43 Year Old Losing Hair

by Elva
(Los Angeles, CA, USA)

Irritatable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)

Six months ago I became ill from my stomach that lasted about 4 months as I caught up with a bacterial intestinal infection. I was told I have irritable bowel syndrome and I started losing my hair for almost six months now possible due to emotional stress because of this.

The shedding has decreased quite a bit but it still happens mostly when I shower. I also notice it in my eyebrows. The hair does come back in many places, but in the scalp and eyebrows I notice some areas look a little bare and thinning and the hair is taking a little while to grow back.

I understand that when some hair falls out a new one is growing, but then why do I see some areas nothing grows. The hair follicles are sleeping will they ever become active again? How long will it take to grow hair again? My hair loss is not very noticeable but if I get more follicles to sleep and not grow anything it may become noticeable. I also have undergone many other tests with the doctor and all have come back normal.

Editor’s Comments

Dear Elva,
Actually, your hair follicles do not sleep but they do enter a resting phase, which is the last phase of your hair growth cycle. During this phase, your hair is kind of fragile and falls off easily. When it falls out, a new hair will grow up from the hair follicles. Usually this will take a couple of weeks or months to notice the new growth because your hair only grows around half an inch a month.

Pretty glad to know that your hair is recovering from your period of shock. I strongly believe that it’s primarily caused by emotional stress since your hair is starting to grow again. Your slow regrowth might be caused by other factors like poor metabolism, premenopausal and probably your body is still recovering from the stressful period. A change in diet, which is common among patients with IBS might be also a reason for slower hair regrowth.

What you can do is to consider taking some supplements like Vitamin B Complex, keep a healthy and balanced diet and lifestyle. You can also try Rogaine 2% for women which can help accelerate your hair growth. Viviscal is also another kind of marine supplement that can be beneficial for faster growth too for women. All the best.

Rogaine and Viviscal are also available through Solve It! Store.