Bleached hair, Thinning hair, Pink irritated scalp

Question
Hello, I'm a 20 year old male. Over the past several months I've noticed My hair starting to thin out. My scalp Turns pink and blotchy throughout my scalp and is irritated and itchy sometimes mostly around the front and top. The thinning seems to mostly be on the top and in the front, but has thinned out a bit throughout the entire head as well. Hair loss does not run in my family at all on either side. I've changed shampoos as I thought it was a shampoo allergy. The irritation has subsided a bit since I changed to genteler shampoos but still flairs up often. Also, I am a cosmetology student and I have done alot of things chemically to my hair. I started bleaching it about 2 years ago and retouch it accordingly. I've never had any discomfort or pain during the bleaching process. After really noticing the troubles with my scalp i've since stopped bleaching it. (My roots look crazy, but it's worth saving the integrity of my hair and scalp..) Is coloring it the cause or a contributing factor to my irritation and hair loss or could it be some kind of infection? Is there any way to stop the thinning and irritation? Will I be able to color my hair again?

Thanks,

~Marc




Answer
You have described a contact dermatitis on your scalp due to the chemicals you have applied. Some of this is irritant contact dermatitis due to the bleach and other chemicals but you may also have an allergic contact dermatitis. The thinning of your hair is due to using really strong chemicals which have weakened your hairs so that they break off with simple combing. You should see a dermatologist to confirm this diagnosis and make sure it is not an infection but most likely you will have to stop all strong shampoos and only use something like Johnson and Johnson Baby Shampoo for the next six months with NO other chemicals added to your scalp or hair. Hairs only grow 1/2 inch per month so you will have a long wait before you have hair to comb.