Anyone can experience hair loss — even young, healthy people like American Salon writer Nikki Grcic. Here is her perspective seeking answers through a custom scalp-care consultation.
A few years ago, I started seeing my scalp more clearly in some parts of my head, along with a lot of hair coming out every time I brushed. To make matters worse, my hair wasn’t growing back.
For someone in their early 20s, this sudden hair loss was unexpected, to say the least — and scary. Stress hit me like a ton of bricks, which I’m sure made me lose even more hair. Talk about the cycle of destruction!
I have very fine and thin hair with an oily scalp, and because of that, used dry shampoo religiously. After consulting with experts (including my stylist) I learned my hair loss was occurring due to a hormonal imbalance plus my relationship with dry shampoo, which was clogging my scalp and preventing regrowth.
I went on a supplement plan to deal with the hormonal changes, and stopped using dry shampoo. My scalp and hair both felt healthier, and my hair started growing again (though it is still thinning along the hairline).
I had seen high-definition scalp camera technology at the International Beauty Shows, and was always intrigued to try it and find out what is really going on up there. So when I was invited to the Hårklinikken scalp health clinic in New York for a custom consultation, I was excited. I couldn’t wait to see what my scalp looked like in my post-dry shampoo era.
When I arrived at Hårklinikken, I met with hair specialist Louise Paul to discuss my hair-care routine and type, diet, lifestyle, and health concerns. After talking through my hair with Louise, she sat me down, handed me an iPad, and pulled out the scalp camera.
I’d never seen my scalp this close-up, so to view it in high definition brought on a state of shock, awe, and even a bit of fear.
We started at the nape of my head; I had two to three follicles growing out of each pore. As we moved up to the top, closer to my hairline, the oiliness, dandruff, and thinning became more apparent. To my surprise there was a bit of redness too — I didn’t think I had a sensitive scalp.
This got me thinking just how many people are using products that might be right for their hair, but all wrong for their scalp.
Louise then took me through the products I would be using based on my scalp analysis. She recommended Hårklinikken’s Stabilizing Scalp Shampoo and Daily Conditioner, Intense & Hydrating Hair Mask, Bamboo & Quinoa Styling Gel, Hair Hydrating Crème, and their custom Hair Gain Extract, which was formulated for my specific needs (and mixed up right in front of me) and would be optimized over the course of my treatment.
After, we took pictures of my hairline in the fabulous combover fashion for reference points for my follow-up in two months.
I left the clinic feeling hopeful, like I was finally getting to the root — pun intended — of my hair-loss issues. I reflected on how game-changing it would be for everyone if this type of information were more available to the average person.
So many people, including me up until this visit, have little to no idea what is going on with their scalp. Solving this knowledge gap would mean a world of difference to people dealing with hair loss, plus a whole new stream of revenue for salons as well.
Stay tuned for Part 2 of Nikki’s scalp health journey.