Perimenopause and Hair Loss: Why It Happens and What Helps

If you are over 40 and your hair has changed, and you cannot quite put your finger on when it started, perimenopause is often the answer. More than usual amounts of hair coming out in the shower, or your ponytail feeling rather thin. It is one of the most common things women in their forties and fifties come to us about, and one of the most upsetting, because hair feels personal and affects confidence. The good news is that there is a lot you can do, and understanding what is going on is the first step.

Why perimenopause changes your hair

Your hair runs on hormones, and oestrogen is the one your hair likes best. Through your reproductive years, oestrogen helps keep hair in its growing phase for longer, which is part of why hair often feels thick and fast-growing then. As you move through perimenopause and into menopause, oestrogen drops, and the balance with androgens (the hormones we tend to think of as male, though everyone has them) shifts.

That shift does a few things. Hair follicles can shrink, so the strands they produce grow finer. The growing phase shortens, so hairs spend less time growing and more time resting and shedding. And the result is what is often called diffuse thinning: not bald patches, but an all-over loss of density that shows up first at the part and the temples, and in a ponytail that has lost its weight.

You might also notice the texture changing, drier, more wiry, less inclined to hold a style, or hair that simply does not grow as long as it once did before it gives up and sheds. All of this is normal, common, and not your fault.

It is not always just hormones

Hormones are usually the headline, but they are rarely the whole story, and this is worth knowing because some causes are very fixable. Hair shedding can also be driven by low iron, which is extremely common in women, an under or overactive thyroid, low vitamin D, stress, a crash diet, or the months following an illness, surgery or a big life event. Female-pattern hair loss, which is partly genetic, can also become more obvious in this window.

The reason this matters is that the right fix depends on the cause. Topping up low iron does nothing for a hormonal pattern, and a scalp serum will not fix a thyroid issue. So before you spend money on products, it is worth ruling the simple things in or out.

When to see your GP

We are hairdressers, not doctors, and some hair loss needs a medical eye rather than a haircare one. Please see your GP if you notice any of the following: hair coming out in clumps or patches rather than thinning evenly, bald spots, a sore, itchy or visibly inflamed scalp, or hair loss alongside other symptoms like unusual fatigue, weight changes or a racing heart. It is reasonable to ask your GP for blood tests that check iron and ferritin, thyroid function and vitamin D, as these are common, treatable contributors. Getting that picture first means anything you do for your hair is working with your body, not against it.

What helps, from the salon side

Once you know what you are dealing with, there is plenty you can do to support your hair and make the most of what you have.

Look after the scalp, because that is where hair grows. We turn to the Davines NaturalTech Energising range for thinning hair, as it is designed to work at the root rather than just coat the lengths. The Davines Energising Shampoo is the everyday base, and the leave-in treatments do the heavy lifting: the Energizing Superactive and Energizing Gel work on the scalp to support the hair you have, while the Energizing Thickening Tonic gives finer hair more apparent body. If your shedding came on suddenly or seasonally, the Energizing Seasonal Superactive is made for exactly that.

Be gentle with what you have. Thinning hair is more fragile, so go easy: loosen tight ponytails, swap rough towel-drying for blotting, keep heat tools sensible, and do not over-process with bleach or constant heat. Protecting the hair on your head matters as much as encouraging new growth.

It is also worth supporting things from the inside. We stock a small range of hormone and hair health products and books for exactly this stage of life, and Aurea can point you to the ones worth a look.

Styling thinning hair so it looks fuller

A good cut does more for the appearance of density than almost anything in a bottle. The right layers and length create movement and the illusion of fullness, where hair that is too long and heavy just hangs flat and shows the scalp. Our stylists do this every day, and a conversation about a shape that flatters finer hair is one of the most useful things you can book.

For everyday volume, work product in at the roots and keep heavy oils off them. A light volumising spray or the Thickening Tonic lifts the roots, and a fine-hair-friendly leave-in like the Davines Oi All In One Milk softens and protects without weighing things down. Clever colour can help too: a little dimension catches the light and reads as more hair.

Realistic expectations

Here is the honest part, because you have probably been let down by a miracle product before. Hair grows slowly, around a centimetre a month, so any genuine change is measured in months, not days. A good routine can help slow shedding, support the scalp and noticeably improve how your hair looks and feels, and that is a real and worthwhile result. What no product can do is reverse the clock or replace what hormones and genetics have changed. Steady, consistent care beats a drawer full of half-used quick fixes every time.

You are not being vain

We want to say this plainly: being upset about your hair is not vanity. Hair is tied up with how we feel about ourselves, and watching it thin during a stage of life that is already throwing a lot at you is genuinely hard. We see it every week, we take it seriously, and there is no embarrassment in wanting to do something about it.

How we can help

If you would like a proper look at your scalp and a routine built around your hair, that is exactly what we are here for. Email Aurea at hello@sable.co.nz to talk it through, or book in so we can assess your hair in person and, if a cut would help it look fuller, sort that too.

For the step-by-step product routine, read our companion guide on how to combat hair loss with the Davines Energising range, and shop the full Davines NaturalTech range at Sable Boutique, with Afterpay and Zip.