How I Cured My Alopecia Areata: Treatments, Diet, Supplements & More

A practical, honest story of how I cured my alopecia areata—twice! Learn about the treatments, supplements and diet that helped. No product sponsorship. No gatekeeping.

In my 20s, I had a secret. While I was climbing the marketing career ladder and jet-setting for work, I was secretly battling something much less glamorous: bald spots popping up at the back of my head.

In what was meant to be my 'prime'—landing promotions, building my personal brand, feeling confident—I was instead mastering the art of strategic haircuts and angled mirrors, while quietly obsessing over how much more hair I might lose.

Nobody can prepare you for the sudden shock of finding a bald spot on your head. You wonder how you didn't notice. You fear what's going to happen next. You blame yourself.

Now, five years on from my last bald spot, this is the honest story of how I cured my alopecia areata—one experiment at a time. It wasn't easy, but it was possible. In sharing this, my hope is that it'll be possible for you too.

After all, 2% of us will get alopecia areata in our lifetimes. It's time we spoke more about it.

How my alopecia areata began

Before I explain how I cured my alopecia areata, let me share how it all started.

On a quiet Sunday evening, as I was mentally preparing for the week ahead (aka stressing about the emails I needed to send), my then-boyfriend said something that would change everything: "I think you might have a bald spot on the back of your head."

The moment I saw the look on his face, I knew this was no minor observation. Naturally, I grabbed the phone the moment he'd taken the picture. There they were: not one, but two bald patches.

What followed was the modern response to any medical crisis—hours of frantic Googling, each search result more conflicting than the last.

The emergency GP appointment I managed to get the next day brought little comfort. I still remember their cold fingers on my scalp as they pronounced it "highly unusual" (not exactly the reassurance I was seeking…) and confidently misdiagnosed it as a fungal infection.

I left with a prescription for topical cream and an increasing sense of panic.

My first alopecia areata dermatologist appointment

Predictably, the 'fungal infection' diagnosis was wrong. (Surprise, surprise!) More concerning was watching my patches expand with each passing week.

The more they grew, the more my anxiety heightened, creating what felt like an endless cycle of stress and hair loss. It was lonely.

If you know this feeling, you're not alone. This is happening to more people than you think.

That Christmas remains particularly vivid in my memory. My mum, upon seeing the bald spots, tried to maintain composure—though I caught her welling up. The festive atmosphere around us felt almost offensive in its contrast to my internal turmoil.

Fortunately, my corporate health insurance offered a path forward. Within two weeks, I found myself in a clinical dermatologist's office, hoping for answers but, instead, receiving a rather clinical confirmation: alopecia areata, with "no guaranteed cure". Great, so I was just meant to accept this and hope for the best? I was both relieved to have a name for my condition and devastated by its implications.

She explained the science in a super detached tone: alopecia areata is an autoimmune response causing hair follicles to shut down. T-cells (those tiny defenders supposed to fight off actual threats) are mistakenly attacking your hair follicles as if they're dangerous invaders.

Consider your immune system an overachiever, focused on the wrong priorities.

Blood tests were ordered: thyroid, vitamin D, antinuclear antibodies (ANA). All returned frustratingly normal. She gave me a prescription for a topical corticosteroid —a twice-daily ritual that came with warnings about skin thinning. Oh, joy. It wasn't much, but it was something to hold onto.

When I look back on how I cured my alopecia areata, this moment stands out. Not because it was a cure, but because it was the beginning of a series of experiments that would change my overall health forever.

Blood tests for alopecia areata

An important note on blood tests for alopecia areata: as of April 2025, there's no definitive antibody test for diagnosis, though dermatologists often test for specific markers (anti-SS-A or anti-SS-B). For those also concerned about autoimmune conditions like lupus or rheumatoid arthritis, request an ANA test.

:Let’s talk about blood tests. Spoiler alert: they don’t always tell you what you want to hear. Ever left a doctor’s office with "normal" test results and still feel like your health is off? Same. I wanted answers, not another round of “everything looks fine” that didn’t explain why my hair was disappearing.

Even with normal blood work, your immune system is absolutely still the culprit.

Plus, the “normal” range is wide, and is based on the average of values from adults of all ages.

Pro tip 💡 Don't settle for "normal" on blood tests. Those ranges include everyone from 18 to 100. What's "normal" for someone older isn't optimal for you. Always get your actual numbers.

Blood tests to ask for if you have alopecia areata

When you have blood tests for alopecia areata, it pays to know what to ask for. Doctors will often send you to have the standard tests, but this is an opportunity to better understand your health overall, so get as much as you can from it.

