How to Stop Stress-Related Hair Loss: A Complete Guide for a Healthy Lifestyle and Hair

Are you noticing more hair on your pillow, in your comb, or on the floor? While it’s normal to lose a few strands each day, seeing an increase in hair shedding, especially in the shower drain or on your comb, could be a sign of stress-induced hair loss.

Often, we blame factors like hair care products, weather, or diet for hair loss, but we tend to overlook the impact of our mental well-being. Stress can affect your hair health just as much as any external factor. The good news is that this stress-related hair loss is mostly temporary, and with the right steps, it can be reversed.

That’s why we’ve put together a detailed guide to help you understand stress-induced hair loss, explore its root causes, and learn how to address it with science-backed, DIY methods. We’ll also share steps to improve both your lifestyle and the health of your hair, so you can restore it to its full potential.

What Does Stress-Related Hair Loss Look Like? 

Before you directly decide you have stress-related hair fall, understand what it looks like. Suppose you are going through family problems, office deadline issues, or even exams, then even before you heal from that, suddenly you start seeing excessive hair fall all over everywhere, you might likely have emotional stress hair loss. And here are the key things you might experience during this phase:

• Sudden increase in shedding: Everyone loses 60 to 100 strands daily. But if you suddenly notice thick clumps of hair in your hand while shampooing or combing hair, maybe you have stress hair loss. These strands often look healthy, yet they choose to leave your scalp from the root in full length. 

• No fixed hair loss pattern: Stress hair fall is unpredictable. It never sticks to one pattern or way, regardless of gender. But, if you notice your hair part is widening, the scalp is more visible near the crown or temples, or you feel your pony is getting thinner every passing day, it may be a sign of stress hair loss. This hair loss starts with hair thinning on the top of the scalp. And also, this hair fall is never limited to one spot. It shows signs all over your scalp. 

• No scalp issues or inflammation: Stress hair loss luckily doesn't irritate one directly with harsh scalp health issues like redness, itchiness, or inflammation. Although your scalp looks healthy and normal, it will still have noticeable hair thinning.

• Occurs after a stressful event:  This hair loss doesn't start when you are stressed. Instead, it occurs to you when you are trying to heal from the stress. In other words, stress-related hair loss is a reaction to a stressful event after two or three months.  This stress isn't limited to only emotional; it can be even physical, like losing weight, illness, some surgery, or the death of a loved one, etc.

Medically, this stress-related hair loss is called Telogen Effluvium. Fortunately, this hair loss is temporary and lasts up to six months after the stressful events (even a year sometimes). But that doesn't make it negligible. You should actually work on the key cause to reduce hair shedding and avoid inviting more complications.  

How Does Stress Affect Your Hair Growth Cycle?

You know stress can cause hair loss, you might have questions like, ‘Does anxiety cause hair loss?’ Can even exam stress be the reason behind Telogen Effluvium? And if so, how? So, to understand how stress brings hair shedding, you should understand how hair grows. 

Our hair goes through three stages before leaving the scalp maturely. Here they are: 

1. Anagen/Growing phase: This phase is the longest phase of your hair. In this phase, the scalp moves out older dead cells, and new hair from the follicle grows. Around 80 to 90% of your current hair is in this stage, growing and aging. One hair strand stays in this stage for almost four years.

2. Catagen/Transitional stage: Your 1% of total hair might be in this stage. And they will stay here for two to three weeks. Here, your hair disconnects from the blood supply and stops growing. It gets ready to move to the next phase. 

3. Telogen/Resting phase: This is the last stage of the hair growth cycle. Here, your hair follicles go inactive, rest for around three months, and fall out evenly. Around 15 to 20% of strands are currently in this phase, so you lose 50 to 100 strands daily as this phase ends.
   

But now the question is, how are stress and hair thinning connected? Here’s the truth. Hormones are essential in the hair growth cycle. So, when you are highly stressed, your body reacts to this state by producing more cortisol, a stress-related hormone. Elevated cortisol levels can disrupt this cycle, causing hair follicles to enter the telogen phase (shedding phase), rather than staying in the anagen phase (growth phase). This results in hair shedding earlier than usual.

