6 celebs who have opened up about their hair loss
Hair loss can be distressing and scary, but if you’re dealing with it right now you’re not alone. On a recent episode of our experts discussed what it’s like to live with alopecia, the medical term for hair loss of all kinds.
Alopecia is fairly common and can happen for all sorts of reasons, but it can be hard to talk about.
Here are a few of the famous faces who have struggled with hair loss - and have luckily decided to speak out about it.
Jesy Nelson, Little Mix
The Little Mix beauty is famous nowadays for her long and shiny locks, but Jesy started losing hair as a young teen. Speaking to Fabulous magazine, she explained that coping with cruel bullies may have played a big part.
“I was probably about 13 when my hair just started coming out,” she said. “Stress can cause alopecia and it wasn’t nice. I got picked on because I’ve always liked to dress differently. I’ve never really wanted to fit in with everyone else.”
Luckily, Jesy’s bandmates and bffs Leigh-Anne Pinnock, Perrie Edwards and Jade Thirlwall are around to support her. “It’s definitely made me stronger and I’m lucky that I’ve got these three girls as well because we stick up for each other.”
Tyra Banks
Our favourite supermodel, multi-millionaire business mogul and former America’s Next Top Model host may always look flawlessly fierce, but mega high levels of stress once made Tyra’s hair fall out too.
Speaking to the Wall Street Journal, she admitted that the pressures of writing her best-selling Young Adult novel Modelland had taken its toll.
"Honestly, chilling for me was eating a meal,” she said. “I couldn't just look at the ocean. And in hindsight that wasn't healthy. How can I say this without tearing up? I got a little alopecia from the stress."
Matt Lucas
The Doctor Who and Little Britain star comes across as one of the most confident and funny guys around - but Matt has struggled with self-consciousness since losing his hair as a kid.
In an interview with The Mirror, he explained how difficult it had been to go totally bald at such a young age.
“I have the same insecurities anyone else has about their appearance... well, probably more so,” he said.
“I lost my hair when I was six so the fact that I looked different was made apparent to me from a very early age. People always commented on it so I think my way of dealing with it through the years was to disguise myself. It felt like a safe thing to do.”
Stephanie Davis
Former Hollyoaks starlet Stephanie has been on a rollercoaster since stepping into the Celebrity Big Brother house last year. While she eventually won second place, people were shocked when she very publicly cheated on her then boyfriend with fellow housemate Jeremy McConnell – now the father of her baby.
Unsurprisingly, the tension started to get to her, as Stephanie told OK magazine last year.
“My hair went really thin and I went in total shock which was really upsetting,” she said.
“Everyone always said one of my best features was my long dark hair that was all natural and here it was falling out.”
“If I touched it, it would just come out in my hands and I was told it was all the pressure I was under. I had a cry about it quite often because I didn't feel like myself. It makes you feel womanly in a sense.”
Viola Davis
Oscar-nominated actress and all round inspo queen Viola Davis has opened up about just how hard it was when she lost half her hair to alopecia at the age of 28.
"I woke up one day and it looked like I had a Mohawk. Big splash of bald on the top of my head," she said, speaking to Vulture magazine.
"I was like, What is this? Until I found out it was stress related. That's how I internalized it.”
The experience helped the star accept herself for exactly who she is. “I am telling you, I have spent so much of my life not feeling comfortable in my skin. I am just so not there anymore."
Selma Blair
In an interview with People magazine, the Cruel Intentions actress revealed the nitty gritty about the hair loss she suffered after the arrival of her son, Arthur Saint.
“This is so not glamorous, but it’s true: I need to take longer showers so that I can collect the hair that falls out and throw it away so I don’t clog the drain,” Selma said. “Why do actresses never talk about that?”
This kind of alopecia, caused by changing hormones, is very common for new Mums. So props to Selma for speaking out.
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