Lili Reinhart
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Lili Reinhart has shared that she was recently diagnosed with alopecia.
The Riverdale star took to TikTok on Monday to post a video of her undergoing red light therapy, and wrote in the clip, “Was just diagnosed with alopecia in the midst of a major depressive episode.”
Reinhart didn’t share many details about the diagnosis. Alopecia occurs when the “immune system attacks hair follicles and causes hair loss,” according to the National Institute of Health. It typically affects the head and face but can cause hair loss from any part of the body.
The cause of the condition is unknown and it impacts as many as 6.7 million people in the United States alone, the National Alopecia Areata Foundation reports.
In the footage shared to social media, Reinhart can be seen lip-syncing to audio of a man saying, “I’m pushed beyond the limits of what a person should be pushed to endure.”
The Look Both Ways actress also captioned the post, “Red light therapy is my new best friend #alopecia #mentalhealth.”
While the National Institute of Health says there is no cure for alopecia, red light therapy is reportedly a treatment that helps stimulate hair growth.
Reinhart has previously been publicly open about personal battles, including mental health, depression and anxiety.
In 2020, she said in an interview with Refinery29 that her career and mental health had its ups and downs, and recalled at one point that she felt like she was in a “black tunnel [that] was never going to end.”
But the Hustlers actress admitted she tried to face her pain and struggles “head-on,” rather than filling a “void” with outside factors.
“I’ve seen a lot of people when it comes to heartache and grief and breakups, and they try to get that void filled with sex, with coke, with food, with drinking, [but] the void is still there,” Reinhart told the outlet at the time. “I took the road less traveled and just dealt with my shit. I had to face my own pain head-on.”
