What To Do If You Are Losing Your Hair

You have discovered that the hair you see in the drain or on your brush is coming out in abnormally large amounts. You know you have a hair loss problem. Now is the time to...

You have discovered that the hair you see in the drain or on your brush is coming out in abnormally large amounts. You know you have a hair loss problem. Now is the time to see a doctor or dermatologist to see why you are losing your hair and to do something about it.

Getting valuable information about hair loss and understanding why you are experiencing it can help lead you to ways to stop the hair loss, improve your chances for new hair growth and to prevent future hair loss.

Our hair does go through a normal cycle of hair growth, hair rest and then hair loss and this cycle repeats as we age…slowing down as we become old (sooner for males than females). 90% of the hair on your head is in the growth part of the stage at any one time and 10% is in the resting stage. Losing some hair is normal but losing excessive hair to the point of hair thinning or being partially or completely bald is not normal unless you had your hair shaved intentionally.

The first thing you should do when you realize that you are losing your hair is to make an appointment with your medical doctor or with a dermatologist. Having an examination and giving your symptoms history (how long you have noticed excessive hair loss, any history of illness or major surgery, any losses such as a death in the family, use of hormonal therapy including birth control pills etc.) and a family medical history to determine if anyone else in your family has suffered from hair loss. Your doctor may then have you take a urine or blood test to determine if your hair loss is a symptom of another disease or symptom such as diabetes or lupus and may also do a scalp sample to send to the laboratory. These tests will help the doctor to determine if you have an infection including fungal scalp infections, or if you have a hormonal imbalance or other medical causes for your hair loss. If the hair loss is not from any medical cause you may be experiencing hair loss for non-medical reasons.

Non-medical reasons for hair loss may include improper hair care such as not washing your hair enough, using too harsh of a shampoo too frequently or using other hair styling products that contain chemicals or other harmful ingredients such as hair coloring products, permanents, and hot oil treatments. You can also experience hair loss when you use hair accessories to the point that your hair is pulled too tight such as making corncribs, using hair rollers, or putting your hair in braids or ponytails where these hair accessories are put in too tight and kept in for long periods of time. This can cause the pulled hair to irritate the scalp and lead to hair loss.

Once the cause or multiple causes are discovered for your hair loss, the next thing you should do is to decide (usually with the advise of your doctor) what to do about your hair loss. Hair loss treatments can be medicinal or non-medicinal. There are many medicines on the market today designed to help regrow your hair or to stimulate your scalp so that there is improved blood flow which may help your hair to regrow. You can also use wigs, toupees, hair extensions and hair transplants to cover up your hair loss.

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