Alopecia areata Learning Zone
Transcript: How to balance coping with hair loss and wanting hair regrowth
Dr Brittany Craiglow
Interview recorded Mar 2024. All transcripts are created from interview footage and directly reflect the content of the interview at the time. The content is that of the speaker and is not adjusted by Medthority.
Yeah, I think setting expectations is really important. I think, for me, and if you have time in the office visit to talk about the way these medications work and that they're not so much growing hair, but they're, you know, trying to calm down the immune signal that's leading to hair loss, so the hair is able to grow and then patients kind of can understand more the timeline of hair, you know, hair regrowth. And so, you know, I usually tell people I wanna see something happening by three to four months, but this is really, you know, this is a marathon and not a sprint. And I think, you know, while most patients wanted their hair back yesterday, they really are, you know, they kind of understand that and they're happy to be on treatment and every little hair that they see is kind of exciting and motivating and adherence really is almost never an issue with this patient population 'cause they are so motivated. So I think as long as we kind of set expectations at the beginning, you know, patients are okay to kind of wait. And I think, you know, in terms of coping, I think a really big thing is, you know, to just sort of have patients be able to acknowledge their feelings. You know, I think a lot of times, people get a lot of positive reinforcement, especially kids for coping. You know, we hear things like, "Oh, he's so tough," and, "He's so brave and strong." And, you know, if you're having a hard time, it's really hard to hear that.
And it doesn't make you feel comfortable saying how you actually feel, right? It's a fine line because coping is, you know, it's useful and important, but we also want people to be able to say how they really feel. And so I'll tell patients, you know, "I think it's really brave and strong to say that this is hard and you don't like it" and, you know, "you wish it were different." So I think kind of finding that balance, you know, oftentimes, support groups can be helpful for patients. It's not for everybody, but I think this is a really unique experience. And so to have a peer or even maybe an older kind of mentor to talk with about, you know, what life is like or how they feel on treatment and that kind of thing, for some of my patients, has been really, really useful. So that's another, you know, that's another area that I think we can be helpful with pointing people, you know, in the direction of a support group. Or I even have patients, you know, who I found that live near each other, maybe similar age and have gotten together and, you know, for young kids, had a play date or older kids, gone to the movies together. And those relationships, I think, can be really meaningful and kind of provide something that those of us who don't have alopecia can't for these patients.
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Developed by EPG Health. This content has been developed independently of the sponsor, Pfizer, who has reviewed the content only for scientific accuracy. EPG Health received funding from the sponsor in order to help provide healthcare professionals with access to the highest quality medical and scientific information, education and associated relevant content.