Alopecia areata and mental health

Alopecia areata is an autoimmune disease that affects the hair and, in some cases, also the body hair on the arms and legs, as well as the beard, eyebrows and eyelashes. This condition occurs when our immune system mistakenly attacks the hair follicles.

There are different types of alopecia depending on the condition. Patchy or localized alopecia areata is the most common, affecting 70% of patients . Approximately 15-25% of people develop alopecia totalis (affecting the scalp) or alopecia universalis (involving complete loss of hair and body hair).

Each person deals with their condition of alopecia areata differently. Therefore, it is important to assess both the severity of hair loss and the psychological impact it has on the patient.

The psychological impact of alopecia

Alopecia can have a significant impact on a person's mental, emotional and psychological health. Hair loss can affect self-image, self-esteem and self-confidence , and is often especially difficult for people who have lost their hair suddenly or in large quantities.

Alopecia areata is related to psychological and social problems that are often undervalued, due to a lack of support and recognition of the patient's feelings. It should be remembered that the emotional impact not only occurs in patients with alopecia, but also extends to family members. Some studies have observed that parents of children who suffer from alopecia areata see their quality of life altered to a greater extent than that of the child with alopecia.

Alopecia areata and quality of life

Many patients feel uncomfortable or worried after the diagnosis of their alopecia due to a lack of understanding of the disease. This translates into difficulties in establishing new romantic relationships and maintaining existing ones . In some quality of life studies, patients expressed that they did not feel comfortable discussing their diagnosis with their new partner and feared they would not be attractive.

Both men and women reported feeling insecure about their appearance and experienced a decreased quality of sexual life, due to embarrassment and anxiety related to hair loss . Some interviewees even ended a romantic relationship due to alopecia, while others tried to hide their baldness at home for fear of what their partner might think .

Other studies that have evaluated the mental health of adult patients with alopecia areata describe that between 30% and 68% of cases present anxiety and depression . Many affected people choose to use wigs or hairpieces, but it has been shown that their use can affect the quality of life: it is related to the reduction of physical activity due to fear that it will become displaced, or the avoidance of day-to-day activities such as going to shop, socialize or even leave the house due to the anxiety caused by someone noticing their hair loss.

It should be noted that, in addition to personal image and stigmatization, hair loss on the scalp is associated with greater sensitivity to cold and heat , as well as a high risk of sunburn. Cases of alopecia universalis also cause the loss of eyebrows, eyelashes and nasal hair, leading to problems with eye irritation, functional impairment of vision, runny nose and repeated sneezing.

Measures to improve mental health

It is very important to recognize the medical nature of alopecia areata , as a resource to address the stigmatization of both the patient himself and society . We must allocate resources to improve the quality of life and mental health of the patient, applying measures to support research, the development of new therapies and the understanding of patients.

Anxiety, depression, social isolation, shame, frustration and sadness are some of the emotions that can arise due to alopecia . Hair loss can make people feel insecure about their physical appearance and feel less attractive.

We need to open the dialogue about the relationship between mental health and dermatological diseases such as alopecia areata , as a way to provide our patients, family or friends with the support they need. In this sense, Olistic is a holistic and 100% natural treatment, which in addition to improving hair quality, has ingredients in its formula that help modulate certain factors derived from stress in our body.