Reddit mentions of Batiste Dry Shampoo, Divine Dark, Brown, 3 Count

Hi there. Just want to say that you're not alone; there are many who totally understand what you're going through, myself included. My hair loss began at the age of 15, when I could not understand for the life of me why it was happening. As a young, impressionable teenager, I had deep struggles with self-image, confidence, young womanhood, etc. and seeing/feeling so much hair falling out every time I took a shower multiplied all of those issues. I remember spending hours crying in the shower over the course of my teenage years. Then in my early twenties, it gradually became an afterthought; I found myself preoccupied with school, new friends, and jump-starting my career. Today, I am 32 years old, and I'm still losing hair. I still hate my genes and I'm still really scared because I don't know how I'm going to tackle this problem; every day it's on my mind. But my mental state is so much better. I realized that I don't want my feelings about hair loss taking away the joys in my life, everything that I've worked so hard for or was blessed with. So I decided to treat hair loss as a more commonly known health issue (because I honestly think that there are more of us out there, we just HATE to talk about it). I would lightheartedly mention (when it makes sense in a conversation) that I've personally experienced hair loss, starting with my closest friends and family whom I felt I could truly understand my struggles. Then it branched out to being able to joke about it here and there with friends, where I actually found some others who have had similar struggles that I could share feelings/thoughts with more confidentiality and at deeper levels.

All this is to say that you are definitely not alone in this, and that it is so important to find someone close to you to share your feelings with regularly. Having support from loved ones is crucial when going through something like this. I haven't invested in a therapist yet, but I plan to as soon as I have the means, and I hope you can, too. Remember that you are more than your hair loss. You are valuable. You are needed. You are loved.

Also, there are a few very effective methods to minimize the appearance of hair loss, to help you while you are nurturing your heart and mental health. I've found certain hairstyles that conceal affected areas (depending on the pattern of loss) and have found ways NOT to style my hair, by trial and error. And now that there are affordable colored dry shampoos (like this one by Batiste), sometimes I can mask it completely. This has worked for me while I get used to the idea of wearing toppers soon (I may try them this year!) and eventually, wear wigs like everyone else. Because, really, no one can escape hair loss to at least some degree in their lifetime, except for a verrry small percentage of people who were just that lucky. It's a byproduct of aging. I kind of see it like hitting puberty earlier than everyone else in your class - ride out the awkwardness until the rest catch up, holding your emotional resilience in one hand and colored dry shampoo in the other :)