About 6.8 million people in the United States will deal with alopecia areata within their lifetime, according to the National Alopecia Areata Foundation, and Ashley Tisdale is one of those people. On January 11, the Disney Channel alum posted a short video in which she explained that she was diagnosed with the autoimmune disease and shared some of the things she has done to treat her hair loss.
Tisdale opened the video by recalling how she noticed a bald spot near her hairline in her early 20s and asked her hair colorist what was going on. That was the day she discovered what alopecia was and subsequently went to her dermatologist, who diagnosed her with the autoimmune disease. She learned how much stress can trigger the condition, and at the time she was dealing with a lot of it. "So the hair grew back, and it always does, thankfully. But there's been a couple of times in my life where I've had very stressful events," she said. "And I've noticed that it will come back and wanted to share a couple of things that have helped me because it can be stressful just even having it."
Two key things she does are stress management and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections. Though completely eliminating stress isn't possible (and if anyone has the secret, please let us know), Tisdale likes to invest in yoga, therapy, meditation, and simply reevaluating her priorities. "A lot of time my cortisol is up because I'm sometimes putting stress on myself for no reason, so it's really important to know what is actually a big deal versus what's not a big deal," she explained.
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PRP injections are "more of an expensive route," but she said they were extremely effective at eliminating the bald spot near her hairline. For those who've heard of or gotten the infamous vampire facial, PRP injections for hair loss are quite similar. It involves taking a patient's blood, filtering it to separate the platelet-rich plasma from the red blood cells, and then injecting that plasma into the affected area. She noted she recently tried the treatment on another bald spot behind her ear, so she's excited about the results.
Unfortunately, there is still no cure for alopecia or other hair loss-related conditions, but hopefully hearing from Tisdale convinces more folks to feel comfortable talking through their issues. "Know that if you struggle with it you are not alone."
Read more stories about hair loss:
- I Lost My Hair in My 20s
- How to Care for Your Skin If You Have Alopecia
- The Future of Hair Loss Treatments Will Involve a Lot More Robots
Now enjoy how this Howard University's dance captain gets ready for each performance:
