Hey, guys. Fellow longhair dude here. My hair is about a foot and half in length. I almost always wear it in a ponytail. I've been wearing it in a ponytail for about the last two years. Recently, while looking in the mirror, I could swear that my hairline seems to be receding slightly on the right and left edges. Baldness doesn't run in my family. My grandfathers on both sides of the family had full heads of hair until they past in their 70's and 80's respectively. I've read a little about traction alopecia, which is balding as a result of tension on hair. Apparently, this ailment is pretty common in the female African American community as a result of tight braiding styles. Do any of you guys have experience with this? I love having long hair, but I don't want to go bald. Right now, I'm planning on only wearing a ponytail when it's absolutely necessary, like at work-8 hours/day beats 24/7. Any comments and/or tips would be appreciated. Thanks.
As long as your ponytail is not tied too tight you have nothing to worry about. I have hair well over 3 feet long and keep it a ponytail nearly all the time even though my photo shows otherwise. Absalom
I have been worried about that too. My hairline is starting to go back in the corners. I'm really worried about right now since I am only 16. I think it was this brush I was using....I threw it out. Do you think the damage is reversible?
I was just looking around the border. I haven't been on in a long time, and I saw someone else with same nickname.....is that going to be a problem?
I've read that the hairloss can be reversed in some cases.
That's good to hear.....I hope...
Traction Baldness is almost always reversible, once you stop the tension on your hair, your hair will stop falling out, the new folicles will grow back in the place of those that were pulled out.
However in your case is probably not the brush. Most guys begin to receed slightly at the temples between the ages of 16-20. Its just a "coming of age" thing.
I guess I'm in denial. My family comes from a long line of having hair till their 80. I don't know if I have damaged the hair so long from the brushing, that I have killed the root.......
I doubt you've done any harm, it is probably just the normal minor hairline changes that guys go through during their lives. The temples generally do receed slightly as you age, its perfectly normal and doesn't mean the rest of your hair will fall out.
I your worried about damage, just brush gently and take care of your hair. Even if you have "killed" the root (or more specifically pulled the hair out at the root), new hairs will still grow around it replacing the ones you've lost. Brush damage is like traction baldness its totally reversible.
If you pull a hair out with the root attatched, does that mean a hair will never grow there again, because the root has been removed?
Now your getting far too technical for me. I dunno if hair will grow back in exactly the same place, I suspect it will, though probably not immediately. The fact remains your talking about such a small surface area, and other hair fociles will pops up all around it.
Bill Choisser's FAQ (On Being A long Hair)
Sorted
Thanks again!
I may be wrong, but I think women who pluck their eyebrows to achieve a different shape for them are never done with this task. The terminal length for eyebrow hairs is achieved in just a couple of months, since they are never more than an inch long, and hair grows at half an inch a month. If a hair never grew back after it had been plucked, two months of eyebrow plucking would achieve a permanent result. As I said, I don't think this is the case.
Come to think of it, plucking hairs out of my ears hasn't seemed to have discouraged them much. ;-)
Some people find after repeated removal the hair thins and is eventually gone over time if plucked often. (This is different from the age induced thinning that ends with little old ladies looking like their eyebrows are completely drawn on with magic marker because they are.) I don't know how it works but my guess is the follicle eventually gets damaged from the violence of the hair removal and just dies off.
Head hair however would have to get pretty long to be yanked out so I am betting this is not a brush to blame here but traction alopecia that is reversible.
Elizabeth.
Thanks a lot for your help. :D