Stress and hair loss

One of the most common causes of hair loss is stress; in fact, both physical and emotional stress have been linked to hair loss. Women in particular are extremely susceptible to stress induced hair loss. On the other hand, while hair loss in men is less influenced  by stress, men do have male pattern baldness to worry about. Stress ranks as a top cause of female pattern baldness, but—unlike genetic male pattern baldness—stress can be reduced, thus eliminating hair loss. Stress and hair loss are very closely related and both extreme emotional and physical stress result in two types of hair loss: telogen effluvium and alopecia areata.

Telogen effluvium, the most common of the two, is sort of tricky because hair loss doesn't set in until 2-3 months after the moments of extreme stress and/or trauma. However, telogen effluvium hair loss is not permanent hair loss, and victims can expect their lost hair to grow back 6-9 months later. 

Alopecia areata, on the other hand, is a bit more serious. In this condition, the victims hair follicles are attacked by their white blood cells, stopping hair growth and—within weeks—the affected hair falls out. Alopecia areata usually starts with small round bald patches and eventually spreads to the whole scalp, sometimes body hair is lost as well. With alopecia areata your lost hair sometimes grows back, but treatment is usually necessary.

Finally, here's the interesting story of a woman, Elaine, whose world was rocked by stress. Read about how Elaine battled stress and hair loss.