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Have you ever found yourself in a situation where your to-do list seems endless, deadlines are approaching, and you find yourself saying ‘God, I feel stressed’. In today’s challenging situations, even a minuscule, unexpected event in your life might end up becoming a stressful deal. Wait, have you ever wonder if this stress is the actual cause of your falling hair? Time to think!

Stress and hair loss: Are they related?

It is a commonly held belief that stress can contribute to hair loss. Falling hair can be one of the signs of emotional stress or anxiety that is often overlooked. It usually takes about a 3-months’ time between the occurrence of the stressful event and hair fall to happen. That said, unless there’s any other underlying medical reason for your hair loss, it should only last for as long as you’re going through that particular period of stress or anxiety.

Stress and Cortisol: Hormonal Interplay

Research shows that one way our hair responds to severe stress is by disrupting/turning off the hair growth cycle. And this is well studied in the cases of telogen effluvium. Cortisol – a stress hormone is a steroid hormone that regulates a wide range of developments through the body, including metabolism and the immune response. This is interlinked with hair follicle cycle and creates it to early termination of the growth phase of hair cycle.

Ways to reduce ‘stress’ to counter ‘hair loss’

Worrying about hair loss can also be a vicious cycle. It’s easy for people to get restless about losing hair, which in turn increases stress levels, and can cause even more hair to fall out. However, hair loss caused by stress is usually only temporary. If you’ve lost hair as a result of stress or anxiety, there are adequate chances that your hair will start to grow back once your stress levels are back to normal.

By working on reducing your stress levels as well as improving your general health and wellbeing, hair lost due to stress can grow back.

• Calm your body with meditation

A solution could be as simple as closing your eyes for few minutes, sitting quietly and trying to focus on your inner self. Try to minimize any thoughts that might distract you. Doing so for just a few minutes a day can ease stress. Psychologists suggest daily meditation as it helps to improve your resilience to stress in the long-term. Another way to balance your inner health is by doing Yoga. Yoga rejuvenates the whole body, and also promotes blood circulation to specific parts of the body like the scalp, which prevents hair fall. Meditation and breathing techniques help release stress, aiding the prevention of hair loss.

• Get enough sleep

Lack of sleep can lead to both mental and physical stress that can impact your hair and other parts of your body. Avoid too many late nights and don’t rush to wake up early. Spend adequate time on your bed and you will wake up with many benefits.

• See a therapist

Emotional stress can turn more perilous if caged inside. Seeing a counselor can be cathartic, and can also do wonders to relieve stress. Not only does expressing your worries or anxiety help you vent, but it can actually help you see things from a new perspective, and it might even shine light on a solution you were unable to see yourself.

• Laugh your stress out

A good laugh actually lowers the level of stress hormone – cortisol and boosts endorphins, all of which lift your mood. Try to indulge in things that make you feel relieved and happy. Even a playful walk with your puppy, every evening could bring about positive change.

• Get up and get moving

When it comes to hair loss due to stress, all forms of exercise can help ease anxiety by helping the brain release endorphins. Regular physical activities like a brisk walk, dancing or jumping jacks, etc. are remedies you must pursue.

• Mind the things you eat

Often when we are stressed, we do not look after ourselves like we should. For instance, we may skip meals or eat more processed foods than usual. Diet has wide-reaching implications on hair growth, with improper nutrition being a leading cause of hair loss amongst teenagers. This includes vitamin imbalances, iron deficiency, inadequate protein intake, and meals that contain too few calories. Mending your eating habits is the easiest, yet effective way to fight stress, & eventually hair loss.

• Talk to hair expert

We understand that you can’t always help stressing out about arbitrary and unexpected situations in life. But you can leave your hair loss worries to us – talk to our hair experts for all your hair related problems