Aromatherapy For Hair Loss - Personal Experience

Horrified by my own reflection, I fell to the cool tile of my bathroom floor and sobbed uncontrollably. “Why God, why are you doing this?” I demanded. It was now impossible to conceal my baldness with the few strands of hair remaining on my scalp. It was inevitable…soon I would be completely bald.

It all began when I was seven years old. I can still remember the day. Mom sat me in a chair under the big oak tree in our yard and began brushing my long chestnut brown hair. The sun shone in my face as I dangled my bare feet in the soft green grass. This deeply relaxing moment was abruptly interrupted when Mom discovered a small, perfectly round bald patch at the nape of my neck.

The patch eventually filled in with new hair, but soon another patch appeared. At times I had two or three bald patches at once. Although they were well hidden beneath my long layers of hair, knowing they were there made me feel like a mangy old dog.
My parents carted me from doctor to doctor until we finally accepted the fact that there was no known cause or cure for the mysterious, but common hair follicle disorder called alopecia areata. I didn’t like it but I learned to live with it – until many years later (at age 32) my hair started falling out by the handfuls. This time it wasn’t growing back as it always had in the past. Within the next two months alopecia areata robbed me of almost every hair on my body. Not even my eyelashes or eyebrows were spared. It was unclear whether I had developed another form of hair loss along with the alopecia areata; or if the alopecia areata had progressed to alopecia totalis meaning total loss of scalp and body hair.

I was advised to get a good wig and get on with my life. With an ache in my heart and a sick feeling in my stomach I took a deep breath, and entered the wig shop. The sales person asked what my hair – when I used to have hair, looked like. She quickly proceeded to locate a dark brown shoulder length wig and plopped in on my head. “There” she said, “you look beautiful, just like a movie star.”

“I look like an Elvis impersonator,” I cried as I flung the thick hairy bush off my head and left the shop. I didn’t want to be bald. I didn’t want to be Elvis. I just wanted to be me again and without hair that seemed impossible.
Eventually with the help of a hair stylist friend, I purchased a more suitable, natural looking wig. My friend enthusiastically mentioned aromatherapy as a method to help thinning hair and hair loss. Feeling hopeful, I armed myself with every book I could find.

Learning about how essential oils can help stimulate the scalp into producing new hair, was fascinating. Each type of oil had its own function such as cleansing, nourishing, increasing circulation, supplying oxygen, balancing ph levels etc. As I continued experimenting, I learned which oils complemented each other and began mixing my own formulas.

Every evening I massaged the essential oil blends into my scalp. Their soothing aroma seemed to lure me into a deep sleep. In the morning I washed the oils out. Instinctively I knew this was going to work for me.

Becoming absorbed in learning everything I could about the healing powers of aromatherapy allowed me to stop focusing on my hair loss. Taking control of my own health gave me a new sense of confidence. I learned that aromatherapy works on many different levels. It works in harmony with the body’s own natural healing system.

Soon I felt an overall sense of well-being. I was beginning to look and feel better. Within three months of applying the oils I began to notice very fine, soft new hairs covering my scalp. Later the hair began to thicken and darken and I was finally able to discard my wig!

My new hair was dark, shiny and healthy looking. I vowed to keep it that way by continuing to use aromatherapy and natural hair care products.

For over fifteen years now I’ve been able to maintain my hair. I still have small bouts with hair loss occasionally but I am able to get it under control and get the re-growth started again before it becomes noticeable.

Using aromatherapy for hair care was only the beginning. Now, lining my bathroom shelves are 20 small amber glass bottles. Each bottle contains a different essential oil, each one unique in its aroma and healing properties. My family knows which bottle to pull out to help ward off a cold, reduce a fever, heal a burn, and ease a headache or calm frazzled nerves!

Losing my hair was a painful, life changing experience. But it was this experience that led me to explore aromatherapy and to experience the beauty and power of nature’s gentle yet potent healing oils.