What Treatments Work Best For Post
While it can still be pretty freakin’ traumatic, the good news for those struggling with postpartum hair loss is that it’s usually a temporary phase and your hair should eventually go back to how it was pre-pregnancy.
The not-so-good news is that it can take a while for your hair to fully recover . Unfortunately, there’s no quick fix or treatment that can reverse or prevent the occurrence of postpartum hair loss. However, listening to your body and looking after yourself will help speed things up.
We know we mentioned it earlier, but hair requires a helluva lot of energy to grow, so if you’re not eating enough protein, iron, vitamins, and fatty acids, it’s going to take longer for your hair to get back to its normal self.
You’ll also need to make sure you’re clocking in enough sleep and minimising your levels of stress. In the meantime, pull a JLo and embrace that feathery halo of baby hairs! Suits you.
Style Your Hair Right
Hair stylists are a great resource for help for hair loss in women. A new haircut or hairstyle may be just what you need to make your hair appear fuller. Ask your stylist for advice about getting a shorter cut, parting your hair in a different location, or adding curls or waves to add volume to your hair. Products for hair loss in women include using styling products designed for thin hair. Some products are added to the roots while hair is damp before blowing dry. Some cosmetic products can help disguise the appearance of bald spots. Keratin fiber hair cosmetics have a static charge that makes hair appear fuller than it is. Ask your stylist or dermatologist for recommendations about the products and strategies that will work best for you.
Be Mindful Of Birth Control Pills
Birth control pills are a form of contraception that works by suppressing ovulation and/or making it more difficult for a fertilized egg to implant into the lining of the uterus. Hormonal hair loss in women may occur when women start or stop taking certain kinds of contraceptives. The hormones that make birth control pills effective may also cause hair thinning in women who use them. You are more likely to experience this side effect from birth control pills if you have a family history of hair loss. Stopping the pill is also a cause of hair loss in women. Hormones are not the only medication that may be associated with hair loss. Blood thinners and blood pressure medications may do it, too. So can drugs used to treat depression, heart disease, and arthritis.
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How Do You Treat A Receding Hairline
While everyone is different, many experts prefer to take a multi-pronged approach when it comes to treating a receding hairlineand that includes focusing on consistency and maintenance if you want to see real and lasting results. That means trying both in-office treatments and a disciplined at-home regimen, says Hill. Your doctor or trichologist will be able to create a specific plan of action for your hair loss, which will generally include a combination of the following treatments:
What Causes Hair Loss
There are many different types of hair loss with a variety of potential underlying causes. Several medical conditions are associated with hair loss in women. Common causes include thyroid problems and hormone imbalances. Wondering how to stop hair loss in women? When the underlying cause of hair loss is diagnosed and treated, hair loss may stop, and hair may grow back. Stress, nutritional factors, and genetics may also play a role in hair loss. Severe physical stress such as going through childbirth, surgery, or suffering a serious illness may precipitate a type of hair loss called telogen effluvium. This is a condition in which stress forces large numbers of follicles to enter the resting phase, and after a few months, hair will fall out.
Sometimes doctors are not able to determine what is causing hair loss. Other potential causes of hair loss include radiation therapy, cancer, kidney failure, liver failure, medication side effects, and autoimmune disease. If you are experiencing new or increasing hair loss, see your doctor for a diagnosis and treatment.
Read Also: What Causes Hair Loss In Men
Discontinue Drugs That May Be Causing Hair Loss
Certain drugs can accelerate hair loss. If you notice increased hair fall when you are having particular medicines, consider switching to alternatives. However, do not self-diagnose or change drugs abruptly.
Consult a doctor to find out whether it’s the meds causing the hair fall. If there are suitable alternatives, switching to them can be very beneficial. It is a common cause of hair loss and hair thinning that we often disregard.
Ask About These Salon Techniques And Olaplex
Ask your hairdresser about a new product called Olaplex, which mends broken disulfide bonds within hair strands. This is applied before or after your usual color or other salon treatment, then neutralised and washed off.
