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Stress and Hairloss |
Hair loss due to stress is a common problem which affects men and women of all ages. The Oxford dictionary's definition of stress is "that stress is a demand upon physical or mental energy".
Stress can be defined in a variety of ways:
Stress is feeling bad, due to troubles beyond our control.
The reaction of the mind and body to change.
Stress is everywhere and seems to be a recent phenomenon.
Stress is unpleasant and has little to do with happy events.
Stress is related to change.
It differs from person to person. When people become depressed or stressed out due to any of these reasons, their physical and mental health gets affected and this leads to hair loss due to stress.
Stress occurs at many levels out of which two we experience everyday and they are: primary stress, which is the type that affects you directly and the secondary stress that is usually caused from a third party at a subconscious level. The primary type of stress can occur from anything that affects you directly such as, financial difficulties, marital problems, too much workload or a medical condition.
Secondary stress can occur when you hear about someone's misfortune, for example, when watching news, a violent movie and/or witness an accident to name a few instances. Both types of stress can have severe side effects out of which one is hair loss.
How does stress cause hair loss
Your hair is one of the first places your body shows distress. Illness, medication and imbalances in nutrition all show up in your hair and scalp.
Hair growth is a complex phenomenon. There is an active growth period in which your hair grows actively for a period of about two years. Then there is a rest period in which there is no growth. Then comes a fall period in which the hair falls from your scalp. When you are stressed out, it has a negative effect on your entire body and your hair goes from active growth phase to rest phase very quickly. Then, within a few months, you start losing a considerable amount of hair. This process is usually called Telogen effluvium.
Few techniques to avoid stress:
• Dissociate from the worries, try to ignore the problem thereby reducing anxiety and stress.
• Have Fun, laugh and cheer yourself up you will find most problems diminish in size.
• Work off stress through any type of exercise. Any kind of physical activity will usually leave you feeling relaxed and rational about your problems.
• Relaxation is a great way to fight stress. Try to lie down in a quiet place for twenty minutes each day in a darkened room, let nothing disturb you and just concentrate on feeling good about yourself.
• Too little or too much sleep affects our lives, leading to health problems and the results can cause deterioration in the appearance of your hair and skin. Get at least 6 to 8 hours of sleep at every night. Relaxation and exercise will also help you sleep at night.
• Everyday diet must achieve a balance among the essential nutrients, protein, fat and carbohydrates, as well as vitamins and minerals, to achieve a healthy, balanced body. We need to eat a variety of foods in each of these groups for maximum health
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Tips of Ayurveda for Stress
1.Brahmi helps to awaken the crown chakra and balance the right and left hemispheres of the brain.
2.Chandan-Calms down the stress by suppressing Pitta dosha.
3.Yashtimadhu improves cognitive functions of the brain.
4.Ashwagandha is proven anti-stress herb. This regulates the chemical-imbalance in the brain.
5.Stress vitiates Prana Vata, which governs the activity and energy of the brain.
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Stress and Ayurveda at Hairline
Ayurveda, the "Science of Life. Ayurveda believes this to be Maanas Dosha (mental disorder).
There are three different manifestations of day-to-day stress from the perspective of Maharishi Ayurveda - mental, emotional, and physical. Each requires different approaches and therapies.
Mental Stress
Mental stress, according to ayurveda, is caused by an overuse or misuse of the mind. For instance, if you perform intense mental work many hours a day, or if you work long hours on the computer, it can cause an imbalance in Prana Vata, the mind-body operator concerned with brain activity, energy and the mind. The first symptom of Prana Vata imbalance is losing the ability to handle day-to-day stress. As the person becomes more stressed, it impacts mental functions such as dhi, dhriti, and smriti-acquisition, retention, and recall. The person's mind becomes hyperactive, yet the person loses the ability to make clear decisions, to think positively, to feel enthusiastic, and even to fall asleep at night.
To address day-to-day mental stress, it is important to begin by managing mental activity. Secondly, you can take measures to pacify Prana Vata, for example, by:
• Favoring Vata-balancing foods, such as sweet, sour, and salty tastes.
• Favoring warm milk and other light dairy products
• Performing a full-body warm oil self-massage everyday
It is important to get plenty of rest, and if you are having trouble falling sleep, avoid stimulants like caffeine and sip on herbal tea instead. Relaxing aromatherapy and meditation can help calm the mind.
Emotional Stress Emotional stress can be caused by a problem in a relationship, the loss of a relative, or any situation that might hurt the heart. Emotional stress shows up as irritability, depression, and emotional instability. It affects sleep in a different way than mental stress - it can cause you to wake up in the night and not be able to go back to sleep.
Emotional stress disturbs Sadhaka Pitta, the mind-body operator concerned with the emotions and functioning of the heart. To balance emotional stress, you need to favor Pitta-pacifying foods and routine, such as:
• Eating lots of sweet juicy fruits
• Favoring Pitta-pacifying foods such as the sweet, bitter and astringent tastes.
• Drinking a cup of warm milk with cooling rose petal preserve before bed
• Cooking with cooling spices such as cardamom, coriander, cilantro, and mint
• A daily self-massage with a cooling oil such as coconut oil
• Going to bed before 10:00 p.m.
Physical Stress
Physical stress is caused by misuse or overuse of the body, such as exercising too much or working for extended periods at a job that is physically taxing. This can cause a person to experience physical fatigue, along with mental fogginess, difficulty in concentrating, and dullness of the mind. The solution is to balance Vata and to support Kapha to make the body more stable and nurturing, for example, by:
• Getting adequate rest and moderate exercise
• Following a Vata-Kapha pacifying diet
• Performing the full-body warm oil self massage everyday
Certain foods are natural stress busters according to ayurveda. These include walnuts, almonds, coconut, sweet juicy, seasonal fruit such as pears, apples (cooked if possible), milk, and fresh cheeses such as panir or ricotta.
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