Wow…we’re already halfway through 2022, and it’s been an exciting year so far.

For us, it’s been so exciting because we’re celebrating 20 years of Strut Hair Solutions!

Yep, March 2022 marked the official month of 20 years in business, and we are going to celebrate all year.

Clients often ask how I started Strut, and why. Well, here’s a glimpse into the inspiration that became what Strut is today.

This whole journey started with my mom, Kim.

She always had fine, thin hair. While I was growing up, I saw her struggling with her hair and trying every possible fad out there to make it thicker. Like getting perms, or highlights…whatever a stylist said would make her hair look thicker and longer.

Then, when she was in her early 30s, she started getting hair extensions. That gave her some volume and length, but it didn’t solve the thinning on the top of her head.

Finally, a stylist put her in a wig and sewed it onto her head. (Well, technically to braids on her scalp.) During this time, I witnessed my mom’s confidence go up because she felt better about herself, thanks to her new hair.

This inspired me as I thought about it. If my mom was struggling with thinning hair for no known medical condition, then other women would be, too.

I went with her to other local wig shops and salons, and they really didn’t understand the importance this hair made to her and how she felt about herself.

That’s when I thought: I see this, and can help my mom along with all these other women experiencing the same thing.

Which is just what I did! In March 2002, I started on a kiosk in the mall selling hair pieces. From there, we started in our first brick and mortar store in Fresno, California (as City Wigs & Boutique!) and branched off to San Diego in 2011. That’s the very short version of how this all started. 🙂

I’m so pumped and excited for this 20-year anniversary! I feel like I’ve just been getting warmed up in the first 20! Lol.

Thank you for being on this journey with us! I look forward to seeing you in one of our 2 locations.

I’ll also have some exciting news to announce in about 6 weeks!!! Stay tuned via our social media to be the first to find out!

This news will kick off our next 20 years so stay tuned for that. This will change your hair forever!

To the next 20 years with you all. Thank you for everything.

Xoxo,

Helena

It’s been almost 2 years since the Covid-19 pandemic started. It’s no surprise that it has affected stress levels worldwide. Huge life changes as well as changes in health take a toll on our lives, there’s no questioning that. The fact that stress can so tangibly manifest itself in our body, though, is becoming clearer and clearer in the world of medicine. (Hence, this blog!)

So, what’s the effect that stress has on our hair? Is the pandemic causing hair loss for men and women around the world? Is it exacerbating the hair loss we already experience?

Let me give you a brief recap of the hair cycle

Our hair growth cycle has four stages. The first is the anagen phase (i.e. when your hair grows from the root; the most active of the stages).

The second is the catagen phase (i.e. the transitional period, when the anagen phase ends and the hair detaches from the blood supply which helped it grow originally).

The third phase is the telogen phase, when the hair follicle no longer actively grows, but simply rests and slowly shrinks until it’s ready to come out of the follicle.

The fourth and final phase is the exogen phase, which is simply when the hair is released from the follicle and the anagen phase can begin yet again!

Image sourced from this article[1] about hormones and hair loss.

One last important thing to note about the hair cycle is that all of our hairs are NOT on the same schedule. Each one of our follicles (where the hair grows) is on its own independent schedule—or else all of our hairs would grow in at once and fall out at once! This is why you notice 50-100 hairs a day that you lose when brushing your hair, or sometimes by the shower drain.

Let’s talk about stress and its impact on hair loss

Stress is something that can impact our hair cycle. Just last year, a study[2] published in the National Library of Medicine led by Dr. Ya-Chieh Hsu of Harvard University concluded that stress indeed inhibits hair growth.

When they studied the effects of stress on mice, they noted that increased periods of stress actually kept hair in the third cycle of hair growth (the telogen phase, when hair no longer grows—simply rests). Conversely, when the mice were no longer experiencing stress, the hair growth cycle continued as normal. What we can conclude is this:

Stress can cause your hair to remain in the telogen (resting) phase for extended periods, inhibiting normal and regular hair growth. 

We can now see why so many people during 2020 and 2021 experienced what we’re calling pandemic hair loss. Witnessing a global pandemic, political unrest, supply chain issues, and dealing with job insecurity and/or losing loved ones due to Covid, it is no surprise that these factors can take a toll on the health of not only our mental health, but also our physical health. We have seen this with an influx of clients in our studios stating increased stress in their lives.

So, what are some ways to keep your stress levels lower?

It’s important to take care of ourselves, not only during a pandemic, but as often as we can. Balancing our stress levels is critical to staying as healthy as we can be. We may have different ideas of de-stressing—some may exercise, others may cook, sleep, meet with friends, take a nice bath, or do something artistic like painting. Here’s an article[3] published in the NIH (News in Health) which shows us some scientifically-proven ways to de-stress.

What are some ways that you can use alternative hair solutions when suffering with hair loss?

And what do you do if you’re experiencing pandemic hair loss? As mentioned above, it’s important to take care of yourself and try various methods of de-stressing. Everyone deals with stress differently, so we highly recommend you try various activities to see what works best for you.

As far as what to do aesthetically while you’re working on restoring your hair, you can consider alternative hair solutions, such as wigs, extensions, or hair pieces in order to keep your self-confidence up.

There are topical hair products as well which help minimize the shedding of your hair when going through a stressful period in life.

Your hair is one of the first things someone sees when they interact with you, so it’s no surprise that feeling self-conscious about thinning hair can affect how you interact with the world around you. We all know what it feels like when our hair is not looking its best. 

STRUT Hair Solutions was created with the intent of restoring women’s self-confidence by making them feel comfortable in their own skin again thanks to beautiful hair.  We know what it’s like to not want to date until your hair looks good, or to dodge family/friends photo opts because you don’t like your hair. We are here to help you and show you different solutions to fit your unique needs.

We’d love to get you strutting your hair with us.

Love,

Helena

[1] https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms21155342

[2] https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-03417-2

[3] https://newsinhealth.nih.gov/2021/01/feeling-stressed