After the first use, I noticed my hair was stronger and more lustrous. After the second application, a month later, my hair regained its sheen and looked healthier than since I was in my 30s!
You can also have real hair woven into your own hair to disguise patchy hair loss or thin panels.
Have you found any product or treatment that has improved your hair health? Please let us know in the comments below.
Let’s Have a Conversation!
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What Is Female Pattern Baldness
Female pattern baldness is a term used to describe hair loss and thinning in women. It is also known as female pattern hair loss, or androgenetic alopecia, in women.
It’s a similar condition to male pattern baldness, but the hair loss and thinning follow a different pattern. The hair usually thins across the whole scalp. A receding hairline or a bald patch on the top of the head is rare, although this can happen.
Female pattern baldness can develop at any age. It usually progresses slowly, but can also come in bursts.
It often becomes more noticeable after menopause. Almost half of all women show signs of hair loss by the age of 50.
Treating Hair Loss: Medicine
Minoxidil is approved by the FDA for female pattern hair loss. It can slow or stop it in most women and may help hair grow back. But the benefits go away when you stop using it. Corticosteroids can help regrow hair for women with alopecia areata. And if the cause is an underlying medical problem or poor nutrition, your locks should grow back on their own once things are under control.
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Thinning Hair: Changing Hormones And Your Hair
As we move towards menopause and oestrogen levels drop, theres less of a buffer against the effect of male hormones on our follicles. As we know from female pattern baldness, a sensitivity to androgens causes the follicles to miniaturise and die over time.
There are products to tackle this topically: Plantur 39 Shampoo and Tonic have a phyto-caffeine complex to fight the effects of testosterone on the hair root, while Tricho 7 Step 2 scalp drops by Philip Kingsley contains zinc sulphate, azelaic acid and vitamin B6 to reduce the conversion of testosterone.
Its important to support the adrenal glands too, says nutritional therapist Eve Kalinik, not only because they are overworked at this often stressful life stage, but because they step in to produce sex hormones as the ovaries retire. “This causes a knock-on effect on hormonal balance, which can manifest as hair loss or thinning,” she explained.
Supporting the adrenal glands with anti-inflammatory healthy fats, B vitamins and anti-oxidant vitamins is vital to make us more stress resilient.
What Is The Prognosis/outlook For Women With Hair Loss
Your diagnosis determines the prognosis:
- Anagen and telogen shedding may stop with time.
- Treat any diseases associated with hair loss.
- Disguise or cover your hair loss using a wig or hat.
- Early treatment of alopecia may reduce the speed of thinning and may promote regrowth.
While hair loss is not itself dangerous, women with hair loss tend to be very upset by the changes to their appearance. These negative feelings can affect self-esteem and social lives. Recent studies suggest that FPHL can be associated with conditions that include metabolic syndrome, endocrine disorders and diabetes.
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What Is The Relationship Between Hair Loss In Women And Menopause
During menopause, you might see one of two things happen with your hair. You might start growing hair where you didnt before. Or, you might see the hair you have start to thin. One cause may be changing levels of hormones during menopause. Estrogen and progesterone levels fall, meaning that the effects of the androgens, male hormones, are increased.
During and after menopause, hair might become finer because hair follicles shrink. Hair grows more slowly and falls out more easily in these cases.
Your healthcare provider will do a thorough examination and take a detailed history to help you deal with changes in hair growth. You may be directed to have your iron levels or thyroid hormone levels tested. Your medications might be changed if what you take is found to affect hair loss or growth.
Why Is My Hair Thinning
The short answer is that your hormones are causing this problem. Alopecia, the most common form of female hair loss, can be caused by a drop in estrogen and a rise in testosterone. There are medications to treat female hair loss, such as Women’s Rogaine, but these are usually most effective when administered in the early stages.
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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.
