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As someone that has had alopecia aereata in the past, I will get my hopes up! There are definitely worse fates in the world than alopecia aereata, but not having people ask if I intentionally shaved a random section of my head would be nice.

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I've had success mixing Rogaine foam (for blood flow) with max-strength hydrocortisone cream (for local immunosuppression) and applying 2-3x/day to the affected spot.

Best prevention I've found is to minimize stress levels, though. Haven't had any issues since I left my old job a couple years ago (used to find a new bald spot once every few months).

Not trying to be a jerk, but why don't you just intentionally shave the rest of your head?

As someone who has it, it's not that simple. Imagine a quarter sized bald spot somewhere random on your head. Maybe it goes away in a month. The next time imagine 3 dime sized spots on the edge of your hair line. It's one of those "going full bald " seems like overkill when you are so close to "normal" in most cases. Also, I can't speak for his experience but that's a lot harder when it's an eyebrow, which is my current situation... Maybe it will come back, maybe it won't.

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