Women And Hair Loss: Coping Tips
Losing your crowning glory can be particularly difficult for women. But there are ways to cope.
Losing your hair as a woman, especially if you’re young or at a vulnerable time in your life, can badly affect your confidence.
Hair loss, known medically as alopecia, is fairly common. It’s estimated, for instance, that around 40% of women aged 70 years or over experience female-pattern baldness the most common type of hair loss, which is thought to be inherited.
What Are The Types Of Hair Loss
There are three: anagen effluvium, telogen effluvium and FPHL.
- Anagen effluvium: This is caused by medications that poison a growing hair follicle .
- Telogen effluvium: This is caused by an increased number of hair follicles reaching the telogen phase, which is the stage where hair falls out.
- Androgenetic alopecia/female pattern alopecia/female pattern hair loss /baldness: This type is the most common. Hair thins over the top of the head and on the sides.
Hair Loss Due To Stress Will It Grow Back
The good news is that hair loss induced by stress is mostly temporary, and the hair tends to grow back once the stress levels are under control. The correct treatment options, combined with relaxation techniques and a healthy, balanced diet, are the best way to address stress and get it under control. This will not only impact your overall well-being but will also help grow your hair back!
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Causes Of Hair Loss In Men
Men can experience baldness or hair loss for different reasons.
While there are many causes of hair loss, the most likely cause is genetics. Finding out whether hair loss is due to genetics or another factor can help a doctor determine the best course of treatment.
Male pattern baldness is a hereditary condition and the most common cause of male baldness. It can start as early as puberty or develop much later in life. It often occurs gradually and in predictable patterns, affecting the temples and the front of the middle of the scalp.
Most often, a man will be left with a horseshoe pattern of hair. Heredity affects how fast, at what age, and to what extent someone will experience baldness.
Men with male pattern baldness inherit hair that is sensitive to DHT, the hormone that can shorten the lifespan of the individual hair follicles.
Some of the other more common causes of hair loss for men include:
Some less common causes of hair loss include:
- Radiation treatment: If a man receives any sort of radiation treatment near the scalp, the hair may fall out and grow back in a different way than before.
- Hairstyles or treatments: Wearing hair in ways that pull it excessively or treating it with oils and color can cause permanent hair loss.
- Natural triggers:Stress, childbirth, fever, surgery, or extreme trauma may result in loss of hair. Often, the thinning will reverse when the triggering event is over.
What Are The Earliest Symptoms Of Telogen Effluvium
It is perfectly normal to lose up to 100 hairs per day. In telogen effluvium, people may lose closer to 300 hairs per day, and this can continue over the course of several months. You may notice that more hair falls out while brushing or when washing your hair in the shower. You may also notice thinning of your hair.
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How Long Does It Take For Hair To Grow Back After Telogen Effluvium
Telogen effluvium occurs when a large number of hair follicles on the scalp enter the telogen phase of the growth cycle at the same time, but the next growth phase doesnât start. Hair starts to fall out all over the scalp but new hair doesnât grow. Itâs usually triggered by a medical event, like childbirth, surgery, or a high fever, or starting or stopping medications, like birth control pills.
Telogen effluvium usually starts about three months after the event. Hair may appear thin, but you likely wonât go completely bald.
The condition is fully reversible. Once the triggering event is treated , your hair may start growing back after six months. However, this type of hair loss can last for years in some people.
If youâve experienced hair loss, and youâre trying to grow your hair back, many factors can affect the rate of hair growth, including:
- genetics
- stress and anxiety
- other diseases or conditions
You canât always control these factors. Your best bet is to eat a healthy, well-balanced diet and drink plenty of water.
Thereâs no surefire way to make your hair grow faster overnight. You should try to keep your hair as healthy as possible to prevent breakage as your hair goes through its natural growth stages.
Tips for keeping your hair healthy include:
Questions To Ask Your Doctor
- How much hair do I need to lose before calling my doctor?
- If one of my parents has alopecia areata, is there a genetics test I can take to determine if I will get it?
- If my hair loss has lasted more than a year, what are the chances it will return?
- Do certain diseases put people at risk for developing alopecia areata?
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Is There A Natural Solution
If any natural ingredient deserves a little more love, its ashwagandha, an Indian medicine herb that comes from a family of plants called adaptogens, which date back thousands of years in use in traditional Indian Ayurvedic medicine, according to Rupani Goyal. Adaptogens help the body normalize physiologic responses to stress, such as cortisol release, and in this way can be helpful in managing hair loss, Goyal says.
Perhaps because natural medicinal alternatives are not prescribed by most doctors, its tempting to think you can DIY a hair loss solution by buying a few herbs off of Amazon, rolling up your sleeves, and creating elixirs in your kitchen. But Goyal reminds us that herbs are powerful and many of our prescribed medications actually originated in plants.
Safety is a real concern, Goyal says. As such, not only is it vital to have a complete understanding of human physiology before recommending a supplement, but if someone is attempting to actually create an herbal remedy, having the involvement of a plant scientist or chemist is also important.
If Biotin Doesn’t Really Work Then What Does
The modern wellness movement, though trendy in a way that raises some eyebrows and is undoubtedly imperfect , could also serve as a bridge that takes us from the biotin hair loss solution that rarely works to innovative procedures and herbal treatments that really, truly can help hair shedding and encourage regrowth.
