When can I expect hair loss from stress to go back to normal and what will it look like when it does?

Hair  loss from telogen effluvium usually returns within 6 to 9 months, although it sometimes takes as much as a year. You will start to see new hair growth as hairs cycle from telogen to anagen. This is a slow process. the process can be followed with magnification by a hair loss expert. If there is an underlying androgenic alopecia, some hairs may not regrow or return miniaturized. Your hair loss expert can give you treatments to recruit these hairs.
Jeff Rapaport MD
Core Aesthetic Realself

Hair loss that is diagnosed as due to stress may or may not grow back fully. Sometimes it does of course but sometimes the chronic shedding precipitates androgenetic alopecia (ie speeds up its arrival). I have referred to the via the term “accelerated follicular miniaturization from prolonged shedding (AFMPS)”. Hair loss that truly is due to stress grows back when the stress stops. Management of stress can be challenging for many people which facilitates ongoing shedding. It may be helpful to note that 30% of cases I see that are initially thought to be due to stress are probably not due to stress at all. They are due to another diagnosis altogether, particularly androgenetic alopecia.If your hair does not improve, be sure to inquire deeper.

Dear Pastafanatic99,Hello and thank you for your excellent question. I suggest that you start Finasteride and Minoxidil, as they are the only two medications for hair loss approved by the FDA. For women of child-bearing age, I use spironolactone instead of finasteride. Both medications have different mechanism of action, and I usually recommend both medications to my patients. Other adjuncts include low-level laser light therapy, PRP, stem cell, or other regenerative medical treatment. Also, you will want to ensure that you are not taking any medications that could be contributing to your hair loss. The main objectives with the combination treatments are to stabilize your hair loss, increase your existing hair fiber diameter, and stimulate some hair regrowth. After those options are completed, I recommend hair transplant, including FUE or FUT. It is best to answer your question during a face-to-face evaluation, when you can discuss your goals and expectations for the procedure, and you can have a physical examination to evaluate for that procedure. I recommend that you find a board-certified, or board-eligible plastic surgeon with whom you are comfortable. Be sure to have all of your questions answered during a face-to-face meeting with your surgeon, and review before and after pictures of similar patients whom have had this procedure. If you have any questions, call our office for assistance. Good luck!

Best,

Jon Ver Halen, MD FACS

Harvard educated plastic surgeon

Texas “Top Doc” 2017, 2018

RealSelf100

America’s Top Plastic Surgeons, Consumer’s Research Council, 2010 – 2018

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