Ep 004: Alopecia and Insomnia-- with Deeann Graham

deepintosleep.co — **Guest: Deeann Graham**

**By Yishan Xu, Ph.D.**

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TODAY’S GUEST

Deeann Graham is the award winning author of Head-On, Stories of Alopecia and an alopecia life coach, educator and advocate.

She was diagnosed with alopecia areata (an autoimmune hair loss condition that affects 2% of the world's population) when she was 7-years-old. She published Head-On, Stories of Alopecia in 2015 to share stories and photos of people around the world who are living with alopecia, in order to provide a broad perspective on the journey of hair loss. Educating communities in order to empower others who have been diagnosed, especially in the beauty and medical industries, is an important part of Deeann's outreach.

WHAT WILL WE LEARN

What is Alopecia?
If children and teens are diagnosed with Alopecia and experience worries and insomnia, what parents can do to help them?
- Open up conversations
  - Ask questions
  - Do NOT provide solutions immediately
  - Help children realize and talk about their options
- Be prepared to talk to your children’s school about the situation
- Find support groups
Suggestions from Deeann as an alopecia life coach:
- Reach out to support groups
- Reach out to friends and family
- Continue to do things we love
- Get sleep, exercise, keep a healthy diet.