Alopecia Areata

A Patients Story

HELPLINE

For specific advice or to arrange an appointment,
please call the Cotswold Trichology Centre

HAIR HELPLINE
on
01386 421703

Consultant Trichologist
Sally-Ann Tarver MIT.LTTS

The Cotswold Trichology Centre,
4B Port St. Evesham,
Worcestershire.
WR11 1AN

Telephone
01386 421703

Alopecia Areata A Patients Story An abridged version of an article written by Caroline a former patient, about her hair loss and recovery. Initially she suffered with Telogen Effluvium, then later developed Alopecia Areata.

It’s the most horrific moment when you realize for sure your hair is falling out, not sorrow, just sheer horror. I was 25 and known for my long blonde hair. In three months, I lost two-thirds of my hair. It was so thin I was left with a straggly, mouse brown bob. My parting was so wide my scalp was clearly visible. I lost my personality and identity along with my appearance. There were signs before I noticed the hair loss problem, more hair lost in the wash and in my hairbrush but often but you blind yourself to the possibilities.

My hair fell out everywhere around me, on my clothes, car, pillow in the morning and my desk through the day. I was depressed, miserable and there was absolutely nothing I could do about it, or so I was told. My hairdresser told me to massage my scalp, a big mistake my hair shedding increased. My doctor laughed and said if a miracle cure existed, he would have used it years ago.

Finally I was told about Trichology, the study of hair and scalp disorders. I booked an appointment with Sally-Ann Tarver at The Cotswold Trichology Centre in Evesham. She was thorough and questioned everything, diet, habits, living conditions, work. She tested my hair and asked for specific blood tests to check my iron stores. She told me I had acute diffuse hair loss called Telogen Effluvium, triggered by extreme stress and aggravated by dad diet. She advised supplements from Forever Living Products and topical hair treatments from La Biosthetique. My hair got thicker and I didn’t need to go The Cotswold Trichology Centre any more.

Almost a year later my hair loss started again. I booked another appointment to see Sally-Ann but this time she told me I had a different type of hair loss. I had bald patches all over my head but I hadn’t noticed them! She diagnosed me with Alopecia Areata and I started a different type of treatment immediately. I drank Aloe Vera Gel by the bottle, took minerals, iron supplements and used topical hair treatments from La Biosthetique.

By this point I had cut myself off from my friends and stopped going out of the house except to work and to see Sally-Ann. I was embarrassed to meet new people and friends I hadn’t seen for a while didn’t recognize me. I hated looking in the mirror and accepted that if too many more bald patches appeared, I would have to wear a wig.

New bald patches appeared for 3 months, when the hair loss finally stopped. Progress felt slow but new hair started to grow back after only six weeks of treatment. I can’t describe the feeling of joy when you feel the first signs of hair growth on your scalp. Sally-Ann treated me for 12 months until I had a full head of hair. Today, I still panic when the odd stray hair appears on my clothes. I check the pillow every morning and ask the hairdresser to look for new patches when I get my hair cut. During the whole period, Sally-Ann was fantastic. She was honest, let me cry quietly in peace and then gave me bucket-loads of inspiration. I think I was just really unfortunate to suffer with both diffuse hair loss and Alopecia Areata but I would recommend The Cotswold Trichology Centre to anyone In fact, I have to stop myself from literally handing out cards to people in the street!

For information on treatment programs used at The Cotswold Trichology Centre, contact us on 01386 421703 to discuss what the best course of action may be for you.

Alopecia Areata Facts

Alopecia Areata is characterised as one or more patches of reversible baldness in any hair bearing area.

Approximately 2% of the population develop this condition at some point in their lives.

The tendency to develop Alopecia Areata may be inherited. However, parents of sufferers may not have been affected by the condition themselves.

Asthma, Eczema and Hay Fever (allergic type people) sufferers may be more likely to develop Alopecia Areata.

Alopecia Areata patches may appear suddenly or gradually. The severity differs greatly between cases. A person may develop a single bald patch or many. Bald patches may join to form large areas of baldness. A minority of cases may progress to Alopecia Totalis (total loss of scalp hair) or Alopecia Universalis (total loss of all hair).

Alopecia Areata is a condition whereby the auto-immune system malfunctions, attacks and destroys the hair, not recognising it as 'self' as it would if bacteria entered the body.

Some sufferers may notice a burning, stinging or soreness before the onset of a bald patch, this is due to the auto-immune response.

Stubble termed 'exclamation mark' hairs may be observed around the borders of a bald patch, an indicator that the condition is active or progressing. These are dead (telogen) hairs which have broken above the scalp surface, after the hairshafts have been weakened by the auto-immune response.

Treatment may help improve the rate of hair growth and in many cases stop or reduce hair loss. The success rate is higher in individuals who begin treatment when bald patches begin, than those who have suffered for years.