One such product that is slowly gaining recognition, though its still far from enjoying the celeb status of biotin, is Nutrafol, a drug-free hair growth supplement that is formulated with a wide variety of natural ingredients that include ashwagandha, hydrolyzed marine collagen, saw palmetto, and biocurcumin. For the sake of full disclosure, after experiencing stress-related hair shedding, I began taking Nutrafol for women . My hair shedding nearly completely stopped after about three months of daily usage this was after I had tried several other supplements prior to Nutrafol, including ingestible and topical biotin.
In other words, all natural hair-loss supplements are not created equal, no matter what buzz you hear about a star ingredient. Its important to address cortisol levels that contribute to stress-related hair loss, as well as any underlying inflammation that can weaken hair follicles.
Inflammation interferes with signaling molecules that control the biological clock of the hair growth cycle, pushing follicles into the resting phase, telogen, Peralta says.
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When To See A Doctor For Stress
Stress does cause hair loss, but it isnt the only cause. If youre experiencing sudden and ongoing hair loss, visiting your family doctor is a good first step. Your doctor can evaluate the hair loss, review your medical history, and refer you to a dermatologist if necessary.
You might think of a dermatologist as just a skin doctor, but this doctor also specializes in problems of hair and nails. Visiting a doctor sooner, rather than later, can improve your outcome.
Living With Alopecia Areata
The American Academy of Family Physicians recognizes that living with alopecia areata can be emotionally difficult. It affects social interaction and self-confidence, as people are embarrassed to let others see their hair loss. It can also be frustrating to not know if your hair is going to grow back or fall out again.
Consider joining a patient support group for people who have alopecia areata. Support groups give you a chance to talk about your condition. They help you realize you are not alone in your frustration with alopecia areata. A support group can be a good resource for practical tips to deal with the condition.
Hairstyling techniques or hair care products can help to cover bare patches on your head. But some products can be harsh on your hair. This could cause additional damage and loss. You might want to talk with your doctor about what products to avoid. People who have alopecia areata are encouraged to be creative with hats, scarves, and wigs.
Losing your eyelashes, eyebrows, and the hair in your nose and ears also can be a problem. Hair protects your eyes, nose, and ears from the irritation of dust, germs, and small, foreign particles. Wear eyeglasses or sunglasses to protect your eyes. You can use antibiotic ointment inside your nose to help keep germs out.
Be sure to cover areas of exposed scalp with a hat or sunscreen to reduce your risk of sunburn and skin cancer.
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What Are The Causes Of Hair Loss
The main causes of hair loss depend on whether the type of hair loss is scarring or non-scarring, and focal or diffuse.
Scarring alopecia is rare and is caused by injury, infection, and inflammatory skin disorders such as discoid lupus erythematosus, lichen planopilaris, and folliculitis decalvans.
Non-scarring focal alopecia is usually caused by tinea capitis, a fungal skin infection, or alopecia areata .
Diffuse hair loss may follow hair shedding, which is usually stress-induced hair loss or is due to genetically determined male or female pattern hair loss . Diffuse hair loss can also be caused by alopecia areata, medications, and various systemic illnesses including anaemia, hyperandrogenism, and thyroid disease.
Psychiatric disturbances, such as acute anxiety and endogenous depression, have also been considered possible causes of diffuse hair shedding .
Get Enough Sleep And De
How to prevent hair loss after surgery? You need time and get plenty of sleep to recover. Many of us are stressed but we dont realize it. And hair loss also makes you feel more stressed. Sleeping is the time for body resting and recovering. This process is necessary for cell regeneration, especially for skin and hair. If you dont get enough sleep, it means that the body does not get enough rest, causing stress. Not only do hair roots weaken, but sleep deprivation also affects the synthesis and distribution of pigmentation for hair, making grey hair early. Therefore, it is worth to remind yourself that get enough sleep to protect your health and hair.
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Coping With Hair Loss
The emotional impact of hair loss will vary greatly from person to person.
Some people may wish to seek counseling services as part of their treatment. Others may choose a hairstyle that embraces hair loss, such as a shaved head.
Hair loss may affect a persons self-esteem and lead to depression and reduced quality of life.
If a person notices a decline in their quality of life after the onset of hair loss, they should seek support from a medical professional.
People should contact a doctor if they experience any of the following:
- sudden hair loss
- hair falling out in clumps
- itching or burning scalp
People should also contact a healthcare professional if they are worried about their hair loss.
A healthcare professional may ask questions or perform tests to investigate whether the hair loss is a result of:
- an illness
The following are some frequently asked questions about hair loss:
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
3. PRP
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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Treating Stress From The Source
Wary of this advice, I decided it was at least easy and affordable to try. So I cancelled my next appointment at the dermatologist and didnt buy any special oils or scalp massage tools.
Instead, I went out with friends. I worked out. I took my vitamins. I watched movies. I cried when I felt like crying. I made an effort to do five minutes of breathwork and ten minutes of meditation in the morning. I slept in when it felt good. I went to therapy. I meal prepped. Basically, I lived my life.
And you know what? The next month, I did see new hairs start to come in. And more, the month after. Until finally, the spot went away completely.