart or mole.
  • Nagging cough or hoarseness.

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Will Hair Regrow After Stress

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Hair grows back. Hair thinned by stress will grow back, but this may take several months. Follicular thinning may not be seen immediately after a stressful event, according to the AHLC. Usually it takes three months for hair loss to be noticed.

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Can Depression Lead To Hair Loss

Depression is something no one wants to deal with. But the problem with depression is that it comes unexpectedly. You dont know when youll experience it and how to solve depression.

When youre depressed, there are a lot of different side effects that could happen. The most common ones are dieting, hair loss, and anxiety. These problems can be really scary because it can go really fast, which often leads to a receding hairline very early on.

Can Depression Lead To Hair Loss? Yes, depression can lead to hair loss due to anxiety or social phobia. If you have anxiety, youre busy in your mind almost all the time and dont really know what to do. You probably will sleep less, which often leads to less energy. Another problem is that you will be stressed a lot, and that will also lead to hair loss.

It comes in all ages and is not something you can prepare for. Most importantly is that you look for help before its too late. Talk to someone you really care about and make sure that you can tell that person the problems youre dealing with.

What Ive learned from my own experience is that its better to share your problems with some you trust. If you keep everything to yourself, you will eventually explode, and it will get even worse. So to prevent all this, find a person that you can talk to.

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Treatments For Hair Loss

Are there effective preventative measures that can be taken?

Treating hair loss in its early stages can help minimise overall hair loss and increase the treatments efficacy. There are a few ways to control hair loss, but what to do depends on the cause of why you are losing your hair.

Some hair loss conditions such as hair loss experienced after pregnancy are temporary and may resolve on their own. However if your hair loss is persistent you may want to schedule an appointment with your local dermatologist so as to diagnose if your hair loss is caused by conditions such as male pattern baldness, thyroid issues, scalp infections, nutrient deficiencies, stress or simply ageing.

I would recommend four main hair-loss prevention treatments to consider, all of which work to stimulate regrowth on dormant follicles.

1. Finasteride

Finasteride, also sold under the brand name Propecia®, is an FDA-approved prescription medication for hair loss prevention in men. Finasteride can be an effective way to prevent your hair from thinning because it prohibits the conversion of testosterone into dihydrotestosterone . DHT is a powerful hormone that is thought to cause hair follicles to miniaturise and eventually stop growing hair. To get this benefit of finasteride, you need to take it properly and consistently as prescribed by your doctor.

2. Minoxidil

4. LLLT or LED Light Therapy

Can hair grow back after it falls out?

Improve blood supply to the scalp

Promote hair strengthening

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