Comments on: Stress Related Hair Loss – Anna’s Hair Loss Success Story

By: Issabella

Issabella — Fri, 05 Apr 2019 15:25:01 +0000

Hi Everyone,
I have been reading your precious stories, and my heart goes out to all of you who suffer from hair loss. I, too, have been trying to get a handle on my own hair loss. Always had lots of blonde hair– not thick, just fine and plenty of fit. I always felt it was my best asset, haha. About 7 years ago, I noticed a little “widow’s peak,” and thought it was age-related. It concerned me, but since it wasn’t too obvious, shrugged it off. This went on for years. Last year I begain to shed a lot of hair. It was everywhere! I wore ponytails and baseball caps and thought that was the cause. But last fall I was hit head on by someone who lost control of their vehicle. Totaled our csr and had broken bones. While in ER, blood count was extremely low. They thought I had internal bleeding and did two CT scans. Diagnosis: anemic due to colon cancer. Huh. From a hard auto accident to colon cancer within 6 hours. So I asked for two months to recover from the accident before doing the cancer surgery. Tumor removed in January. More hair loss. I refused chemo and radiation. Taking supplements and changed my diet. It has been three months since cancer surgery and I am doing well except for hair shedding. I think my hair-shedding that began 7 years ago was related to the cancer growing in my colon. So I assume it will take some time before this turns around. I had anesthesia two days after the accident when they performed a colonoscooy to biopsy the tumor, and I had anesthesia two months after that to remove the tumor. Anyway, just wanted to share that sometimes there may be an underlying cancer that has not been diagnosed. Our bodies do not lie. Hair follicles can go dormant when the body is under attack.

By: Malvika

Malvika — Sat, 13 Aug 2016 08:33:19 +0000

Ho Ana

Good to hear your success story .I have also been through some extremely stress full period in the last 3years and was put on aldactone 50 mg for sic months for cystic acne I developed due to stress .I quit and after 2 months my hair started falling in.handfulls and I was again put on aldactone 100 mg this time and hair vitamins and some anastim and then peptide lotion as topical. I have lost 60 percent of my hair and it is causing me unbearable stress .my hair texture has also changed from silky thick long to dry brittle flyway. Pl advice aa fhe doc only advices minoxidil bcp and finstraide . I am very scared of putting more hormones to my body .pl advice dear .I am extremely grieved and devasted with my hair loss and thinning .

By: Kenzie

Kenzie — Wed, 11 Feb 2015 23:58:11 +0000

Figured I’d share my story as well…

I’m 20 years old, and have had type 1 diabetes since I was 11, have struggled with depression, eating disorders, anxiety, not to mention the many stressful factors going on while I am just trying to simply fit in amongst people my age.
I have struggled with thinning hair in the past when I was 16 due to hormonal imbalances from diabetes. It recovered fully after 3 years, growing long and healthy as ever. 1 year later, my hair is back to being thin, lifeless, and I’m honestly considering just shaving my head and getting a wig. (anyone else do that yet? there’s confidence in numbers right lol.) I talked to a hair-care specialist to discuss different “tricks” that may to make it look like I had long, gorgeous hair again that felt like my own. She recommended extensions, I asked how long they would last for was SO happy when the answer was 3-4 months. hundreds and hundreds of dollars later, I had beautiful hair again. I felt pretty for the first time in a while… so many people gave me comments on it, even my boyfriend of 2 years couldn’t take his eyes off me. I felt like I was ready to go out, kick butt, and take names again. 3 weeks later, only around 30% of the extensions remained in my hair. It was like I was loosing my hair all over again, I got fed up and ended taking them all out, taking strand upon strand of my lifeless hair with it. This further screwed with the way I look at myself in the mirror. My mother had breast cancer for many years while I was growing up, and I constantly saw her insecurities about what chemotherapy had done to her hair, and how she so desperately longed to feel beautiful again. But in my eyes, she had always been beautiful. with OR without hair.
I am trying SO hard to stay positive, remember that stressing out about my hair will just make matters worse, and just be patient. it really sucks… but should we let our insecurities about our physical appearance destroy what makes everything else about us beautiful too? No.