Research from 2019 suggests that vitamin D deficiency plays a possible role in alopecia areata. But before you go out and buy vitamin D supplements, know that the promising results came from a cream containing a compound similar to vitamin D. Combining vitamin D with using corticosteroids might also be useful in treating alopecia areata. They still don't know exactly why this works, but it’s worth asking for your vitamin D levels to be tested.

Similarly, research from 2020 linked anaemia and iron deficiency to alopecia areata, showing that 25% of young women with alopecia areata had an iron deficiency, and 5% of patients had anaemia (low haemoglobin). When speaking with your doctor, make sure they test you for something called ferritin too. Ferritin stores iron in blood cells. Even if other iron results appear fine, many dermatologists now recognise that ferritin levels might not be. And low ferritin levels can impact both hair loss and treatment success.

When you get your results, look out for anything just inside of normal, that your doctor may not pick up on—or worse, dismiss. You have to be your own advocate. If the results are normal to your doctor, that doesn’t mean they have to be normal to you.

Ask for your vitamin D and ferritin levels to be tested.

It’s unfortunate that we have to advocate for ourselves this much, but it can also be empowering. Crowd Sorcery has been created to help you do exactly that.

Haircare for alopecia areata

A word on haircare, because that was a big question on my mind at the time.

Alopecia is happening from the inside. No shampoo or conditioner can fix it. However, give the rest of your hair the support it needs to be healthy.

Living with alopecia areata transforms the most routine acts into moments of anxiety. Washing my hair wasn’t just washing my hair anymore. It was like an emotional Olympics. Every strand that fell felt like a personal defeat. My scalp and I? We were no longer on the best of terms. But you can still treat your hair well while battling alopecia.

Through trial and error, I discovered tea tree shampoo provided the gentlest cleanse for my steroid-treated scalp—I used Dr Organic's Tea Tree Shampoo. Conditioner felt unnecessarily heavy, so I ditched it, but trust your process and do what you need to do to care for your hair.

Anti-inflammation diet for alopecia areata

For a while, my life was all about lotions and scalp checks.

I also cut my hair shorter than I ever have which, for someone whose hair was a huge part of their identity, was tough to say the least.

The time came for my follow-up appointment with the dermatologist. It was devastating. Instead of improving, my patches had got bigger. Not a single new hair in sight. At this point, I was desperate, and willing to try anything to save my hair.

Endless trawling through forums had led me through a maze of recommended diets and "natural healing". In the past, I'd have dismissed these armchair nutritionists, but panic drove me into the office of a naturopath named Francesca Mastrojanni. Her approach combines scientific research with holistic healing—a refreshing change from the clinical sterility of conventional medicine. The best part? She actually seemed to care about what I was going through.

After years of choosing comfort food over real nutrition, it was the beginning of the long road back to a full head of hair.

Recent studies support the elimination of inflammatory triggers: gluten, dairy, refined sugars, and, tragically, most comfort foods.

The path forward, Francesca explained, lay in eliminating inflammatory triggers: gluten, dairy, and refined sugars. Recent studies supported her approach, with research showing promising connections between diet and autoimmune conditions.

My new diet focused on nutrient-dense alternatives to these triggers: I swapped potatoes and pasta for sweet potatoes, breaded chicken for oily fish, chocolate mousses for almond butter, and sugary breakfast cereals for avocado on grain-free toast. Cow's milk in my coffee became almond milk, and those afternoon cookie breaks (my favorite) transformed into handfuls of walnuts and blueberries.

The transition was challenging, but as my blood sugar stabilised and cravings subsided, I found unexpected strength in this new routine. Honestly? It just felt good to be doing something.

Vitamin D, zinc, and vitamin A emerged as potential allies in treatment, and Francesca also introduced me to what would become a cornerstone of my routine and how I cured my alopecia areata: a supplement called Terranova Beauty Complex - Skin, Hair, Nails.

The alopecia areata diet I followed focused on reducing inflammation through whole foods while eliminating potential triggers. This anti-inflammatory approach was central to how I cured my alopecia areata, but I'll be completely real with you: eating an anti-inflammatory diet is hard. It can be socially isolating, emotionally tough, and logistically challenging.

What helped me on the particularly tough days is to think of it as a diet that's enabling my health rather than restricting my joy. And nothing is less joyful than poor health.

Curing my first alopecia areata bald spots

The journey of how I cured my alopecia areata wasn't straightforward, but after six months of religiously following both medical and holistic treatments, I experienced what felt like a small miracle: fine, silvery hairs emerging from my bald patches.

These delicate new hair became my daily meditation (read: obsession). Every morning, I'd study them through photos, watching as they gradually darkened and strengthened. Each application of my steroid cream and carefully chosen meal felt like an investment in my recovery.

