Some random things about hairloss that you just might not think about...

At the Alton Towers event hosted by the fabulous Alopecia UK, I spent a large amount of time meeting new people and chatting through our own experiences of hairloss, the things we'd felt, the things we'd learned and even the things we hadn't!

As inevitably happens, once you start chatting, it's difficult to stop and along the way we admitted some 'deep, dark secrets' (not really) and there were definitely some revelations that you're not the only one experiencing...

1. Yes, your nose hair may fall out, and yes it will dribble! Not your average topic of conversation, but we spent over half an hour discussing it! Many of us thought it was our own weird affliction, but no - you're not alone! It makes sense though, just like the hair on your head, many people with hairloss (alopecia or otherwise), will lose the hair in their nose! It isn't glamourous, but a handy pack of Kleenex will be a handbag essential!
2. Yes, the bits you don't want will grow first. This seems to be an affliction all us baldies suffer from - no, the hair on your head will not come back first - it will be underarm hair, a patch on your leg, or even the monobrow eyebrow hairs in the middle that you used to pluck first! Many also highlighted a hobbit feet affliction, highlighting growth on big toes that wasn't even there before the hairloss! Great that there's hair growth, that's a positive sign, but resign yourself to the annoying bits first! 
3. It may be sore or uncomfortable. This varies from person to person, but for some hairloss will be a little bit painful. About half of us involved in the discussion had experienced tenderness, itching, irritation or discomfort as the hair fell out and apparently this is entirely normal. One theory behind this is that the immune system is attacking the healthy skin cells at the same time, but this is entirely unproven.
4. You may be more prone to ear infections! This won't affect everyone, but some have experienced an increase in ear infections. There are thousands of tiny hairs inside the ear which act as protection from falling debris, insects etc. just like your lashes - it is thought that loss of these hairs can increase susceptability to ear infections, but only about 25% had experienced this side effect. 
5. You may get a little more deaf. The ear has about 18,000 internal hair follicles, which are used to measure and interpret sound waves enabling you to hear. Obviously, they are not the only factor in hearing (otherwise we'd all be deaf) but some people will lose a percentage of these hairs and will experience a change in your hearing. 
6. You're nails might well be rubbish. Just like hair, your nails are made from Keratin, and whilst Alopecia is focussed on the hair, a great many alopecians also experience problems with their nails. From ridges to pitting and not to mention long periods of non-growth, it's quite likely your nails will become weak, brittle and very short. This is something I have experienced since before my hairloss, but it is definitely worse now, but again there were an equal number of people who'd never had a problem!

We spent a long time talking about this and that's one of the things I love about support events - sharing experiences and realising that big or small, you really aren't alone!

Whatever your hairloss cause, find others in the same boat as you and it will help make things so much easier!

Victoria x

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