Losing Hair Drastically !

by Farah
(Dubai)

I am a 16 year old girl who has been facing hair loss for about 2 months now. I joined college in Sep 09 and since then I have been under a lot of stress and work due to my major requiring me to pull an all-nighter. Recently due to the overload of projects I had to stay up for three days in a row working.

A few weeks later I noticed losing a lot of hair in a go. I have never had this much hair loss before but occasionally I would lose about 1 to 3 hair strands everytime i combed my hair. Now suddenly for the past two months I have been losing about 10 to 15 hair strands everytime i comb my hair. It is very depressing as I have never had such a severe case of hair loss before. Over the period of 2 months I noticed that the volume of my hair started decreasing very fast.

As of now the scalp area near the part of my hair is very prominent as shown in the picture. As far as I know I do not suffer from any sort of disease etc. I do have dandruff but not as much.
I have tried home made remedies like rubbing olive oil on the scalp area and a paste of black pepper and lime seeds, but till now it hasn't been as effective as I had hoped.

I lose about 50+ hair strands everyday and that has caused the scalp area near the parting to become more visible. The weird thing is I don't lose hair on the sides but i only lose hair near the crown.

The hair fall started when I had long hair (a little above my waist) and recently I got a haircut because the long hair looked very unhealthy in less volume. What I noticed is that after getting a haircut I started losing even more hair than I did back when I had long hair.

I have not consulted a doctor or a dermatologist for my problem yet as my parents believe that my hair fall maybe due to the seasonal change and that its quite normal to have a visible scalp like that. But I am really worried as my hair is very important to me and losing it at such a young age can be very displeasing and awful. My hair is also very thin but it has been like that for as long as I can remember.

I need advice as to what to do with the visible scalp and how to regrow my hair as fast as I can.

Editor’s Comments,

Dear Farah, thank you for your story and we do hope that your hair condition is only temporary and will improve over time. Your parents could be right as seasonal changes can be a cause of a little more hair fall that usual. It’s also very normal for anyone to lose between 50 to 100 strands of hair a day due to the normal Hair Growth Cycle.

Based on the picture you sent, I do think that your hair is a little finer than normal for a 16 year old female teenager but your condition is not totally out of the norm. Excessive oil build ups and dandruff can lead to temporary hair loss and that is a very likely factor for most teenagers. Too more oil also makes your hair look limp and can signify the appearance of hair loss as well. Late nights, poor diet and lack of sufficient sleep are also very possible factors for the thinning hair.

You can also look for clues on your hair loss based on your current diet and activities. Check whether if you are on any medications or if you faced with any traumatic or life changing experience in the past 3-6 months. All these elements can cause some rapid hair loss known as Telogen Effluvium which can also be a cause of your sudden abrupt hair loss.

If you really find no possible reason for your hair loss, seeking advice from a dermatologist is your best bet. As for now, I do not really recommend anything impactful for your hair condition. There are products like hair loss concealers that can offer a temporary remedy but I do think your condition is reversible in a prompt manner to warrant such products. Vitamins supplementation and hair loss products like Minoxidil should only be used under professional medical supervision as you are still relatively young for them.

Anyway I hope your hair loss condition is only temporary and everything will be fine soon.