Expert tips for healthy hair from a hair and scalp specialist
When I get older, losing my hair, many years from now…. Oh wait, I am older! In actual fact, I just turned 64 and I have some great hair tips for you. I want to share my journey about hair loss so that you all will know what is available to you. It was not straightforward for me, I just got lucky and I want to share this with you.
My shiny hair in the sun is partly because my hair cuticle is closed and healthy. Note: I should be wearing a hat to protect my head and hair.
Hair is a huge deal. It is our crowning glory. It is a huge part of our overall look. I never imagined being concerned that I might be losing it. My hair, I mean. I am definitely losing it in other ways, but I never considered what losing my hair might be like.
Healthy hair is a confidence booster.
I did experience hormonal hair loss when I had my three children. I was quite surprised by this at first but my hair recovered nicely. A couple of years ago I decided to let my hair go its natural silver. It was a big decision and took its sweet time to look good but now I get compliments on it often, even from total strangers. Great, right?
This past year I had noticed a lot of shedding and a loss in volume. It was quite scary and of course, I googled myself silly. I noticed lots of long silvery strands on my clothing. I thought I was simply noticing them more because of the silver colour. Let me take you back to what I have learned and done for my hair loss.
My first course of action was to book an appointment with my doctor. She arranged for a blood test to check my thyroid and my iron levels but beyond that was not aware of anything in the world of hair or scalp health. My results from those tests were all at the normal levels.
I also went to my hairdresser of twenty years for a trim and as I discussed my concerns with her she told me she was having a lot of clients complaining about this issue. Again, she was not aware of anything I could do to improve my hair health beyond getting a referral to a dermatologist.
I was ready to put anything on my head (ANYTHING!) or ingest a mountain of vitamins. Then, by a spot of luck, someone told me about a place called Capilia here in Victoria. I went there the next day and discussed my issues. I booked an appointment with Kara, the Trichologist (dermatologist that specializes in the health of scalp and hair).
Kara was amazing and did a thorough examination of my scalp with a device that projected images onto a screen for me to see and we took images for my progress file. She explained that your scalp is much like the soil in a garden and that you needed to have it healthy in order to have any hope of having good results with the garden that is your hair. I’m all about that analogy and it made total sense to me. A lightbulb moment for sure.
Kara arranged for me to come for a lovely scalp treatment on April 2 and after this lovely treatment I was sent home with a regime that was simply,
brushing my scalp twice a day with a boar bristle brush. It takes about two minutes and feels lovely. You don’t need to spend a fortune on the brush. Mine was $30. Just make sure it is your scalp getting the stimulation and not just your hair. That’s the key.
alternating my Capilia shampoos between their dry scalp shampoo and their shampoo for fine and thinning hair. With the shampoo I do a quick all over shampoo and rinse and then a second lather that I leave on my hair and scalp for 2 or 3 minutes…basically while I wash my body. After the shampoo I apply a conditioner and leave that for 1-2 minutes. It does make for a longer shower than usual but I love it. Then put a few drops of hair serum on my towel dried hair to different areas on my scalp. Style as usual. Simple!
This is not an advertisement. I wanted to share what has been working for me. I paid for my treatment and all of my products xo
I followed her instructions to a T! I went back for a check up on Friday, May 17. That was 6 weeks after my scalp brushing regime and hair products. I was asked by Kara how I thought my hair was doing. I told her I was overjoyed with the health of my hair! It was so shiny and soft. She was very happy to hear that but the truth was in the microscope examination of my scalp. (insert drum roll here) I had, in every tiny millimetre, healthy scalp and tons of tiny new baby hairs, all healthy, ready to populate my head.
I got a little trim yesterday too and my hairdresser is so happy to learn more about Trichology. She is now recommending her clients see one if they have concerns about their hair. She couldn’t believe all my tiny baby hairs since my last visit :)
Ladies, if you are experiencing hair or scalp concerns of any kind, I encourage you to seek a blood test from your GP just to rule out thyroid issues or anemia, and after that seek out a Trichologist. Main stream dermatologists don’t seem to even want to treat hair/scalp issues and usually would recommend something like minoxidil. A Trichologist will explore all of the options that are available to you that will help your specific issue and will start you on a wonderful regimen for your scalp health. I could not be happier. If there are no services near you, you can order the products on line and try them. As Kara told me, all I needed was a simple regime and time to see results.