Category Archives: Hair Loss Treatments

Trichotillomania is the compulsion to pull out the hairs on one’s body. The Daily Mail recently interviewed Laura Forbes who highlights a problem that many people who suffer with the disorder experience; that it can take years before they eventually seek help:

“I had been pulling my hair for about a year by the time my parents realised that I needed help.”

Laura took the right first step by going to see her GP, although he seemed unaware of trichotillomania. If you experience a similar thing, you can arrange to see a qualified dermatologist privately.

The doctor had simply advised Laura to stop pulling out her hair. She points out:

“Now, 14 years later, I know it’s not that simple. It was an unconscious habit – my hand would wander up to my hair, my brain would zone out and, before I knew it, there would be huge bunches of hair around me.”

Laura pulled her hair out to such an extent that she created bald patches. Styling her hair hid the problem initially, but she moved from hairbands to headscarves as the problem developed.

“My head was always covered in clips. Getting ready to leave the house took longer and longer and became more and more stressful.”

Laura intitially used the Intralace system to hide the effects of hair loss, but has since treated the cause through hypnotherapy and habit reversal training and has seen considerable improvement.

Female pattern hair loss (FPHL) is a genetically inherited condition where either naturally shed hairs grow back weaker or hairs are shed with greater frequency than normal. It can be either mild or severe.

There are a number of treatment options available for FPHL and what is best for you will most likely depend on the severity of the condition. Mild cases can be treated with nothing more than scalp make-up and hair styling. For more severe cases, there are hair replacement options as well as medical treatments.

Minoxidil is a popular treatment. It is a lotion that is applied to the scalp which promotes the growth of hair. Weaker versions can be bought over the counter, but if you decide to go for this option, it is recommended that you get a stronger five per cent solution that is only available on prescription.

Spironolactone is another option. This is medication that can be taken orally and has shown good results in terms of hair growth improvement for many people.

Other treatments that have been used but about which not much is know include propecia and anti-androgens, including dianette, which has shown signs of slowing FPHL.

The Intralace Freewear system is suitable for women who are experiencing total hair loss. It serves as a superior alternative to a human hair wig.

When using a hair replacement system, it is usually necessary to have at least one spare, as back-up. However, this is not the case with the Freewear system. It is affixed using medical grade tape and also a liquid adhesive that is friendly to the skin. If you opt for the Freewear system, you can have a natural parting with it or natural side hair line panels which offer more flexibility in terms of styling – a fringe isn’t necessary and hair can also be tucked behind the ears with confidence.

With the Freewear system, you basically treat it as you would your own hair. You sleep in it and wash and dry it just as you would ordinarily. It is also straightforward enough for the user to replace the adhesive and medical tape themselves, so this can be done whenever necessary.

The Intralace Freewear system will typically last two or three years before it needs replacing and up until then, it offers an incredibly natural look that allows greater freedom and self-confidence.

Many people believe the myths and old wives’ tales surrounding cures for female hair loss, which mainly include home remedies and ways to increase the circulation to your scalp. Unfortunately, improved circulation will not help with hair regrowth if you are suffering from alopecia or pattern baldness.

Female hair loss can be a debilitating condition, causing no end of emotional stress and issues with low self-esteem, so it is no wonder that many women go to incredible lengths to try and get their hair to grow back. They try creams and ointments, standing on their head or washing with ice cold water, and many unusual diets.

This is not the right way to cope with female hair loss. What you need to do is to see your GP and then a hair loss treatment specialist. You need a formal diagnosis so that you can perhaps uncover the cause of your hair loss, and subsequently find the right treatment for it.

There may not always be a cure for your condition, however, which is why there are many hair loss management solutions out there. You can try human hair wigs or even more sophisticated techniques such as the Intralace system, all whilst getting the expert advice and support you need.

The only permanent method that offers guarantees that you will recover your hair is transplantation. A correctly performed procedure should ensure natural results that are undetectable even to hair stylists. Using this method, hair can be restored to the scalp, hairline and even to eyebrows, eyelashes etc. It is even possibly to create hair growth in scar tissue.

The most sophisticated form of hair transplantation is ultra-refined follicular unit transplantation. In this process, hair roots are taken from the back or side of the head where hair is growing and these are then positioned in balding areas. Good results can be seen after only one session with natural-looking, dense hair growing. Furthermore, you are allowed to go home just half an hour after your treatment session has finished.

When treating the hairline, individual hairs are placed to grow in the same direction as the natural hair. This ensures the best results and is therefore virtually undetectable. This is a longer process. Hair treatment sessions can last up to eight hours depending on the number of hairs being transplanted.

People undergoing this treatment may experience slight discomfort when the anaesthetic is initially applied, but after that the hair transplantation itself is painless. After treatment, it takes around three or four months before new hair grows, but from then on, the hair grows as normal.

Before undergoing any sort of treatment for hair loss, it is important to first consult your GP. Hair loss may have any number of different causes and it is vital that you are properly diagnosed as this will give you the best chance of getting the right treatment. Consultant dermatologists are experts in this field and you are likely to be referred to one by your GP.

Minoxidil is a form of medication that is often used to treat hair loss. Originally produced as a a treatment for those with high blood pressure, it was found that it also promoted hair growth.

Minoxidil is not effective in all patients and hair regrowth is only seen in a small percentage of those whose hair has already been lost. However, it does significantly slow the rate of hair loss and this is true in around 80 per cent of cases, with many even reporting that it stopped hair loss altogether.

Application
Supplied in lotion form, Minoxidil should be applied to the scalp twice a day. Very few side effects have been observed beyond occasional skin reactions in those who are allergic. A five per cent solution is recommended for men and a two per cent one for women.