Many people may complain of problems such as dandruff, premature gray hair, increased functioning of the sebaceous glands, or hair loss. Most often, a visit to a trichologist helps to cope with these "ailments", but the doctor may be powerless, because the cause of the disease, in particular, hair loss, lies in the psychological state of a person. To solve this problem, it is important to understand the causes of hair loss in psychosomatics.
Psychosomatic diseases
Often , hair loss, if there are no other objective reasons, is a psychosomatic disease and indicates problems with the psychological state of a person. Psychosomatic diseases are diseases that have physical manifestations, but whose causes lie in the human psyche. There are several hypotheses for the appearance of these diseases.
The first suggests that psychosomatic illnesses can be caused by stress from insurmountable psychological trauma.
The main idea of the second hypothesis is that stress is caused by the presence in one individual of different motives, but the same strength.
The third hypothesis suggests that the psychosomatics of hair loss lies in depression caused by unresolved psychological conflicts.
The mechanism of psychosomatic hair loss
Strong feelings, be it fear, anxiety, or any other negative emotion, make the human body react in a certain way. Therefore, being an integral part of the body systems, the skin is also exposed to internal processes. For example, during fear, the body mobilizes, there is an influx of blood to the currently vital systems and its outflow from “unnecessary” organs, including the skin. Thus, the hair ceases to receive the nutrients and oxygen brought by the blood. With constant experience of fear by a person, damage to the hair follicles begins, as a result of which hair loss begins.
If a person has experienced strong fear or this feeling has been present in his life for a long time, damage to hair follicles can become irreversible. If the negative experience was episodic and did not recur in the near future, hair restoration occurs in normal mode and will last about 3-4 months. It is worth noting that the psychosomatics of hair loss in women is the same as in men, only they are more prone to similar problems.
The reason is neurosis
Of course, many factors unrelated to the psyche can be the cause of hair loss. The exact cause of the disease will allow you to find out only the passage of the examination. However, the presence of the following series of symptoms gives the right to suggest the psychosomatic nature of the disease:
- In addition to hair loss, there is a general deterioration in the condition of the skin and nails. The appearance of symptoms such as brittle nails, the acquisition of a skin of a gray painful shade, peeling, indicates the presence of a psychosomatic disease.
- Gradual loss process. If hair loss has reasons not related to the psyche, it happens quickly enough, but if there is a psychosomatic disease, hair loss will occur gradually, with an increase in the number of hairs that fell out per day.
- Hair not only falls out, but also deteriorates. Volume loss occurs, dullness appears, sebaceous glands begin to work more intensively, as a result of which there is a need to increase the frequency of shampooing.
Causes of Hair Loss: Psychosomatics
Various factors can lead to psychosomatic hair loss, but there are a number of causes that are most common. Firstly, even a little stress can lead to hair loss if a person has a genetic predisposition to it. Secondly, the psychosomatics of hair loss lies in any significant event, a shock that caused severe stress. And thirdly, very often a state of internal conflict can cause psychosomatic problems with hair. Hair begins to fall out if a person is constantly engaged in "self-eating." Unresolved problems caused, for example, by complexes, feelings of guilt or resentment, cause a person to be in a state of constant stress. Similar problems can be caused by turmoil in the family or sexuality.
Hypothesis of Liz Burbo
The problem of diseases not caused by physical factors has been dealt with and continues to be dealt with by many psychologists. Liz Burbo has achieved particular success in this area. In her books, she also addresses hair loss. Psychosomatics Liz Burbo explains this process, in general, not contradicting statements about the effect of prolonged stress and shock on a person. Bourbo's hypothesis also suggests that hair is a kind of conductor of cosmic (or divine) energy from the Universe to the human head, which symbolizes the inner self. Thus, the psychologist concludes that if problems with the hair are observed, this suggests that the person has lost the ability to independently build his life due to lack of faith in divine energy.
People who have such problems, Liz Burbo advises to be themselves and remember that the material world should not displace the spiritual, as well as do not forget to believe in their own strength and help from the universe.
Hypothesis Louise Hay
The study of physical diseases associated with the psychological state, and engaged in Louise Hey, who is a well-known author of motivating books, the main focus of which is self-help. Of course, one of the subjects of her research is hair loss. Psychosomatics (Louise Hay is convinced of this) plays a key role in this process. The author believes that hair loss begins to occur due to a person’s desire to have total control over the situation, as well as due to an incredulous attitude to life and constant tension. As a solution to this problem, she advises using affirmations. A person who wants to be cured of an illness needs to replace his negative views with thoughts that he trusts the world, that he is completely safe, and also needs to remember his love for himself.
Treatment
Hair restoration is a very important process, since problems with the appearance that began due to loss of hair can also aggravate the psychological state. The psychosomatics of hair loss is directly related to a person’s sense of self.
When treating hair, it is necessary to use special shampoos and masks, which are sold in specialized stores. You also need to add to the diet products containing vitamins A, groups B, D, E. Every day you need to do a head and neck massage to improve blood flow to the hair follicles. Well, and, of course, since the disease has a psychosomatic nature, it is necessary to get rid of the cause of stress or, if the shock was solitary, to avoid new troubles. Depending on the situation, you should consult a psychologist. A haircut can also help, many experts believe that getting rid of old hair will help to leave the burden of feelings in the past. Moreover, this procedure is also useful at the physical level for damaged hair.
Prevention
Psychosomatics for hair loss is quite problematic, therefore, to avoid such troubles, it is worth taking care of prevention.
The main measure to prevent this disease is to work on your psychological state. Various physical exercises can also help. They increase blood flow to all organs, and also cause a surge in endorphins, which is good for the psychological state. This is an important point, since very often the psychosomatics of hair loss is associated with a lack of joy in life.