Typically, about 80–90% of your hair follicles are in the anagen phase, while 10–20% are in the telogen phase. However, during periods of stress, over 15–20% of hair follicles can shift into the telogen phase, disturbing the normal anagen-to-telogen ratio and leading to increased hair shedding. This sudden shift is known as telogen effluvium or follicle shock.

Additionally, stress can affect the circulation of blood to hair follicles, slowing down nutrient absorption and promoting inflammation, which further weakens hair growth.

For instance, if you experience intense stress in January, your body will produce cortisol, leading your hair follicles to enter the telogen phase sooner. Since the telogen phase lasts about three months, you may start noticing increased hair shedding around April.

Easy Lifestyle Changes to Reverse Stress Hair Fall

The easiest way to manage stress hair fall is to reduce or stop the production of cortisol. Which also means you have to reduce or stop stressing out. Therefore, to make that happen, you should do some lifestyle shifts to reverse stress hair fall. Here are six lifestyle tips from our expert to manage your stress hair fall:

• Do Deep Breathing and Meditation

Although this sounds like a generic tip, it actually works. Deep breathing and meditation help to calm your mind and reduce heart rate, blood pressure, and stress hormone cortisol. 

This directly helps you to reduce the hair strands from moving from the anagen phase to telogen, decreasing hair shedding due to stress hair fall. So, start practicing deep breathing or meditation for 10 to 15 minutes daily. Besides, add calm music in the background for a better experience.

• Journal Your Thoughts

Journaling helps in managing emotional stress. Writing down thoughts and feelings daily helps to release, process, and understand stress emotions. It keeps you organized and reduces mental overwhelm and anxiety. This helps you decrease stress hormones like cortisol, which is linked to hair loss. 

You don't need an expensive aesthetic journal with glitter pens to start. Take a random new notebook and start writing your emotions in it every day before sleep. It can be what you did, what is bothering you, what you want to do, or anything.

• Have Good Quality Sleep

Sleeping seven to eight hours promotes hormonal balance, repairs tissues, and reduces cortisol levels. This helps in improving the hair growth cycle. Fixing a sleep schedule can be difficult. So, start by setting a daily fixed time to sleep and wake up, even on the weekends. Try relaxing activities like journaling, reading, or meditating before bed to improve your sleep quality.

• Avoid Screens and Caffeine Before Bed

Using a phone and a laptop late at night is common, but it hampers your brain and sleep more than you think. And the same goes for caffeine. Screen exposure, especially in the evening, increases anxiety and stress symptoms due to heightened fear of missing out. 

It makes it harder for the mind to relax and produce stress hormones. On the other hand, caffeine increases and activates the nervous system. Consuming caffeine before bed makes you stress more, disrupts your sleep cycle, and interferes with the absorption of nutrients in hair. Hence, avoid screens and caffeine at least one hour before bed.  

• Spend Time with Family & Friends

Try connecting with people in person, not just on social media. Spending time with family and friends provides you with emotional support. This makes it easier to handle stress and other challenges. Besides this, regular time with loved ones increases mood-boosting hormones, helping lower stress. 

• Build an Exercise Routine

Build a regular exercise routine, it can be as little as 30 minutes, three times a week. Physical activity lowers cortisol and adrenaline levels, lowering stress that disrupts the hair growth cycle. You don’t have to always join a gym for that. Regular cycling, walking, or basic cardio can help get started. 

Now that you know six lifestyle shifts, let’s help you start your de-stress journey right from here. Follow this daily de-stress checklist to ensure you are taking steps toward managing stress and hair fall every day:

Morning Routine

• Wake up before 8 AM

• Practice five minutes of deep breathing or meditation

• Set a to-do list for the day

• Say positive words to yourself while looking in the mirror

Daytime Routine

• Take a short break between work

• Stay hydrated and don’t skip meals

• Engage with family, friends, and colleagues

• Engage in physical activity

Evening Routine

• Limit caffeine intake after 5 PM

• Avoid screens for one hour before bed at least 

• Practice relaxing activities like reading, journaling, and meditation

• Prepare a comfortable, dark, and calm sleep environment

Scalp & Hair Routine for Stress Recovery

When hair loss is due to stress in females and males, the strands demand internal and external care. Here are six tips to calm your hair strands externally while managing stress hair loss: 

1. Massage your scalp twice a week: Spending even 10 minutes massaging your scalp twice a week can help you relax your mind and hair strands. Using coconut, bhringraj, or brahmi oil. These oils nourish and strengthen your hair strands. Besides, regular hair massage improves blood circulation in the scalp, improving overall hair health. 

