What hairdressers can learn from ricki lake's alopecia journey
Ricki Lake, the former chat show host and actress has posted images of her alopecia journey on Instagram and the results couldn't be more profound. Back in January 2020 she revealed a new look – a short buzz cut and later revealed she had been struggling with hair loss for decades. Now in 2022, she has noticeably thicker and longer hair.
But is her journey unique, and what can you tell clients who come to you reporting hair loss and concerns of Alopecia?
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"Firstly reassure your clients that Alopecia is common and usually gets better by itself," explains Iain Sallis, M.I.T. Racoon International trichology consultant. You also need to educate yourself on the right terminology. "Alopecia means hair loss, alopecia areata is usually a circular patch of hair loss with no hair in the middle of it," Iain says. :If it does not look like that, then don’t use the ‘A’ word as it may be a scar or something else which is mimicking it."
So how do you correctly approach clients who have hair loss concerns? Danny Coles, director of Haringtons Hairdressing, Northwood says: “Identifying the signs of Alopecia is really important, sometimes your client may not have even realised themselves, so approaching this subject with caution is paramount. Go slowly and ask if they’d noticed any changes to their hair density. The sooner you open this topic of conversation, the sooner you can start to recommend advice or if you are unsure then the best thing to do is to recommend them to see a trichologist and have a full consultation."Iain agrees: "They should seek medical advice via their GP (however, sometimes GPs are not always great with hair loss, so warn them that they might need to be persistent). You can also suggest they seek the advice of a qualified trichologist, but this will come at a cost. Try to research who is in your area and potentially speak to them about their clinic and how they treat patients."
It's worth pointing out to your clients that hair loss can be caused by many factors. Salon owner Samuel Chapman and his salon team in Brighton and Hove are established experts in hair loss, raising awareness to normalise the different types and causes, and providing a variety of professional services and solutions to help clients feel confident again. “Thinning hair and hair loss can be caused by many factors,” says Samuel. “These include medical conditions, lifestyle or stress, genetics, or a combination of them all. For someone who may have fought Covid-19, this will have caused major stress. Recovering and regaining energy after an illness can result in a slowing of hair regrowth, and sometimes results in hair loss. Recognising these changes is so important, we should be ensuring that our clients feel comfortable talking to us and also confident in our responses so education in this area is paramount. I experienced hair loss at the age of 20, it’s a scary place so put yourself in their shoes."
When it comes to how you treat the hair in the salon, the tools you use are crucial. "Although hair loss can vary from client to client, always look for soft brushes. I like Kent Salon Brushes, which are great on all types of fragile hair," recommends Samuel. Iain warns that advising them on particular treatments can be a slippy slope. "DO NOT advise them on any treatments," he states. "Unless you are a trained trichologist, you should not be recommending treatment." A good cut can work wonders, although it won't necessarily promote hair growth or thicker hair. "When it comes to hairstyles, I would recommend choosing a shoulder length blunt haircut to make it look thicker," advises Carol Ritchie, Matrix artist ambassador. "A lob with light layers is also a great choice, as is changing up your side parting and making it a bit deeper, or cutting in some bangs. A short pixie cut with choppy layers can also give the effect of thicker hair."
One salon group has now actually introduced a trichology service to their offering. "I've always been a self-confessed hair geek, so I completed a two-year course at the Institute of Trichology followed by two more years of mentoring by the institute," explains Robert Eaton, Russell Eaton Salons and British Hairdresser of the Year. "I then introduced trichology as a service within our salons in Leeds and Barnsley and I now work extensively with wig personalisation helping clients with hair replacement due to cancer and alopecia.