Category Archives: Hair Loss Treatments

For women suffering from problems with hair loss, the first place you will always need to turn is your GP. It is very important to get a formal and accurate diagnosis, as each condition is likely to have different methods of treatment even if the symptoms are the same.

Many women then consider hair replacement and hair loss treatment options offered at a few specialist clinics. These offer a different service from your doctor, as they focus on helping you manage your condition rather than providing a medical cure.

This said, it is very important to find the right clinic for you. Female hair loss is an extremely sensitive subject, as it can have a debilitating effect on the sufferers’ confidence, self-esteem and even their personal relationships.

Therefore, you ideally need to seek out a clinic specialising in the particulars of female hair loss, one which offers you the sort of realistic hair loss management options you were looking for, but in a reassuring and supportive environment.

In this sort of clinic, you will have the comfort of knowing that other women being treated are experiencing the same emotions, fears and concerns as you. Also important is clinic staff who understand what you are going through and are able to help you find a personally tailored solution.

Although men suffer from similar conditions, there is often more of a stigma surrounding hair loss in women. As such, female hair loss can be much more devastating and disruptive to the life of the sufferer, damaging their self-esteem and body confidence.

This is because in today’s image-conscious society, hair is commonly associated with beauty, femininity and sexuality. Losing it can make you feel as if these things are taken away.

So, how do sufferers of female hair loss cope? There are many temporary and more permanent solutions out there, specially developed to help you manage your condition. For example:

• Cosmetics, hats and human hair wigs – Many women are comfortable without these things when at home, but they prefer to wear human hair wigs and headbands when out in public. They serve as temporary confidence boosters, helping you to get on with your life whilst you look for a more long-term solution.

• Hair loss treatments – There are many new treatments available for women suffering from hair loss, including hair replacement techniques such as Medi Connections (for minor cases of alopecia or thinning hair) or the Intralace System (for larger areas of hair loss).

Researchers from the Columbia University Medical Center in New York have reportedly identified eight genes which cause the hair loss condition alopecia areata, in a discovery which may pave the way for new, more effective treatments.

Alopecia areata affects both men and women, and has a surprisingly large number of sufferers throughout the world. It causes small patches of hair to fall out, often taking years to grow back. The condition sometimes develops into alopecia totalis (total scalp hair loss) and even alopecia universalis (full body hair loss).

The latest breakthrough by biomedical researchers at Columbia have linked the condition to eight genes, finding that they are the same as those associated with other autoimmune diseases such as type 1 diabetes.

Doctor Angela Christiano, the senior researcher on the new study and also an alopecia areata sufferer, studied the genes of over 1,000 people with the condition, comparing their genetic makeup to that of over 3,200 non-sufferers. As well as identifying the eight genes, she also found that the more genes each sufferer carried, the more serious their condition was likely to be.

Implications

Speaking of the implications of the study’s findings, Dr Christiano explained how treatments that are already being developed for other auto-immune diseases could be used as a hair loss treatment. She said:

“Finally, we have the possibility of developing drugs that specifically target the mechanism behind the disease.”

There are various Hair Loss Forums on the internet that tend to cover a broad range of subjects relating to hair loss.  People comment on various treatments within these forums and some of these comments can be helpful although finding a solution to help manage your hair loss is a very personal decision that can only be made by you!

It is good for women to talk to each other about their hair problems as you can get some good advice but what works for one person may not work for you so if you are seeking ethical advice about your hair loss then you should visit your GP, Dermatologist or Registered Consultant Trichologist.  Getting a formal diagnosis for your hair loss is a positive step forward as you will then know if it is something you have to manage either in the short term or in the long term.  They will also advise you on what your treatment options are.

Hair Loss Forums can be a good way of finding a support mechanism from other hair loss sufferers but professional advice can only come from those that are qualified – your GP, Dermatologist or Registered Consultant Trichologist.

The October issue of Easy Living (available in the shops now) has an article written by journalist Lisa Markwell about her recent chemotherapy treatment for breast cancer.  She talks about how affected she was when her hair started to fall out during her treatment.  She came to see Lucinda Ellery for a consultation to discuss using the Intralace system until such time as she felt comfortable with her new hair growth underneath.  Lisa, like many other women that contact us, explained how she really could not feel herself until she had hair that looked like her own and that she could treat like her own.

The Intralace System is integrated with your growing hair and will not affect your regrowth.  The system is designed to last for two years but typically a post-chemo client will need the system for less than its life span.  It needs to be maintained (usually every 6 weeks) as it is connected to your own hair so as your hair grows, it will move away from the scalp and a trained technician at Lucinda Ellery needs to adjust it for you so that it remains secure.

One client who contacted us today having read the article in Easy Living magazine commented that Lisa Markwell had described in the article exactly what this client had felt about losing her hair from the cancer treatment.  She was very happy to hear that an option like the Intralace System is available to help someone manage their hair loss during such a difficult time.

I am sure Lisa appreciates that sharing her experience has raised awareness on how deeply upsetting it is for any woman to experience hair loss.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy may be recommended for people with Trichotillomania. Your GP would advise as to whether or not this would be beneficial in your particular case but it is suggested frequently by the medical profession to help with managing Trichotilomania.

CBT is an Orientation of psychotherapy. It is essentially a talking therapy. The client and therapist work together to understand problems in terms of the relationship between thoughts, feelings and behaviour.

We have a number of clients who have had CBT to help with their trichotillomania and many have found it hugely beneficial however I appreciate that it is an individual thing but I would be interested to see if anyone has any feedback on this.