Tag Archives: Hair loss

Beauty, Causes of Hair Loss, Hair Loss Tips

FYI – Hair Loss is a Lonely Feeling

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lonely_hairbluesAnyone suffering from hair loss knows it is a very lonely feeling. She also knows that anytime she sees an article about Hair Loss that she is  immediately drawn into what that person’s experience is like, and what she can learn from the other experience.  Such was the case as I was standing on the checkout line in the grocery store when I spotted the title article in the March 2013 Family Circle magazine,  “The Health Problem 30 Million Women Have…Are You One of Them?”  How could I resist reading this article?  Shouldn’t I be informed about this problem?  And sure enough, just as I had suspected, the article was about Hair Loss.

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I bet many of you had no idea the number had gone up so dramatically — 30 Million Women!  Yet, even with that news, it still is a very personal experience to each of us who is going through it, and who struggles daily with how to attack, or solve this condition.  Many of you may think that you did something to cause this condition. Many of you are wondering if there are any cures out there, which may help to slow down this process.  Similar to the condition itself, help seems to be very slow coming.

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Penny Musco’s article “What Happened to My Hair” will not tell you of any miracle cures.  She does not paint a ‘rosey’ picture for you about the turmoil of hair loss.  What she does do, that may help some of you, is she accepts the facts for her particular situation, and eventually accepts herself.  Her family (including her husband) still loves her, and she does not feel ‘shame’ anymore for having lost her hair. Although many of the “solutions’ she tried did not work for her, it does not mean it will not work for you.  I suggest you use her “4 step plan to save your strands”.

1. Get to a dermatologist, pronto.

2. Opt for medical procedures first.

3. Consider cosmetic solutions second.

4. Be Patient.

Read her article at:  http://www.pennymusco.com/Media/Non-fiction/WhatHappenedToMyHair.pdf

I hope this is helpful! hairblues_helpful

Beauty, Causes of Hair Loss, Hair Care, Hair Loss Tips

What’s wrong with tight braids?

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black woman standing near green plant
Photo by Matheus Henrin on Pexels.com

For generations African-American girls have had their hair braided because it is a traditional belief that it would help their hair to grow.

Nowadays, there is talk about braids “causing” hair loss. At HairBlues we think it is important enough to investigate what some of the causes of hair loss and braids may be.  Below are tips we found online that may help to ease this problem, which appears to happen more often these days.  Don’t forget to click on the link provided at the end of the highlighted tips to get  detailed information.

♦ Beauty should not hurt! If your head hurts, it’s because your hair is braided too tightly, or you have too much extension hair added. In either situation, this doesn’t bode well for the future of your hairline. Some braiders may tell you to take an aspirin and the pain should be gone by morning, but any pain is an indicator that something is wrong.

♦ Use warm water to loosen them: Take a shower and let the water cascade over your hair. You may need to gently rub your scalp to loosen the braids a little. This is not the time to worry about how much money you just spent and how much time it took to style these braids, so don’t think about that! Concern yourself with loosening up this tight style and saving your hairline.

♦ Remove them: Yes, remove any braids that are causing little bumps to pop up on your scalp. This is not normal and can lead to hair loss down the road, especially if you make a habit of wearing tight braid styles.

♦ Do yourself a favor and see how your head feels when you’re still in the stylist’s chair. Does it hurt while she’s braiding? That’s the time to ask her to ease up on your hair.

♦ Do not return to tight braiders: Some braiders are notoriously hard on hair. Once should be enough to tell you that this is someone who doesn’t care about the health of your scalp. via What Can I Do about Tight Braids.

FYI –Traction Alopecia:By Del Sandeen

Definition: A condition where constant pulling and tension on an area of the hair results in thinning, breakage and/or hair loss. This is commonly seen in women and children who braid the hair too tightly particularly at the hairline or wear the same style over extended periods of time, not allowing the scalp and hair follicles to “rest.”via Traction Alopecia.

 I hope this is helpful !

Beauty, Causes of Hair Loss, Hair Care, Hair Loss Tips

Tips for blow drying your hair

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Ladies – are you blow drying your hair too much? Do you know how much is “too much”? Well neither do we.  However,  have you thought about air drying your hair occasionally, or not washing your hair so often? Below are some tips and great suggestions we found online about what you can do to avoid hair loss by damaging your hair when using a blow dryer.  Don’t forget to click on the links provided to get further details.

♦ As far as blow dryer heat goes don’t use the high heat setting except in the beginning when hair is still very wet, once hair starts to feel mostly dry it’s time to turn down the heat.

♦ If you start to smell hairs burning it’s time to use the cold shot if you have one to cool it. Once hair is damaged from burning or any other way it is permanent.

♦ The only way to really get rid of damaged hair is to cut it off, which you will in time.

♦ If you curl your hair with hot rollers or curling irons you can go old school every now and then and use regular rollers and rags like they used to before all of these hairstyling tools were invented.

