Jennifer Grey Opened Up About Hair Thinning That Started During the Pandemic

Even though it's incredibly common, changes to your hair's texture — including hair loss and hair thinning — can be understandably upsetting and difficult to talk about. Recently, Jennifer Grey revealed she noticed hair thinning during the pandemic, and she's sharing the dermatologist-approved hair-care brand that helped bring her strands back to life.

The actress "always had the greatest hair," she recently told E! News. But without regular salon visits during the pandemic, "I started feeling my hair was losing a little bit of its zip — it had no skip to its step," she continued. "It started feeling like a shell of its former self and I was like, 'What is going on?'"

There were a few things the Dirty Dancing actress noticed specifically. "The quality of my hair had declined," she said in the recent interview. "It was a little more dry, breakable, and fine."

The realization that her hair health was changing was challenging. "I felt really bad about myself," she revealed. "I thought it was more subtle than it was."

The 62-year-old also opened up about the experience in an interview with Prevention. When Grey returned to the salon after some time away during the pandemic, her hairstylist recommended Harklinikken, she explained to the publication. Harklinikken is a Denmark-based hair-care brand with multiple clinic locations around the globe. The brand specializes in hair loss and thinning, offering up personalized treatment plans online and in person.

Taking up her stylist's advice, Grey met with Harklinikken founder Lars Skjøth. "[He] showed me parts of my hair that were still robust and then, he showed me the hairline and temples, where it was receding," she told E! News.

The Ferris Bueller's Day Off alum has since partnered with the brand, and she recently shared before-and-after photos of the visibly restored hairline at her temple she achieved by following the brand's customized treatment plan. "I've gotten unbelievable results just by following @harklinikken's simple daily routine," she wrote in the caption of an Instagram post.

ICYMI, Harklinikken also helped restore Ricki Lake's hair after her decades-long struggle with hair loss. Prior to finding the brand, Lake had been "suffering mostly in silence off and on for almost 30 years," she shared on Instagram in January 2020. At the time, Lake contributed "many factors" to her ongoing struggle, including "yo-yo dieting, hormonal birth control, radical weight fluctuations over the years, pregnancies, genetics, stress, hair dyes, and extensions." Like Grey, she partnered with the brand in 2022, showing off her strands on social media every step of the way.

Now, Grey credits a trio of Harklinikken products for restoring her hair's health and vibrancy, she said in her recent interview with Prevention. First is a nutrient-rich Restorative and Calming Extract, a customized product which includes a nourishing blend of natural ingredients derived from burdock root, marigold, apple, sandalwood, cow's milk, and other botanical extracts. She also washes her hair daily with the brand's Balancing Shampoo and Daily Conditioner.

Before her experience with hair thinning, Grey thought having her signature thick curls "was a given," she told E! News. "And I actually took it for granted because I thought, 'At least I got this hair for the rest of my life.' I assumed it wouldn't change."

Today, she has a better understanding of how things can shift with age. "There are things in life we lose as we get older, but we gain so much," she said in the recent interview. "I am 100 percent happier than I was when I was younger."

By speaking candidly about her experiences with hair thinning, Grey is no doubt helping others who have also dealt with the condition feel less alone. In fact, more than half of women over the age of 50 will experience noticeable hair loss, according to a study published in the Journal of The North American Menopause Society in 2022.

Hair loss and thinning has many causes, including changes in health, stress levels, medications, and diet, so checking in with your doctor and/or dermatologist is a good idea if you notice texture changes. Understanding the root (no pun intended) cause of the issue will help you get one step closer to an effective solution if that's what you're after. No matter the cause, there's nothing to be ashamed of or embarrassed by when it comes to changes in hair texture and volume.