Coping With Women's Hair Loss

One of te most difficult things for a woman to accept is the fact that she is losing her hair. For many women, hairloss isn't just a physical problem, but an emotional one as well. Women are raised with the belief that hair is a mark of identification; a symbol of their feminity. It establishes an identity. For instance, we usually refer to a woman who's name is unknown as "the blonde woman at work", or "the redhead from the supermarket", or "the curly-haired girl down the street". It is instinctive for people to identify other people by their hair more than almost any other physical trait. We seldom identify others by their show size, ear placement, or tongue length. It is the hair that identifies the woman, and a woman who has lost her hair feels as if she has lost an important part of herself.

Society treats male baldness much differently than it treats the same problem in regards to women. It is accepted, and oftentimes even expected for a man of middle-age to experience a receding hairline or a thinning spot. On some men it even looks good, lending them an air of distinguishability and maturity. A balding man also has the option of shaving off what remains of his hair, it has even become quite fashionable to do so. But women have far less options. Yet they do have options.

Wigs and hairpieces are the obvious solution. Millions of women in this country face moderate to extreme hairloss, and a good percentage of them select this option. The technology and craftmanship of making customized hairpieces has evolved greatly throughout the past few years. Some of the higher-end ones are practically impossible to detect, even at a close distance. Human-hair hairpieces can be quite expensive, often exceeding one thousand dollars. Lesser quality pieces can be made from yak hair, horsehair, and synthetic fiber. Even the quality of human-hair wigs and hairpieces vary greatly. European hair is the best of the best, but its rarity makes it quite costly and it is very rare to find European hair in longer lengths. Indian or Italian hair is mid-range in both price and quality. It ranges from wavy to curly and can be easily permed, straightened, and colored. Chinese hair is at the bottom of the quality scale, yet it still surpasses the quality of non-human hair wigs. Chinese hair is used because it is inexpensive, plentiful, and its thickness allows it to be subjected to alot of chemical processes in order to change its color and texture.

For a complete listing of article comments, questions, and other discussions related to Marlin Bressi's Haircare topic, please visit the Discussions page.