r/alopecia_areata

Finally feeling like this is it and I'll always be bald from here on out unless I decide to take the drugs.
Has anyone loss this much and made a recovery without jak inhibitors? For context I’m currently pregnant and planning on breastfeeding and do not plan on changing those plans in order to take jak inhibitors or any other systemic drugs. Trying to have some hope that maybe I could make a recovery even though I can’t take any medications for then next few years.

I just want to give everyone hope. It is possible to get cured from AA. I was diagnosed in march, and this is how it is looking today. I am not fully cured yet, but my derm told me I’m on the right path.

This is my last large bald spot since I started getting treatment (kenalog injections every 6 weeks) in Nov 2025. This was taken just last week (June 2026). I am getting married in September 2026 and I’m so insecure about this but luckily this spot in particular is easily hidden with hair fibres and styling.

I started off with a lot of spots and chunks of hair falling out in March 2025 due to stress from work and overall poor health choices (vaping nicotine, smoking weed and bad diet)

I stopped vaping nicotine and smoking weed from Jan 2026-May 2026. The spots got better but then my acne started flaring up and my skin was an absolute shit show. Started vaping nicotine (haven’t gone back to weed) again and now my skin is much better but just found a small nickel sized bald spot on the side of my scalp (prob due to smoking again + stress from wedding planning).

Anyways, not sure why I’m posting or if anyone’s reading. Just wanted to share my story. Thanks if you’ve made it this far. We’re all in this together.

I went to get a Blood Test because I thought it’s some nutrition problem but everything is perfect.

I’m on oral minoxidil and Finasteride and it’s getting worse since months now. I don’t know what to do anymore tbh.

I'm 17 and have never noticed anything like this before. I first noticed it 4-5 weeks ago and thought my barber fucked it up, turns out they look like bald patches and are not the fault of my barber. They are roughly 5 mm and there's a few of them. Maybe it could be some sort of fungal infection that I had not noticed, and has scarred? Any advice?

I was recently asked about my alopecia journey and I ended up creating this to really put my whole regrowth journey into prospective. *I know everyones onset, severity, healing process is different and I am only sharing mine.* I was never officially diagnosed or prescribed medication.

After first discovering the patch I thought it was anything but alopecia as I've never seen it around me or never felt "bad" in anyway for it to happen. However, I did buy minoxidil and started the routine of giving it some attention and TLC.

Around 3 months in, an acupuncturist friend of mine was visiting and told me about these capsicum patches he uses on himself…for acupressure. He told me to use them on "ST36" to help with stress reduction and gut health. I got that exact brand off of Amazon, cut the patches into pieces small enough for that area and used these everyday on that pressure point on both legs. There is no way to tell if it did the trick but I did get results.

At that time I was also using minoxidil twice a day and really trying to reduce my stress by journaling and accepting that this was happening to warn me about bottling things up, so it could be any of those things or a combination of all or just how my alopecia decided to run its course.

I do experience flair ups around may, and stick to the minoxidil and they seem to go away by August/ September. I'ma middle school teacher so I thought it was literal end of the year stress bottling up.

Anyone have similar experiences or have used acupuncture/ pressure to help?

I'm kind of looking for some advice and possible answers. My 5 year old daughter has a couple of random bald spots that started appearing on her head over the course of the last couple of weeks. I fear it might be alopecia areata. I do have a doctor's appointment in a couple of weeks, but until that time I'm trying to find some answers on my own. Considering the fact everyone on this reddit has experience with AA I was wondering if you could give me some tentative insights into her spots and some honest opinions. Not looking for a diagnosis, just honest opinions of those who have it themselves. Thanks in advance <3

Just be honest.

So last week I posted a picture of my patch. I’ve had it for somewhere around 4-8 weeks. I hadn’t previously noticed it when I went to get my hair done at the end of May. Then found it at the start of June. I’ve been taking pictures every week, simultaneously trying to put it to the back of my mind so as not to stress too much. Long wait to see a dermatologist but in the meantime have been prescribed iron tablets for borderline levels. Been caring for my hair with caffeine shampoo (mostly due to dandruff that increased recently).
Last night I took another photo (hard to see myself because of where the patch is) but comparing the two photos, does this look better?

I appreciate the photos have different lighting, hair parting etc. but it is genuinely difficult for me to try and get the same angle, conditions etc every time. I’m not so much focused on the surrounding hair but the centre of the patch. Does anyone see anything? Tia

I posted after one month and meant to post at a year and forgot! Me- diagnosed Alopecia Areata with a SALT score of 100 and now after 18 months on Litfulo (with some support of clobetasol and minoxidil after a flare) my SALT score is 5! My bloodwork continues to be normal and I don’t have any side effects. Enjoy my first ponytail in over two years and forgive the headshot but I still don’t take many photos of myself day to day cause the alopecia insecurity is real!

This Is my regrowth after taking the treatment for 6 months it possible that these white hairs will turn black again

Or what should i eat/do which will help in turning them black please advise

The golden hairs are because of the serum i was using but i have stopped using that 😅