Hair loss can affect anyone, whether male or female. When you start to experience your hair falling out, it can be shocking, especially if you’re still young. Typically, people expect hair loss to start happening closer to middle age, but there are many reasons people experience it in their twenties. This can severely impact your self-esteem and can have a damaging psychological impact. To overcome this, it’s beneficial to understand the reasons why you might experience hair loss. 

Hereditary 

The most common reason for hair loss is genetics. If you have a history of hair loss in your family, it is more likely that you will lose your hair as well.

This is known as pattern baldness, both male and female. It will often start slowly and in patterns, such as thinning hair and bald spots at the crown or a receding hairline. Most of the time, people who have a family history of baldness will expect hair loss, but this doesn’t make the initial occurrences much easier to deal with and accept.  

Stress 

Just like stress can cause your hair to turn gray, it can also contribute to hair loss. Too much stress leads to your hair thinning out, and you will usually find it most frequently when washing your hair in the bath or shower. 

Such stress can come from a traumatic event, and the hair loss symptoms will usually last for at least a few months after. However, the good news is that this is usually temporary. 

Treatments, Shampoos, Products

Some hair treatments, such as certain hairstyles or products you use in your hair can also contribute to hair loss. The more strain your hair is put under, the less healthy it becomes, and this can cause the hair follicles to fail, causing your hair to fall out. 

Chemicals can also impact the thickness of your hair, but like stress, this can be temporary if you catch it early enough. If you experience hair loss after changing shampoos or testing new products, go back to your previous products to see if there is a difference or consider searching for PRP (Platelet Rich Plasma) treatment to help slow and stop hair loss. 

Medical Conditions

Hair loss can also happen as a reaction to certain illnesses and medications, such as cancer, arthritis, and depression. Often, this is a side effect of medication you take for the illness, although the stress of the sickness can also be a factor. 

There are also medical conditions like alopecia related to your immune system and leads to hair falling out in patches, ringworm, a scalp infection, or even chronic hair pulling, a disorder also known as trichotillomania. 

Is Your Hair Tied To Your Identity

For anyone who considers their hair part of their identity, suddenly losing hair can make you feel entirely unlike yourself. It can cause stress, lack of confidence, and affect your mental wellbeing. However, if you can understand why you are losing your hair, you can come to terms with it more easiely and take action to prevent or halt losing more hair. 

This is a collaborative post.

Melinda