The Case of the Balding Client

Exploratory Essay

The Case of the Balding Client

I have heard it all, from “ the last stylist fried it” to “The cat licks it out when I am sleeping.” I specialize in hair extensions and believe it or not these are the explanations I received from a client who brought me a handful of extension tips with tufts of her own hair dangling from the end, root bulb intact, to be reattached. I have been an extension specialist for 5 years and had never seen this. I was baffled. Was she pulling out her own hair? Was it falling out? Is it a disorder? If it is a disorder, is there a name for it? Is there treatment?

I considered the possibility that I had made a mistake, that I had misjudged the strength of that particular clients hair. For the average client, a stylist would have to attach a ratio of 20 extension hairs to 1 natural hair for the natural hair to be pulled out by the follicle. The human hair, literally, has the strength of a tiny iron wire. I needed to figure out what I had done wrong, so that I would not do it again and so that I did not have to continue to sacrifice my time and supplies to reattach the tips gratis. After a month of twice a week appointments, and the client presenting with the same issue, I decided that I would add a small highlight to each reattached tip, so that I could tell the difference between the ones that I had originally put in and the ones she claimed pulled her hair out. In one months time, there were very few tips that did not have a blonde highlight in them, and some had two shades of blonde signifying that I had reattached them multiple times. I was baffled. She also did not seem to be appropriately upset. Her hair was bein...

... middle of paper ...

...

Works Cited

“Alopecia Areata” Healthtools.com 19 July 2010 Reviewer information; Kevin Berman, MD, PhD, Atlanta Center for Dermatologic Disease, Atlanta, GA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M.

“Alopecia” Mayo

Foundation for Medical Education and Research (MFMER).

Dr. Steven Caplin The Center for Dermatology, York Pa. 18 July 2010

“Stop Pulling Your Hair Out-Stress Hair Loss” < http://www.articlesbase.com/hair-loss-articles/stop-pulling-out-your-hair-stress-hair-loss-643793.html> 17 July 2010

Trichotillomania learning Center 18 July 2010