Midlife Women: Three Ways To Reduce Thinning Hair

No one told us we’d have thinning hair in midlife. 

Unfortunately, we had to find out when we turned 50.  I, for one, wasn’t prepared. According to WebMD, 40% of women lose hair or it starts to thin in midlife.

I didn’t notice my hair thinning until I cut my hair short last year.  I wasn’t searching for a remedy but one accidentally found me. During our Covid19 stay-at-home spring and summer, my hair grew out thick and beautiful like it was in my 30’s!

I’d accidentally stumbled across a remedy to reduce my thinning hair in midlife.

Most of my life I’d kept my hair short in a pixie cut. As a financial planner, I wanted an easy to maintain, classy professional look. When I turned 50 and moved to the mountains in Park City, Utah, I changed my mind.

For my outdoor adventures such as hiking and biking, I wanted a ponytail I could pull through a ball cap. In addition, braids are fun to wear skiing so I grew my hair long.

I didn’t really notice my hair was thinning because the style was new to me.  When I went back to the pixie since my job involved monthly travel, I was shocked.  My hair was thinner all over and especially in the front hairline. 

What causes thinning hair?

While some reasons for hair loss may be hereditary or due to damage from a tight ponytail, according to the Cleveland Clinic, other causes may be declining estrogen levels, stress or lack of sleep. 

Either way, the results aren’t fun.  You look in the mirror and it doesn’t even look like you.  In addition,  you may have to cover up thinner places using curlers or camouflage with eyeshadow that matches your hair color.   

All of a sudden my hair got thicker seemingly overnight.  

How did that happen?  What was the difference? There are several ways to reduce hair loss and it turns out I was doing three of them at the same time – scalp massage, vitamin therapy and meditation. Since I’ve had several people specifically mention how thick my hair is now, I thought I’d share my simple treatments so you could try them.  

Massage your scalp  

I started doing a facial massage skin treatment 3-4 times a week and included my scalp because it felt so good. 

There are many ways to massage your scalp – you can simply use your hands and massage your head vigorously when you are washing your hair, or use a tool such as a plastic massager. 

In my case, I used a hard plastic tool called the Fascia Blaster gently all over my scalp from my front hair line to the back of my neck. While I didn’t use this to stimulate hair growth, my goal was stress relief and, when used on my face, stimulate collagen to improve skin tone.  While the look of my skin on my face did improve, the biggest difference I noticed was in my hair.  It’s thick and healthy!  (Check it out on Amazon – here.)

Fascia Blasting is a massage for connective tissue – the fascia.  Four times a week,  I use a tool to stimulate the skin and fascia.  The tool has three sets with little rounded bumps or claws.  To protect my skin,  I first put on some plant based oil and then quickly but gently move the claws across my jawline, forehead, and lips. 

When I used it on my hair, I didn’t use oil.  So my hair doesn’t get tangled up in the claws, I put the tool in a plastic baggie.  The scalp massage felt amazing! And as it turns out, massaging your scalp stimulates hair growth.  

There are many scalp massagers to choose from, some have a pliable silicone brush instead of the hard plastic one I use. (Check out on Amazon – here.)

Note – if you have a medical issue such as psoriasis, check with your doctor.  This is not medical advice.

Take vitamins that promote hair growth

For thinning hair, your physician may prescribe a B vitamin that includes biotin.

I’d taken vitamins before but only sporadically rather than regularly.  Now that I am working from home and have more time for my morning routine, I take a daily multi vitamin that includes Vitamins B6, Folic Acid, B12, Iron and 30 mcg of Biotin. 

While I was taking them for overall health, all of the vitamins are recommended by the Cleveland Clinic to improve hair growth.

Since vitamin therapy is complex and individualized, talk to your doctor about a personalized treatment plan. 

Include mindfullness, prayer and meditation in your daily routine

My morning routine has always included a few minutes of meditation, contemplation and prayer.  Working from home thus reducing my one way 45 minute daily commute to 1 minute, thus I have more time to myself. 

To take advantage of this extra time, I’ve doubled my meditation time  – a huge stress reducer.  The Covid pandemic has caused many changes and increased stress for people all over the world. Mindfulness and meditation can help. 

One of the causes of hair loss is stress. Harvard researchers found that meditators lowered their blood pressure by meditating 20 minutes a day for 8 weeks.  Their regimen included deep breathing, muscle relaxing and concentration on a word or phrase. 

This sounds like what I do!  At night, I like to do a simple muscle relaxation meditation that I learned way back in college days.  All you do is lie comfortably on your bed, then you systematically tense your muscles and then relax them.  Start this process at the tips of your toes and end with the top of your head.  

Tensing the top of your head is challenging of course, but you can tense the muscles of your face and relax them instead.  This 10 minute full body muscle relaxation exercise helps me relax and get a good night’s sleep.  Does it work for you? Do you do something similar?

Visit your physician to explore more advanced hair loss treatments

If your hair loss is significant (not just the normal hair thinning no one told us about,) start with a visit to your doctor or dermatologist before trying home treatments and special shampoo for thinning hair. 

Even if you don’t have hair loss, a scalp massage, vitamins and meditation could do you good!

For more tips on Upping Your Game Over Age 50, follow Nancy on instagram @upyourgame_girl and Facebook @upyourgamegirl.

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