“In My Early Twenties, I Noticed a Bald Spot,” Ashley Tisdale Decided to Open Up About Suffering From Alopecia to Help End the Stigma

Alopecia is an autoimmune disease that triggers hair loss, which can happen not only on the scalp but anywhere on the body. It affects a large number of people, with over 200,000 cases a year in the US alone. In recent years, the condition made headlines after Jada Pinkett-Smith spoke up about her battle with it. And now, High School Musical star Ashley Tisdale also decided to be candid about her own struggles with alopecia from a young age.

The revelation came on Instagram.

The actress made the decision to share her diagnosis with her 15.5 million followers on Instagram. “In my young twenties, I had noticed that there was a little bit of a bald spot, right at my hairline,” said Tisdale in a video. After reaching out to a dermatologist, it was confirmed she was losing hair due to alopecia and what the cause was. “A lot of it is triggered by stress, and I was going through a really stressful time.”

The 37-year-old continued talking about her experience and how stress impacts it. “The hair grew back, and it always does, thankfully. But there’s been a couple of times in my life where I’ve had very stressful events and have noticed that it will come back,” she explained. “It can be stressful just even having it.”

In a blog post, the actress shared, in more detail, how she deals with the disease.

On the website for her own company, frenshe, Tisdale wrote more in-depth about how she lives with alopecia. The first piece of advice she gives for those going through a similar experience is to not “let worry take over.” She then goes on to list some of her coping mechanisms and treatments. They include stress management methods, such as meditation, as well as platelet-rich plasma injections and an autoimmune paleo diet.

Overall, both on Instagram and in her blog post, Tisdale made sure to let people know why she came forward with her diagnosis. “Alopecia and hair loss are fairly common, but a lot of people feel embarrassed to talk about these issues. Any type of hair loss can affect your self-esteem, especially if you feel like you’re the only one going through it. That’s why I want to talk about it openly — because it’s nothing to be ashamed of,” she wrote.

Do you or someone you know suffer from hair loss? How do you cope with it?