The truth is, this was the first time I'd ever paid proper attention to my body. I felt disembodied and disconnected from myself in many ways.

The silver lining of my alopecia areata was that I was forced to connect with my health for the first time.

Within nine months, my hair had fully returned.

My resurgence of alopecia areata—three years later

Success, as it often does, led to complacency. After my hair fully returned, I gradually reintroduced my favorite foods, convincing myself that the worst was behind me.

Then, in 2020, history repeated itself. A new bald patch appeared behind my ear—smaller than before, but no less concerning. This time, armed with experience from how I cured my alopecia areata previously and a determination to act quickly, I sought out The London Skin And Hair Clinic on recommendation from a friend.

The new dermatologist suggested a more invasive approach: direct corticosteroid injections into the bald patch. While the prospect of scalp injections wasn't exactly appealing, the reality proved far less daunting than imagined. The treatment works by reducing inflammation around the hair follicles, effectively calming your immune system's misguided attack. These injections, typically administered every 4-6 weeks, carry risks of skin thinning if overused, but their efficacy made them worth considering as a first-line treatment.

I also immediately returned to my anti-inflammatory diet, cursing myself for falling off the wagon. It's a diet I've largely kept ever since (with the odd restaurant meal as my exception to the rule).

During this time, I also discovered a book that would become my blueprint for understanding autoimmunity: An Elegant Defence by former New York Times science journalist Matt Richtel. His work illuminated the complex dance between diet, sleep, stress, and immune function, teaching me to view my body as an ally rather than an adversary.

Five years on, with a full head of hair, I attribute my luck to an anti-inflammatory diet, consistent supplements, and a better connection with my body.

Within three months, the patch had completely regrown. Five years have passed since then, and I've remained alopecia-free—a success I attribute to maintaining a modified diet, consistent supplementation, and a deeper understanding of my body's needs.

Reflections on how I cured my alopecia areata

To those reading this in the depths of despair, perhaps having just discovered their first patch or feeling isolated in their struggle—I've been exactly where you are. I remember the pit in my stomach each morning, the way every shower felt like an emotional marathon, the constant urge to touch your scalp checking for changes.

But know this: while your journey might not mirror mine exactly, there is hope. The path to how I cured my alopecia areata wasn't linear—it was one of trial and error, patience, and self-discovery.

You're not just treating alopecia areata, you're learning to become your own greatest advocate.

And somewhere between the tearful consultations and triumphant moments of spotting new growth, you'll find strength you never knew you had.

Complete alopecia areata treatment plan: my journey essentials

Finding effective hair loss and alopecia areata treatment options, I’ve learned, requires combining both conventional medical approaches and natural remedies. Healing this complex condition is deeply personal, but you can get a huge head-start by learning what’s worked for others. Here’s my edit of everything that helped me:

Supplements for alopecia areata:

• Terranova Beauty Complex - Skin, Hair, Nails (daily supplement) - confidence rating: 4/5
• Vitamin D3 supplements (particularly crucial during darker months)
• Zinc supplements
• Omega-3 fish oil (wild-caught sources)

Medical treatments for alopecia areata:

• Topical corticosteroid lotion (twice daily application)
• Corticosteroid injections (every 4-6 weeks during active patches)

Anti-inflammatory diet modifications:

• Elimination of gluten and dairy—I ate no gluten or dairy for six months, then gradually reintroduced it to be in 1-2 meals a week
• Emphasis on oily fish, sweet potatoes, avocados
• Minimal refined sugars—the sweetest thing I ate was a pack of Deliciously Ella chocolate-coated almonds (and I wasn't allowed to binge on those either!)
• Lots of leafy greens like spinach, kale and broccoli, with every lunch and dinner
• 3 litres of water per day

Haircare for alopecia areata:

• Dr Organic tea tree oil shampoo (no conditioner)
• Lukewarm water washing (hot water can stress your scalp)
• Microfiber towel for gentle drying

Lifestyle adjustments:

• Stress management through meditation—easier said than done, but meditating for even five minutes a day can help! I used Insight Timer's free meditations
• Reduced alcohol consumption—I eliminated alcohol completely for six months, then reintroduced it for special occasions only (no more than once a month)
• A consistent sleep schedule, no phones in the bedroom, and reduced social media consumption

Essential reading on alopecia areata

• An Elegant Defence by Matt Richtel (understanding autoimmunity)
• The Autoimmune Solution by Amy Myers MD (practical protocols)

The content on Crowd Sorcery is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always consult a healthcare provider before starting any new treatment or supplement.