2. Use mild and hydrating shampoo: Invest in a gentle, sulfate-free shampoo. Keep two mild shampoos on hand, one hydrating and one for cleansing your scalp. Use them alternately to avoid stripping your hair’s natural oils and moisture while maintaining a clean scalp.

3. Invest in a hair mask: Hair masks help deep condition your hair and restore lost nutrients and oil in your hair follicles. Buy a hair mask that offers intense repair and use it at least twice-weekly. 

4. Avoid heat styling: Exposing your hair to heat regularly strips away hair’s natural oil and moisture, making it dry and brittle. This further weakens your hair strands, resulting in hair fall and breakage. Therefore, avoid heat styling when possible and always use a heat protectant serum and leave-in conditioner whenever you heat style strands. 

5. Choose hairstyle wisely: Your hairstyle highly impacts your hair health. During stress hair loss, weak hair follicles are often damaged on the scalp. Wearing tight hairstyles like ponytails, buns, or braids makes your strands pull. This constant pulling can lead to hair shedding and bald spots. Therefore, always opt for loose, low-tension braids or buns. 

6. Wash your hair less often: Stress hair loss causes most hair shedding during the shower, and washing your hair too often imbalances your scalp’s pH level, weakening and drying strands. So, ensure you pay attention to your hair wash frequency and wash your hair once or twice a week, not more than that.

Besides the above tips, even little changes like using a satin/silk pillowcase, a wide-toothed comb, and a microfiber towel while drying your hair can significantly help to improve your hair health. These fundamental changes might not stop the hair shedding, but they can help reduce it. 

Nutrition to Support Hair Regrowth from Stress

Hair care starts from within. Along with external care, nourishing your body with essential nutrients is crucial to support hair regrowth and combat stress-related hair loss. 

Here are a few key nutrients suggested by experts that can help reverse stress hair loss and strengthen the strands: 

• Iron: It is one of the most common deficiencies that causes hair thinning and worsens stress-related hair loss. Iron is a nutrient that helps to transport oxygen to hair follicles, improving the hair growth cycle. Eat rich sources of iron, such as dates, spinach, and jaggery. 

• Protein: The large part of hair is made of protein called keratin, which helps to build bonds in hair strands, strengthening them. Deficiency in protein intake can lead to brittle, dull, and weak hair, resulting in increased hair shedding. Protein-rich foods like paneer, eggs, and sprouts help maintain hair health. 

• Omega-3 fatty acids: These are essential fats that nourish hair follicles and create a healthy scalp environment, directly affecting the hair growth cycle. Walnuts and flaxseeds are go-to plant-based sources for Omega-3 fatty acids. 

• Vitamin B12 & D3: These vitamins are essential for healthy hair follicle function as Vitamin B12 helps carry oxygen to hair tissues, while Vitamin D3 regulates hair follicle cycling. Deficiency in these vitamins is linked to hair loss. You can go for supplements of these vitamins. However, ensure you consult a doctor, get tested for your vitamin levels, and take supplements only if necessary. 

Based on the above list, here is a quick stress-recovery sample meal plan for you:

Breakfast: A spinach and paneer omelette with a handful of dates and a glass of orange juice.

Lunch: Brown rice with lentil dal, vegetable salad, and a jaggery-infused dessert

Afternoon snack: A glass of buttermilk or yogurt with a tablespoon of ground flaxseeds
Dinner: Grilled paneer with mixed vegetable curry, rich in leafy greens.

How Long Does it Take to Recover from Stress-Related Hair Fall?

