Age does many things to our body, not all of them being a wonderful experience. I have fond memories of having my hair cut and complaining about how long it would take for me to blow dry my hair. In teenage years, I would ask for my hair to be heavily layered, texurized or just any way of thinning out the mass of hair on my head.

Hormones change. Stress happens. And my once thick hair became fragile and thinner than I’d ever anticipated.

Accepting that your hair is getting thinner is a hard to swallow feeling. I would empty my hairbrush and shower drain hoping there would be less hair found than the time before. In my situation of experiencing my hair thinning, I see genetics doing its thing with my hair texture. My once Italian wavy hair from my mom’s side switched to the softer, finer texture of my dad’s gene pool.

Spotting hair loss

Cleaning out hair brushes and shower drains shows us how much hair we do shed, but what’s an average amount of hair to shed before you should be concerned?

The average person sheds 50-100 hairs per day. Crazy right? When looking for hair loss, I suggest to my clients to keep an eye on the areas closest to their hairline. By watching this area for thinning and even empty spots where hair once grew, you’re able to see any changes in hair thickness. Men aren’t the only ones who have receding hairlines. As men and women, our hair thins out in a very similar way.

Your stylist should be talking to you about how your thickness has changed

When a client sits in my chair, my job entails quite a few things in addition to a haircut and color. While working on your hair, I check the condition of your hair, scalp and any changes I notice in hair thickness.

Ok, things are changing

And they’re not for the better. Once a change in thickness is noticed in a client’s hair, I urge them to get some blood work done. While stress, age, and weight loss can be obvious triggers to hair loss, having an imbalance to your hormonal system or thyroid will make issues like this continue.

But isn’t there s product that will grow my hair back?

No. There are dozens of products that claim to grow back hair that has been lost. Often, they’re super expensive, have a long list of steps you have to do every day, and little results are shows.

So what can you do?

Hair loss can be stopped in its tracks when we realize what’s causing it; genetics, hormonal issues, weight loss. Giving your body and scalp the nutrition it needs to be happy and healthy helps slow down the shedding problem.

Working with what you’ve got

Did you know there are hairstyles and color blends that make our hair appear thicker? Better yet, there are products that I can’t live without that add touchable volume to the feeling of my hair.

If hair loss is something you’re struggling with, don’t wait to bring the subject up with your hairstylist and doctor. While there’s no quick fix – there are ways to help slow this process down.

Jacqueline Weesner is a licensed hair stylist located in Montrose, Colorado. She offers women’s hair cuts, hair color, balayage and highlights. She uses all-natural hair color, PPD-free to provide healthy hair to her clients on the Western Slope.