Ashley Tisdale reveals struggle with alopecia

Ashley Tisdale has candidly discussed her experiences with alopecia.

The High School Musical star took to Instagram on Wednesday to share her struggles with the hair loss condition.

Ashley recalled how she first noticed a "little bit of a bald spot" at her hairline when she was in her early twenties and spoke to her hairdresser about it.

Her dermatologist later diagnosed her with alopecia and noted that her specific type of hair loss appeared to be linked to stress.

"Alopecia and hair loss are fairly common, but a lot of people feel embarrassed to talk about these issues. Any type of hair loss can affect your self-esteem, especially if you feel like you're the only one going through it," she wrote. "That's why I want to talk about it openly-because it's nothing to be ashamed of. Sometimes it's connected to hormones, other times to heredity, and for me, it's connected to stress overload."

In an accompanying post on her Frenshe website, Ashley also described how a patch of hair behind her ear began to fall out while she renovated a home and started work on a TV project.

Accordingly, she finds that when she takes time to practice self-care and focus on her diet, the strands grow back.

"Hair loss is one of my body's ways of signalling stress overload - and a sign to prioritise my self-care rituals. Meditation is a powerful practice for me, since it takes only 5 or 10 minutes to lower my stress level," the 37-year-old continued. "Eating with a focus on gut health also helps me thrive. This time, I followed the autoimmune paleo diet for 30 days. I like it because it's full of vegetables, fruit, fermented foods, seafood, poultry, and herbs... Whatever your self-care plan may be, embrace it."