Are stress and hair loss related?

We lose around 50-100 strands of hair every day. However, if you’re losing more hair, there could be an underlying reason. You might be losing hair because of an illness, hormonal changes occurred during pregnancy, medical treatment like chemotherapy, and nutritional deficiency in your diet. But do you know you could lose your hair because of stress too?

Yes, it is a scientifically proven fact that anxiety and stress can lead to hair loss, both in men and women.

Stress can lead to a number of hair loss conditions, including:

• Telogen Effluvium – a reversible condition when your hair falls out after a stressful experience. It happens because stress pushes a large number of your hair follicles into the resting phase and within a few months, those hair can fall out
• Alopecia Areata – you may experience a sudden loss of hair in one or more circular patches from your scalp or beard
• Trichotillomania – a condition when you pull out your own hair from the scalp, eyebrows and other body parts

The worst part is that the sight of losing hair could put the person in a more stressful situation and he/she may lose more hair due to stress.

So, what can you do about stress-related hair loss?

It is understandable that you can't always prevent stress from occurring in your life, but you can often minimize the amount of stress you experience and help yourself cope up with hair loss too.

The other good part about stress-related hair loss is that it is generally short-term, or temporary. Once the stress factor is reduced, hair re-growth can occur. But, if stress is continually present for long periods, it can cause substantial damage to your hair, sometimes leading to permanent baldness.

Homeopathic help for stress-related hair loss

Homeopathy is by far the safest form of medical treatment for hair loss. Homeopathy is mind-body medicine. It not only treats the physical complaints but also targets the mind and gently restores the body-mind equilibrium- thus it treats the patient as a whole. This makes homeopathy an excellent solution for hair problems triggered by stress.

Stress causes hormonal disturbances in the body like thyroid problems/ PCOS which are also known to cause hair loss and are very effectively treated with homeopathy.

Finally, nothing beats stress more effectively than a smile. Having a positive outlook holds the key to cope with the everyday stresses of life.

Tips to reduce stress-related hair loss

• Switch off the T.V. / Mobile/ laptop one hour before you sleep as uninterrupted computer use has been associated with stress, lost sleep and depression
• Listen to your favorite music as it slows heart rate, lowers blood pressure and even decreases levels of stress hormones
• Try some de-stressing techniques. Go for a walk, try deep breathing, yoga, and meditation
• Share your worries with your closed ones
• Drink a lot of water and eat healthy foods. Include black dates, black raisins, nuts, beans, green leafy vegetables, soya, eggs, lean meats, carrots, all fruits in your diet to get adequate nutrition for your hair
• Last, but not least, do not panic. Seek medical help if needed. Hair loss is a medical condition and can be treated effectively by an expert medical doctor.