so, to everyone out there who are going through tough times, be confident in who you are, hair doesn’t determine us. Personality does.
Stay Strong Yall <3

By: Jincy

Jincy — Tue, 10 Feb 2015 04:07:40 +0000

I started using Vichys dercos aminexil a week ago and I have terrible headaches after that. I am not sure whether the reason is aminexil usage. Have any of you guys faced similar issue? Please comment. It will be of great help. Thanks in advance..

By: Lena

Lena — Tue, 27 Jan 2015 18:12:45 +0000

I started losing my hair after my bilateral mastectomy due to breast cancer. It is very thin and wispy but no bald spots. I miss my thick hair, but I try not to despair (there are worse things than thinning hair). I am thinking about getting hair extensions (the kind you clip in) or even a wig. My hair is so difficult to style now that I have honestly considered cutting it short and just wearing an attractive wig. My young niece wears extensions in her hair (she gets them online very cheap) and they look very realistic and fantastic. Try not to despair girls. As a breast cancer patient, I can honestly say that there are worse things than thinning hair. Be careful about all of the supplements and products; eat a well-rounded, healthy diet; keep your weight stable; and exercise. It is my understanding that hair does not fall out due to emotional stress, but rather it falls out due to physiological stress (when heartbreak leads to weight loss, for example — it is the weight loss that causes the hair loss not the emotional stress). So, get some cute hair pieces, take a deep breath and count your many, many blessings.

By: Michelle

Michelle — Fri, 12 Dec 2014 06:12:03 +0000

Hey ladies,

Do not stress!!!!! Your hair will grow back in due time….If this is our calling so be it. It could be so much worse….when I feel bad for myself, I remember that I am not paraplygic, i’m not blind nor deaf….it’s hard on the ego but I think that part of the lesson here is to learn to love and accept yourself even with your imperfections, embrace them. You are no less valuable as a human being because you don’t have a head full of locks. You are still beautiful. I found meditation really helped me with my hair growth….I feel like it may be starting to fall out a little again but i know it will be back again. And in the meantime I just have to accept what is….no use worrying about it….
Stay positivite ladies, good luck!!!

By: Kennedy

Kennedy — Wed, 07 May 2014 00:53:32 +0000

Ok I know this is really late since this post was made so long ago, but I’m desperate. I am currently 18 and in the last month of high school. I’ve always been in AP classes so I didn’t think I was stressed, I’ve had worse years with more classes and more finals than this year. But a few days ago I noticed a bald spot on my head. My hair hasn’t been shedding or thinning, it’s just almost bald in this small quarter sized space on my head. There is some hair in it but it’s very thin. I don’t know what to do, my family is just telling me it’s stress but I don’t feel stressed out. It could be subconscious but from what I read in the above comments everyone’s hair started shedding and then they say bald spots. I just have a bald spot! My doctor isn’t helping, he just says it’s stress. I don’t know what to do. I need help. Graduation is 30 days away. Prom is 18 days away. I don’t know what to do

