Psychological Effects Of Scalp Hair Loss In Women

21.10.2009 | Author: Mike Jones | Posted in health

Why is it that men can get away with scalp hair loss and women can’t? There are jokes galore about balding men, but a balding woman? Hair is a girl’s crowning glory. It’s part of who she is. Hair is something that women fuss over every hour of the day and spend lots of money on.

Psychologists have studied the reaction of both men and women who have suffered extensive hair loss. Men are upset about it and it causes stress, there’s no question. But women’s suffering and emotional trauma about hair loss can be much worse than a man’s. While a man will just gripe about it, women will feel shame and confusion. They worry more about how they’ll be regarded socially. It’s a blow to a woman’s pride and self esteem.

Because more men lose their hair, there’s more support for them. It’s more socially acceptable. Men have more resource and products to assist them in their hair loss journey. Families and friends will offer words of encouragement and pats of reassurance on the back. However, when women have hair loss, people look the other way. It’s weird. People will become strangely quiet and act like it’s not really happening. Where can a woman go for support?

There are men in movies, television and magazines with thinning hair or a shiny bald head. They’re still highly regarded in society as being attractive. Women don’t see other women with thinning hair in public. It’s hidden away, unless you have lost your hair due to cancer. Some women in the public eye have unabashedly presented themselves with no hair, but we excuse them because they’re ill. We have sympathy and compassion for these women. But for healthy women with thin, patchy hair, we have nothing but scorn. Something’s got to change.

Temporary hair loss due to hormonal changes, particularly post-partum is distressing but normal. Other causes which may be temporary or treatable with medication include hypothyroidism, chemical processing and an OCD disorder called Trichotillomania which is compulsive hair plucking. Women can start to loose their hair if they have tight braiding such as corn rows which can cause permanent damage.

These are treatable conditions. Alopecia, which is the same type of natural hair loss that men suffer from, is the one condition that causes women so much shame. Thinning of the hair due to aging can be just as upsetting.

Thanks to new advances in science, many women have begun to use hair products that are highly touted as preserving and in some cases, restoring hair. However, a dermatologist should still be consulted if hair loss seems more than temporary. A hair restoration specialist can make recommendations to help women reclaim one of their most beautiful assets.

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