The Impacts of Stress on Hair Loss

Hair can help you to express yourself, your identity, and your culture, and suddenly losing your hair can be distressing. Your age, genetics, diet, and overall health all influence your hair health and how fast it grows. It is normal to lose between 50-100 strands per day, and almost everyone will experience some hair loss as they age. However, if you suddenly lose a lot more hair than usual, this could be a sign that something is interfering with your natural hair growth cycle. Stress can be one of those interferences. 

How Do I Know If I’m Stressed?

Check out our article: Are you Stressed? Causes, Symptoms, and How to Fix It

The Types of Hair Loss Caused by Stress

Experiencing severe or long-term stress results in an excess of stress hormones circulating through your body. This can cause three different types of hair loss. You can stop this hair loss from becoming permanent by getting your stress levels back to a healthy level.

Rapid Shedding – Telogen Effluvium

Telogen Effluvium can happen to anyone at any age. High-stress levels or a change in your body can cause up to 70% of hair that is in the growth stage to prematurely enter the shedding stage. Hair is shed quickly and lost rapidly, but it usually grows back in 3-6 months without treatment once the stress or change dies down. 

Compromised Immune System – Alopecia Areata

This type of hair loss can also affect anyone at any age. Severe stress can cause your immune system to attack your hair follicles, which causes hair loss. The effects of alopecia areata can vary: some people may have thinning hair, while others may have bald spots. People with alopecia areata may find that their hair regrows over time and then falls out again.

Hair Pulling – Trichotillomania

If you’re stressed you may be feeling a lot of negative or uncomfortable emotions at once: for example, tension, loneliness, anxiety, and frustration. To deal with these feelings, some people pull out hair from their body including from their scalp and eyebrows. Trichotillomania is when this hair-pulling becomes an irresistible urge. This type of hair loss is most common in preteens and teenagers, but it can be lifelong if the habit isn’t stopped.

When Will I Notice Stress-Induced Hair Loss?

Hair loss due to stress will happen a few months after the stressful event first occurs. This is because the hair growth cycle lasts 3-6 months. If you notice sudden hair loss, think about whether you had a major event or change that caused you stress 2-3 months ago. 

Decrease Your Stress, Increase Your Hair Growth

While there are many potential reasons for sudden hair loss, stress-induced hair loss is unique because the damage it causes isn’t permanent. If you can successfully reduce your stress levels and maintain a healthy lifestyle, your hair growth rate will increase and you may be able to get back to normal hair growth levels. The rate of regrowth will be different for everyone, so you may need help from your GP to achieve the regrowth levels you want.

Other Reasons for Sudden Hair Loss

Sudden hair loss may not be related to stress: for example, it may be a result of an underlying medical condition. Reach out to your GP to find out the cause of your hair loss so you can treat it appropriately.

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