By: Hannah

Hannah — Sat, 21 Sep 2013 18:30:03 +0000

Hi there. I see that this is still a frequently visited thread. I feel I must post. Three weeks ago my boyfriend noticed a bald patch on the back of the right side of my head. It was roughly the same size as when you make an ‘o’ with your index finger and thumb. I was totally and utterly shocked and devastated. I cried for many days afterwards. I had not noticed any hair loss at all, although I did feel my hair was limp and in poor condition. But after discovering the patch of baldness, I suddenly realised how much hair I was losing on a daily basis, especially after sleeping and washing my hair. Hair is just falling out when I run my hands through it, and the roots show tell tale signs of Alopecia Areata, IE a tapered end. I immediately started taking Biotin, Skin Hair Nails formula, Omega 3, Immune boosters and drinking lots of water. I also started using Alpecin Caffeine shampoo which was recommended to me. However, the more and more research I do the more I feel natural products are the way forward and I intend to start washing with baking soda and vinegar rinse. Last night I discovered a new bald area on the other side of my head behind my left ear. The bald areas have become itchy, with soreness. I also had blood tests and my thyroid and hormones are normal. The docs here in the UK are pretty useless. I was prescribed Dermavate steroid cream, a side effect of which is increased hair growth, but the cream only made my skin worse and caused pimples. I stopped after a few days. I continue to take the supplements and started eating a lot of foods recommended for healthy hair, carrots, avocado, sweet potatoes, walnuts, fish etc. It is really fun to cook with and delicious too.
I started to look into the causes of my hair loss and although my symptoms seem to indicate Alopecia Areata, I suspect I am in fact suffering from Telogen Effluvium which is caused by extreme emotional or physical stress. I also have been forced to confront the bigger picture of my general health and to do in depth research about everything I am putting into or onto my body. For sure I desperately need to cut out sugar from my diet. About 7 months ago I went for a colonic irrigation session, at which the practitioner told me I had a bad case of Candida. She advised cutting out refined sugars as this was fuelling the internal yeast infection, but like an arrogant fool I continued to consume far too much fizzy drinks on a daily basis. I simply was unable to fully mentally engage in a conscious effort to improve my health. The yeast infection causes sugar cravings and if out of control can lead to hair loss. After my horrifying discovery 3 weeks ago, I have been forced to accept that my diet and attitude to my body is terrible. I am slowly weaning myself off sugar and starting to listen to and overcome my cravings, rather than giving in. I know I am a lot stronger than I give myself credit for, and losing my hair has made me realise how flippant I was towards my body and wellbeing.
If you want to hear about what caused my stress, read on. Sorry for the length of it…I was under a lot of pressure.
I think my life has been abnormally stressful since 2009, and I have certainly dealt with a lot of trauma both physical and emotional. In ’09 I underwent major ear surgery and again in 2011. I suffer with severe hearing loss and constant infections in my right ear. This can make life stressful and upsetting especially as a musician. I went through a relationship breakdown in 2010 and had to leave my whole life behind and move 250 miles back home to my mother. Then a year later in 2011 I met a man who totally took over my life and turned me into a gibbering wreck with no self esteem. He had no other people in his life, not even any friends and I became the centre of his life. Our situation escalated and I was desperately miserable. I was also constantly struggling for money and was unemployed. I had a car crash on the way to see him after he threatened to kill himself. I was living like a zombie. My stress levels were through the roof. When I was working it was 9 hours a day all week, and my exhaustion levels were skyrocketing. I wanted out of the relationship. Around Christmas last year, I was fired as my ear problems were making work difficult. The day before this I had broken up with him but after getting fired, I felt too weak to be apart from him as despite making me miserable, he offered familiarity and comfort. However, after the new year I made the decision to end it. Our break up was long, drawn out and painful and ended with a visit to hospital after he punched a wall. I sat in the car screaming at him literally wanting to either die or kill him. Nobody should ever have to feel this bad, and I am fairly confident my body is now trying to tell me the impact that prolonged stress had on it. After this incident, I think he was able to see I needed to be free and deserved better. A short while after I started a new job and unexpectedly met the man of my dreams and the love of my life. I had an absolutely wonderful Summer this year full of love and enjoyment and happiness. I felt my mood was completely different. However I was also making plans to move away and finally pursue my music career so I knew that I had a stressful move ahead of me, which is now only a week away. These are plans I started to make last December before I met my soulmate so now I have to leave him behind until he can find work and move down to be near me. Making plans to move is stressful enough, but after discovering my hair loss I thought I was going to completely crumble. I have had to do a lot of thinking about this and have come to the conclusion that I am a survivor with that imperative life skill, endurance. I have fought through a hell of a lot and if I have to lose my hair, then I am ready to face whatever the Divine has to show me. I am open and willing to experience my life and refuse to live in fear any longer. I am committed to my future and feel certain that once I move and am settled into my new way of life, creating music and enjoying myself more, my body will reflect the changes I make both mental and physical. I also did a yoga session last week and really feel that my body was extremely grateful for the loving attention I gave it. I have always been quite overweight and not physically active at all. I also need to get back into the habit of daily meditation and deep breathing as this in an invaluable source of relaxation.
I can’t emphasise enough how important it is to have a loving, supportive partner. When I first saw the baldness, I broke down crying, but he offered me unconditional love and support. He is a strong, reliable rock and I know he will not let me fall apart. My last boyfriend would begrudge my sadness and always make me feel worse. He left me with no self esteem. Seriously, you can be happier alone rather than with someone who is not emotionally connected to you and freaks out when you’re upset.
My advice I guess would be to become fully conscious and aware of how sensitive our bodies are to our external environment and our internal emotions. Also to open your eyes to the bigger picture of your life and not to let the hair loss cause you to become more distressed. I can see this will only cause a self perpetuating cycle of hair loss and misery. You are capable of experiencing true, unconditional joy and confidence. I realise of course that a woman’s hair is a massive symbol of her sensuality and femininity, but it is from within that she derives her strength, endurance and power. Once you confront what is happening and put in into perspective, you can rise above the fear and embrace your reality. It is only the artificial mainstream celebrity world of vanity and so called perfection that makes us cower in fear at losing our hair. They never tell us how strong and beautiful we are inside. We need to tell ourselves this every day, hair or no hair. Sorry I ranted on, but hope this has helped. I will update you, when hopefully my hair starts to grow back. Thanks for reading .xxxx