It’s natural to worry about how to recover hair lost from stress, and how long it will take. The recovery phase starts two or three months after you start making efforts with meal, lifestyle shifts, and hair care routine. Therefore, before you start with your recovery, set realistic expectations. 

Once you start trying to reverse stress-related hair loss, your hair shows little signs like new baby hair near the bald spots, shedding hair before growth, and thicker and healthier strands. This entire recovery procedure can take four to six months.

Signs You Need To Seek Help for Stress Hair Loss

Although stress and hair loss can often be handled with little effort in lifestyle and diet, it’s wise to consult an expert if it gets severe. 

Here are a few key signs that say you must seek expert help for stress hair loss: 

• Hair fall is patchy or worsening: If your hair shedding doesn’t improve within three or four months, even after taking self-care measures. Instead, it increases, resulting in a patchy scalp and widened hair parting; it’s a sign you need expert help. 

• Sudden changes in weight and period cycle: If your stress hair loss starts showing medical symptoms like sudden weight loss or gain, irregular period cycle, brittle nails, or fatigue. It might be a sign that you have underlying medical issues like thyroid problems or hormonal imbalances.

• Emotional stress: If your hair loss starts bothering you emotionally with feelings like insecurities or low self-esteem, it's wise to consult an expert. As emotional stress worsens, hair shedding can also signify a hormonal imbalance.

• Scalp Irritation: Although stress hair loss doesn't cause severe scalp irritation like redness or burning, if you experience scalp sensitivity, itchiness, or flakiness, it's best to consult an expert.

If you face any of the above signs, consult an expert and take necessary tests like CBC, Ferritin, B12, D3, or TSH. These tests can help to understand the key causes of hair loss and get a customized solution.

FAQs 

Can stress alone cause hair loss?

Yes, stress alone can cause hair loss. During stressful events, our body produces a stress hormone called cortisol. This hormone prematurely shifts hair strands from the growing to the shedding stage. As a result, after two months of stressful events, one can experience excessive hair loss, especially during showers and brushing hair. 

Will meditation really help regrow hair?

Meditation can not directly help you regrow hair. Instead, it helps one manage stress, lower the hair shedding hormone cortisol, and create a healthy scalp environment. Therefore, meditation can help you manage stress-related hair loss. 

Do I need to change my shampoo?

If you have stress-related loss, you should consider changing your shampoo if it has harsh chemicals like sulfates, silicones, and parabens. Instead, go for a gentle and hydrating shampoo. Ensure you choose a hair care product based on its ingredients instead of just the brand. 

How do I know if it’s stress or hormones?

Hair loss due to stress in females and males occurs two or three months after stressful events and gradually reduces with efforts in lifestyle and diet. However, if the hair shedding does not decrease with time but increases with patchy spots, it might be due to a hormone imbalance or thyroid issues. Therefore, it’s best to consult an expert if you don’t see improvement in your hair shedding even after taking self-care measures. 

Will the hair that fell grow back the same?

Once you start working on reversing the stress-related hair fall, you will start noticing baby hair around the bald spots and the crown area. It might take two to four months to see new hair growth. 

Conclusion

It’s scientifically proven that stress can cause hair loss. However, fortunately, this is a temporary hair condition. You can reverse stress-related hair loss within a few months with shifts in diet and lifestyle. The best way to reduce stress-induced hair loss is to manage stress, nourish the scalp, and maintain consistency. 

Therefore, start your 30-day self-care journey today to help your hair grow healthy and lessen hair loss. You can begin with just three simple steps: 10 minutes of meditation daily, 30 minutes of exercise three times a week, and a hair massage twice a week. Although simple, these habits can significantly impact both your lifestyle and hair health.

For a more comprehensive and scientifically-backed solution, consider Traya’s Root-Cause, three-science approach. By combining Ayurveda, dermatology, and nutrition, Traya targets the main causes of your hair loss to provide a holistic and personalized treatment plan. Traya’s approach not only focuses on external care but also ensures internal wellness, addressing factors like stress and nutrition.

If you’re unsure about your hair health, it’s always best to consult an expert. Take Traya's hair test to get a detailed, personalized assessment and begin your journey to healthier hair.