Category Archives: Hair Loss General

Most people know the hair loss condition telogen effluvium by another name – pattern baldness. However, not a lot of people properly understand what causes male or female pattern baldness or how the condition makes the hair fall out. As a starting point, read the following explanation…

There are two phases affecting hair growth cycles – anagen (the growing phase) and telogen (the resting phase). Telogen effluvium involves the hair follicles prematurely entering the resting phase. This causes massive hair loss, staring with generalised thinning hair.

What causes telogen effluvium?

The condition is believed to be caused by emotional or physiological stress on the body, triggering an interruption to the normal hair cycle. This sort of stress can be caused by a number of factors or conditions, such as:

• Chronic illness
• Childbirth
• Eating disorders
• Hyperthyroidism
• Drugs and medication
• Major surgery
• Anaemia
• Severe emotional disorders
• Crash diets or poor nutrition

Is there a cure?

In most cases of telogen effluvium, the condition improves and the hair will grow back on its own over time. Although most people find that the condition clears up within six months or so, some find that it recurs or becomes chronic.

As an adult, losing your hair can be very distressing. As an image-conscious, insecure teenager, however, a hair loss condition can be devastating.

Going to school or college every day and facing the often harsh and insensitive judgement of your peers can be very damaging to the self-esteem of an adolescent with hair loss, which is why it’s important to get a formal diagnosis from the doctor and find out what exactly is causing the hair to fall out.

Hair loss in teens can be caused by a number of factors and conditions, such as:

• A medical condition or illness – i.e. thyroid disease, polycystic ovary syndrome or other hormonal conditions

• Medication – Hair loss can often be a side effect of acne medications or diet pills, both of which are taken by some teens

• Alopecia areata – An autoimmune disease causing patchy hair loss, the onset of which is often linked to stress

• Androgenetic alopecia (pattern baldness) – A hereditary hair loss condition

• Trichotillomania – This is a psychological disorder in which the person feels a compulsive urge to pull their own hair out.

• Poor nutrition – People who have eating disorders such as bulimia or anorexia may be at risk from hair loss

If you have recently developed a female hair loss condition, you are likely to have come across a lot of confusing new terms, abbreviations and acronyms for things relating to your condition.

DHT is one of these new acronyms, one you may hear a lot in online discussions or during visits to your doctor or hair loss specialist. It stands for Dihydrotestosterone, an androgenic hormone found in the hair follicles and other parts of the body (i.e. the prostate and adrenal glands).

The reason you may hear about DHT so much is because it is known to be a major factor in the cause of pattern baldness, also known as telogenic effluvium. It is the primary contributor for the condition in men and it occasionally causes female hair loss. However, female pattern baldness is a little more complicated and can have a number of causes.

What role does DHT play in pattern baldness?

DHT is made from testosterone, the male hormone. If there is too much of this hormone in the body, it affects the hair follicles and causes the hair to thin and grow for less than the usual time. This causes gradual hair loss as the follicles are all affected by DHT at different times, so the balding process takes a longer time.

Women who develop the hair loss disease alopecia often experience feelings of isolation and depression, often because their perception of themselves and their relationship with the world has changed. Along with a drop in self-esteem and confidence, these feelings can also stem from the misconception that no one else understands what they are going through; that they are alone with their female hair loss condition.

As an alopecia sufferer, you must know that you are absolutely not alone. Approximately 1.7 per cent of this country’s population has alopecia or has experienced it in the past, with both men and women being equally affected. The condition has also affected around 4.7 million people in the United States, along with millions more in the rest of the world.

These people will doubtless be experiencing the same kinds of feelings as you. By reaching out to others with alopecia via the Internet or local support groups, you can share these feelings and start to process what is happening to you. Just talking to someone else with the condition can help to alleviate worry and depression and banish negative thoughts. Together, you can support each other through to the day when your hair may grow back again.

Hair loss is a condition that affects your appearance, which in turn affects how you feel about yourself and your relationship with the world. Hair loss in women is often the hardest to bear, as society’s perceptions of beauty and youth are often linked to the healthy, lustrous-looking hair that we see on TV shampoo advertisements.

Whilst the damaging effect of hair loss on self-esteem is to be expected in many cases, those with a hair loss condition cannot allow themselves to be overwhelmed with negative thoughts and feelings. The most common kinds of negative thoughts had by women with hair loss include:

• “I’m not attractive anymore because I don’t have hair”
• “I will never be in a relationship because of my hair loss condition”
• “People are laughing and staring at me”

These thoughts are unlikely to be accurate, but by repeating them to yourself you will start to believe them and subsequently feel worse about yourself. You need to force yourself to try some positive thinking, challenging and dismissing each negative thought and replacing it with one that will help to boost your self-confidence.

If you need reassurance that your fears are unfounded, take a look at famous alopecia sufferer Gail Porter and her inspirational outlook on life. Her recent naked photo shoot confirms that she is definitely still attractive, she has a loving boyfriend and daughter and she has had nothing but support from fans and well-wishers.

How you cope with your hair loss condition is a very personal decision, all depending on what makes you feel the most comfortable and self-confident. Some people choose to cover their head, whilst others shave off their remaining hair and head out in public with a completely bald head.

If you are worried about your hair loss being noticeable and attracting unwelcome attention, you can wear a human hair wig or see a specialist about Medi Connections hair extensions or another hair replacement method.

On the other hand, if you have decided to embrace your hair loss without attempting to disguise it, you will need to know how to deal with the attention you may receive. There seems to be a stigma surrounding female hair loss, so you might encounter people staring and whispering.

Rather than being hurt or offended by these hurtful and insensitive actions, you can take positive steps to diffuse the situation. Try:

• Explaining your condition briefly when you meet new people, bringing the subject up first to alleviate any awkwardness
• Politely asking people not to stare
• Being assertive rather than aggressive, defensive or confrontational