‘I’m a Dermatologist With Alopecia, and This Serum Is The Only Thing That’s Made My Sparse Brows Look Thick and Full’

Mona Gohara, MD, has struggled with alopecia areata, an autoimmune disease where your body attacks your hair cells, for 21 years. She’s dealt with thinning hair, bald spots, and sparse brows. As a board-certified dermatologist, she has access to the best of the best products and treatments, but nothing has grown out her brows like the Medical Nu-Cil Eyebrow Boosting Serum from Obagi.

“I started using it last August and by October I noticed they were so much fuller,” says Dr. Gohara, who is based in Hamden, Connecticut. “I get a blow dry once a week and my friend who blow dries my hair was like, ‘Holy shit, you’ve got brows!’ And I was like, ‘Oh my God, I know!”

“I had my genetics, my autoimmune condition, my age, and the fact that I was one of those ’90s over-plucking chicks all going against me. And this somehow gave me brows.” — Mona Gohara, MD

Obagi, Nu-Cil Eyebrow Boosting Serum — $145.00

Obagi Nu-Cil Eyebrow Boosting Serum ($145) uses a blend of lipids, hyaluronic acid, vitamin B5, and biotin to promote growth.

“Hyaluronic acid is a humectant so it absorbs water into the hair so the brows look thicker,” says Dr. Gohara. “And then the fullness comes from lipids that help to increase the anagen, which is the growth phase of the hair follicle. Probably what was happening with my hair follicle was that my growth phase was really short. And my shedding and resting phases were a lot longer. This ingredient basically protracted the growth phase, so my brows actually had a chance to grow, which never was happening before.”

The Obagi Eyebrow Serum is working to give Dr. Gohara the fullest brows she ever had despite her autoimmune condition, genetic age-related hair loss, and the fact that she overplucked when she was younger.

“I’m 47, I’m not a spring chicken. And when you get older, the hair on your head, your eyelashes, and your eyebrows, all just thin out,” she says. “And in my generation when I was growing up, it was cool to have like really thin over-plucked eyebrows. So when you do that you can scar the hair follicle and when you scar the hair follicle, it’s not gonna grow anymore. I had my genetics, my autoimmune condition, my age, and the fact that I was one of those ’90s over-plucking chicks all going against me. And this somehow gave me brows.”

Additionally, Dr. Gohara has heard from many others that this serum helped them out too.

“I’ve recommended it to a lot of people and thus far nobody said that it hasn’t worked,” says Dr. Gohara. And when she shared her experience with the product on her Instagram story, “a couple of people were like, ‘Yes, I’ve used this too and it’s amazing.”

This serum has grown out Dr. Gohara’s brows without causing any hyperpigmentation or irritation. For the first two months, she used it every day. Now, she uses it once or twice a week for maintenance. Pro tip: Use this serum in the morning.

“I was using it at night and it’s so effective at growing hair that I was getting hair on my eyelids because I would rub against my pillow as I slept and it would spread,” says Dr.Gohara. “I looked like a werewolf because I would have hair on my eyes, which I just shaved and I didn’t care cause I finally had eyebrows, I didn’t really give a crap. But now I use it during the day.”

So if your brows are sparse and you’re looking to get them fuller, the Obagi Nu-Cil Eyebrow Boosting Serum is a must-buy.