By: Naomi Lichtner

Naomi Lichtner — Thu, 11 Jul 2013 16:49:19 +0000

Hi ladies,

I just turned 23 and graduated from an unfortunately stress-filled 5 years at college. Rather 3 years – the first 2 were great! When I look back at pictures during the first two years, I had generous, thick, shiny, wavy hair that I love. And now….it seems like I have half a head of hair, its annoyingly wispy and shine-less and the color is a lot less rich. Compared to other women around me, I feel horrible. I never feel beautiful and there is rarely anyone that tells me that. I don’t know if its because of my hair but a simple compliment every now and again would be a huge savior.

My hair was normal – but has been different for the past 4 years or so. I hate it. I already checked with an endochronologist and my hormones/thyroid etc. are all fine. Those periods in my life where I was really happy (studying abroad, a lunch post-graduation ceremony etc.) it did seem to magically look normal.

Most of the men in my family are bald but not the women (though thyroid is definitely a family thing). Is there any way that it could grow back? My dermatologist suggested Biotin, but I don’t really see much of a difference.

Any hope? Any suggestions? Am I too late ya think?

By: Toral

Toral — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 08:33:31 +0000

Hello Everyone,

I am also facing the same hair loss problem from last 4-5 years. Right now i am 25 years old and got married before 4 months. I consulted minimum 5 dermatologist who suggested me multivitamin tablets. My problem i s my hairs grows but it dont grow and before it starts growing it falls. I was not so much satisfed with all dermatologists opinion. They told me hair fall’s major problem is stress. Everybody has some stress in life less or more but stress is there.
i wass using aminexil. I used almost 18 bottles means i used it countinious for 18 days and my hair fall decreased by almost 80% !! than i thought i am using a product by some cosmetic company better i should consult a doctor than doctor told me to different kinds of test ferritin test, thyroid test so many. Everything was normal just my iron level was little less but i have start taking it.
Now i am again starting aminexil. Aminexil is really good product worth spending. Better you pay high fees of a doctor you must use aminexil once.