♦ One last way to help prevent blow dryer damage is to use hair protectants. There are many on the market these days designed specifically to apply to hair before blow drying for this purpose.
via http://www.infobarrel.com/Does_a_Blow_Dryer_Damage_Hair#ixzz1rEEMzJ00

Read more:  http://www.thehairstyler.com/features/articles/hairstyles/blow-drying-hair-tips-how-to-get-a-style-that-lasts

I hope this is helpful

Beauty Change, Hair Loss Tips, HairBlues POV, In the Know

Disguising Your True Beauty

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How many disguises have you created since you learned that you would be counted among the innumerable women undergoing hair loss? HairBlues has written about it before, and although hair loss by itself is not a life threatening process, it does indeed bring high concern, and anxiety to many.  The stories at the Women’s Hair Loss Project blog brings us further understanding of what it can be like to find yourself in this predicament. At the same time, there are also uplifting stories from women who have managed to get married, have productive lives, and moved on with this challenge in hand.  We hope you will too.

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At HairBlues we feel compassion for those many women who have not found their comfort level yet.  We can only hope they discover that with, or without, their disguises in reality their true beauty is within them.  Surely, others really looking for true beauty will find it in them too.

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The American Hair Loss Association has given some guidelines for attacking hair loss proactively.  Make sure to visit the blog when the opportunity is right for you.

♦ Oral Contraceptives are a common cause of hair loss for many women today. Women who use oral contraceptives need to be sure they are taking a low androgen index pill. Read More…via American Hair Loss Association – Womens Hair Loss.

♦ Women are in a “Catch-22” position when it comes to drug treatments for androgenetic alopecia. While many drugs may work to some degree for some women, doctors are reluctant to prescribe them, and drug companies aren’t exactly falling over themselves to test existing or new drugs specifically for their ability to prevent and treat female pattern baldness. via American Hair Loss Association – Women’s Hair Loss / Treatment.

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I hope this is helpful !

Beauty Change, HairBlues POV

Challenging Ageism & Ego: A Perspective

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Beauty.

When I find myself obsessing about hair loss, I remember that as we age, we are challenged in the process, and by the process itself.  Losing one’s hair is one of several challenges.  But, let’s concede that hair loss, on its own, is not a life threatening challenge.  Cancer.  Heart Disease, Diabetes.  The need for Bone Marrow. Mastectomy.  These are just a few challenges that can intrude into one’s life.  I would bet that you never thought of hair loss in a positive way!

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Well, today think again. Step up to the challenge to move forward by thinking in a  positive way.  See  yourself differently.  Reinvent.  Be grateful that all you have to do is make a beauty change. Or, think of yourself as  a beauty change.

Let’s get busy being grateful!

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Hair Loss Tips, In the Know

The Latest & Greatest Promise: Invati !

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AVEDA is promising  it has found a solution for thinning hair. This apparent solution reduces hair loss by 33%!  It cannot bring back the hair you have lost; however using their product can substantially help you to keep the hair you have. AVEDA products are mostly plant-based.  You may want to check out what they think about their products.  Here’s a little summary of what they have to say: “Ever since a hairdresser founded Aveda in 1978, our products have been harvested with respect for the earth, in harmony with the web of life.” via Discover Aveda

Below is an interesting comment I found on-line about the product (Make sure to click the Tumblr link for more comments).

About Invati

Aveda’s Invati line is for Hair Regrowth. It is not for people who simply wish to have thicker hair, use Pure Abundance for that.

The Shampoo and Conditioner are designed to do is keep the scalp from building up too much oil, so balding people can go back to only washing it every other day, like you should be doing (Washing it every day dries out your scalp and hair). What the Spray is designed to do is invigorate (hence the name) the scalp of those who are balding, forcing the hair follicles to start producing hair again. I don’t know why they’re using that Kim Kardishian (?) lookalike for the ads. Invati is just a better Rogaine. via invati | Tumblr.

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Hair Blues  suggestion: You may want to stop by the Aveda store and ask for a sample.  That’s what I did.  I used the shampoo and conditioner, and liked the result.  Of course it’s too early to report long range results 🙂

I hope this is helpful.  See you at the next Post 🙂

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Causes of Hair Loss, In the Know

Research Gives Hope to Cure Baldness in Future

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Encouraging News!  It looks like that  in  about five (5) years there could be a cure for baldness. I am sure that some of you have heard about the discovery made by Drs. Cotsarelis and Garza,  co-inventors on a patent owned by the University of Pennsylvania describing the PGD2 pathway as a target for inhibiting hair loss. via Perelman School of Medicine Experts Identify Inhibitor Causing Male Pattern Baldness and Target for Hair Loss Treatments.

Although you may not   suffer from total baldness, it is still worthwhile knowing about this possible cure. Don’t be discouraged that the article focuses on ‘male pattern baldness’.  Women will also benefit in the future from this discovery.

Below are some of the Key Points covered in the article:

♦  Significant protein Prostaglandin D synthase (PDG2), also called PGD2, showed up in high levels of men with baldness.

♦  Scientists learned that PDG2 was not in areas of the body which have much more hair.

♦  Scientists concluded that the PDG2 protein impedes hair follicle growth.

♦  Scientist hope to find a way to block PDG2, which could reverse balding, or prevent balding.

I am sure there are special thanks being expressed to the doctors and researchers who have devoted their time and efforts to the balding issue.

You can read more about the research at: http://stm.sciencemag.org/

See you at the next Post! 🙂