Yes, your stress-related telogen effluvium will pass, but be aware hair loss could also be due to autoimmune triggers, genetic disposition, or other malfunctions of the body. This means it pays to have an official diagnosis from a dermatologist who can run tests and diagnose you accordingly. This isn't something you should self-diagnose: while telogen effluvium isn't a serious medical problem, other conditions which cause hair loss could be.
Image via SDI Productions/Getty
Image via SDI Productions/Getty
Know stress-related hair loss, while disconcerting, isn't permanent. "First, we have to educate the patient," says Dr. Engleman. "You're going to stop the falling out and then you'll see new growth, but it takes a while. It's not fun because patients want an immediate result." Again, anyone who's ever tried to grow their hair out knows there's a waiting game. Dr. Engleman advises managing expectations appropriately: first, stop the shedding, then focus on regrowth. But time takes time, so be patient.
Image via Hanna Hildsberg/EyeEm/Getty
Image via Hanna Hildsberg/EyeEm/Getty
It's critical to lower stress since that's how it starts. It might seem cruel to tell you to relax when your hair is falling out, but it's crucial to stop the excessive hair shedding. Both dermatologists advise anything you can do to chill: meditation, yoga, exercise, deep breathing.
Also, go to sleep: "Lack of sleep can really affect your stress levels and increase your cortisol levels, so sleeping adequately is something you should aim for," advises Dr. Gohara. "But the real treatment is just time. We're animals and we shed just like any other animal. Sometimes shedding is just excessive, but with time that'll recalibrate itself."
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Also, go to sleep: "Lack of sleep can really affect your stress levels and increase your cortisol levels, so sleeping adequately is something you should aim for," advises Dr. Gohara. "But the real treatment is just time. We're animals and we shed just like any other animal. Sometimes shedding is just excessive, but with time that'll recalibrate itself."
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Along with lowering stress, supplements can help. Both dermatologists recommend Nutrafol, $79, a non-drug supplement which not only supports regrowth that's thicker and stronger, but also helps reduce the impact of stress, environment, and nutrition in the body to ensure hair that grows has a good chance of staying put. Dr. Engleman says she successfully used the supplement to combat telogen effluvium after giving birth to her second child.
She also notes biotin can be helpful for expediting hair growth. "The great myth there is (biotin) makes your hair thicker. It doesn't; it makes your hair grow faster. It only increases the rate, but it doesn't increase the amount."
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She also notes biotin can be helpful for expediting hair growth. "The great myth there is (biotin) makes your hair thicker. It doesn't; it makes your hair grow faster. It only increases the rate, but it doesn't increase the amount."
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Both dermatologists also advise minoxidil, otherwise known as Women's Rogaine 5% Minoxidil Unscented Foam, $53.99, can help with hair regrowth, although with a word of caution from Dr. Engleman: "If you start it, you gotta keep doing it; any new growth it creates — if you stop (using) it, it's gonna fall out."
For more serious hair loss, oral supplements such as spironolactone — an androgen-blocker that has been shown to prevent hormonal hair loss — and in-office procedures such as PHP are available. (Though these treatments are generally saved for extreme hair loss cases).
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For more serious hair loss, oral supplements such as spironolactone — an androgen-blocker that has been shown to prevent hormonal hair loss — and in-office procedures such as PHP are available. (Though these treatments are generally saved for extreme hair loss cases).
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