Mayo Clinic Minute: Expert Advice For Women With Thinning Hair
Thinning hair is common as we age. And while the signs might not be as obvious as in men, about 55% of women experience some hair loss by the time they’re 70. Treatments to prevent or stop it can help many women who are losing their hair.
Dr. Dawn Davis, a Mayo Clinic dermatologist, explains in this Mayo Clinic Minute.
Journalists: Broadcast-quality video pkg is in the downloads at the end of the post. Please “Courtesy: Mayo Clinic News Network.” Read the script.
“People think of hair loss or pattern baldness happening only to men,” says Dr. Davis.
But several things can cause hair loss in women: pregnancy, menopause, medical issues, medications and even stress. However, the most common cause is female-pattern baldness, a genetic and hormonal hair loss that gradually occurs in many women.
“It starts with thinning of the hair on the crown of the scalp exactly in the center. So women may notice that when they part their hair, the part is a little wider or perhaps it’s wispier,” says Dr. Davis. “And then what happens is that density just simply decreases over time. And in extreme form, there can be absence of hair on the crown of the scalp.”
Time is of the essence.
“As soon as you start to see hair loss because hair disorders are often time-sensitive I would encourage you to see a hair specialist, such as a dermatologist,” she says.
And Dr. Davis has some words of advice.
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Medication For Hair Loss
Minoxidil, or Rogaine, is a topical medication that is used to treat female pattern hair loss and male-pattern baldness. It was initially developed as a blood pressure medication and was used off-label to treat hair loss until it became FDA-approved for that purpose. Minoxidil can slow the progression of hair loss. Most women who use the medication experience regrowth of hair. The medication needs to be used continuously to maintain results. Other types of treatment work for different kinds of hair loss. Corticosteroids help suppress the immune response that damages hair follicles in people who have alopecia areata. Once the follicles recover, hair can grow back. If nutritional deficiencies underlie hair loss, eating a healthy diet with adequate and protein and nutrients can help you regrow hair. Certain medical problems may trigger hair loss. Adequately treating these conditions may help restore hair growth.
Thinning Hair: Styling Hair To Look Thicker
Switching up your haircare routine can make a big difference to hair health. Most experts agree that heated styling tools are a no-no for fragile hair, so cut down your use or cut them out altogether. Avoid products with silicones, too recommended hairdresser Paul Windle. “Silicones are sealants,” he explained, “They are what gives you that fake ‘plastic’ shine. You think your hair is healthy, however, the silicone merely masks the problem.” They can also weigh down fine hair.
Keeping the scalp clear of build-up can help those ever more delicate menopausal hairs push through. Try Briogeo Scalp Revival, which is silicone-free with detoxing charcoal to clear the scalp from dead skin, pollution and product build-up, or Kerastase Soothing Scrub Apaisant , which is designed for sensitive scalps with an uplifting citrussy scent. Beware of scalp oils however, Dr Wade cautioned that they can have a toxic effect on the follicle.
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How Do I Know If I’m Experiencing Hair Loss
So, whats an *acceptable* amount of hair fallout? Well, generally people lose between 50 to 100 hairs a day, which is considered ‘normal’. However, if you’re consistently shedding 150 or more hairs a day, this is pretty significant.
If you have no idea what 150 or more hairs a day looks like , it’s basically when you’re shedding more hair than you would normally. If you start to notice clumps falling out all at once, bald spots or signs of patchiness this might be a red flag.
“Some women notice the physical hair loss first – as in more hair in the shower recess, on the floor, in the brush and on the hands when they wash,” said Evans-Frost. This will obviously depend on the length of your hair – the longer your hair the more obvious it is when more hair is falling out.
“Generally women notice hair changes at the front, top and recessions of the scalp before anywhere else because it is at the front of the hairline where hair is the thinnest and the eye and light can easily make a judgement.”
Yep – hair loss is a b*tch.
But don’t freak, you’re not going to be rocking a George Costanza-esque look any time soon. Unlike men, women wont experience complete baldness. Instead, your hair will get thinner and your part gets wider. Your scalp may also become more visible than before.