Trichotillomania

i struggle with this as well and the only really preventative method i have is not letting your hands be idle. when i'm watching tv, i try to keep my hands busy by making origami or eating or painting my nails. in school, i doodle. i also pull out the thick, coarse hairs from the top of my head A LOT so when i feel a big urge to pull, i go to the bathroom and fix up my hair into a nice, tight bun, with the bun resting at the spot i tend to pull from.
with your eyelashes, maybe you should set a goal. you want to be able to highlight the beauty of your eyes with makeup so as a goal, you should restrain from pulling out your eyelashes until they're thick enough to hold mascara or whatnot. once that happens, try putting on some fake lashes, getting all dolled up, and heading out for a day of fun with some friends

Hello,
I'm really sorry to hear that you are going through this because it's a really rough thing. I had trichotillomania for a while and it was a really rough thing to get through. I still have it a little bit but not as much as I used to. I used to have no eyelashes or eyebrows about almost two years ago but they all grew back my only problem now is that I play with my hair on my head a lot and do have urges to pull it out at times. When I'm stressed, anxious or nervous you know..but I have learned that I have to control it because if you don't then it becomes a really big problem you know and you get tired of looking the way you look. The thing that also helped me was going to a biofeedback doctor. The man I went to see was really really effective and definitely helped me stop with the hair pulling so I definitely suggest that. Medications are not good to be taking, especially for this kind of problem. I know that it's hard to resist the urge of pulling your hair but it's something that you are going to have to help yourself control. Like instead of pulling your hair go and do something else that interests you.

Hope I helped! Definitely let me know your opinion and what happens. Definitely mention the biofeedback doctor to your mom because it was a great thing for me. Keep in contact!

I dont know what trichotillomania is exactly. But I know sometimes people pull out other hair on their body and chew on it. For example pubic hair, armpit hair, head hair... etc. I used to do that when I was a teenager. It was a weird habit. But I still have hair. I have no eyebrows though, since I overplucked them. Sadly...

My daughter has been pulling hair for about 4 years now. She has come up with a few strategies that really have helped her.

She always puts bandaids on every finger at night, so she can't pull while she's in bed. The flexible ones work really well, and you can get them for about $1 a box.

She often uses shower gloves while showering. This helps not pull in the shower.

Last year she began to pull out eyelashes. She used false eyelashes for awhile, but she found that if she just used thick eyeliner, no one could really tell that some eyelashes were missing. I couldn't even tell unless I looked really closely.

It's really important to get help from a professional if at all possible. This condition is OCD, and you do need help. The quicker you get help, the sooner you can get this under control.

Good luck.

Well this is my 1st time here I thought I would come and look around and it's good that I am not alone in this. I also have trichotillomania. It's very frustrating and depressing especially when you no longer feel attractive. I had beautiful long hair now one side and the top of my head my hair is 2 inches long and the other side my hair is almost to the middle of my back, I debated on whether to cut it short, but I hide it very well putting it up with a clip. I have had it for 4 years now. I want to stop pulling my hair out but it's so hard. I don't pull like I used to where I would have bald patches on top of my head. One thing that I do all the time is when I feel like pulling or my hands are in my hair I say over and over again I WILL NOT PULL MY HAIR, STOP PULLING MY HAIR or I will say. Ok you are not going to pull your hair today over and over again. When I am stressed or anxious or depressed I pull. It started 4 years ago at the age of 26 when I moved out of state with my boyfriend of 3 months and was pregnant. That when and how it started now I just have to stop.

Ye i pull hair 10 years....i had pausa in some years but after some time i all time return. Is terible because i have more then 30 years and for this problem i still feel like child. I am marrid, i have child...i learn that people newer leave me or hate me for that problem, is my problem, in my sefl, is some caind of punichment, destructive feeling, is some agresion to myself. So i think all people have that problem must see deep in side they self to see why they hate self, whay i am angry on my self, why i dont love my self....all time i make some pausa of this problem is time when i was more selfconfident, when i respect my sefl more....
so say your self in the mirror I love me, i forgive me

I'm sixteen. I've had trich for 6 years. I didn't find out it was a disorder until 2 years ago. That's when it got the worst. It was almost like, "Okay, it's a disorder. I have an excuse to pull. It's okay to pull 'cause I can't help it." That's the attitude I had - it was a disorder and I was stuck with it. I had no eyelashes or eyebrows - those were the places I pulled.

Notice the use of the word 'had.' Now, I DO have brows and lashes. I'm not on medication; I refuse to rely on meds for this. It takes self-confidence, self-assurance, and effort. There's no secret. Abby Leora Rohrer's book may be helpful to some. It's advertised like it's a miracle - it's not. It'll work for some people, but not for all.

Several months ago, I began to regain some confidence in myself. Not just for trich, but everything. I'm not shy like I used to be. I'm more open about myself - I've even told my friends about my disorder. I'm proud of who I am, the good parts and the bad parts. I'm unique, I'm different. And I like it. No one's perfect.

And now things have gotten easier. I'm happier with myself. Not to mention, a certain someone in my life gave me a little inspiration. Talk to someone you love, someone you know you can trust - not a counselor. It means more to get encouragement from someone who actually cares about you. Counselors can't cure you, anyway. I tried that.

But you can't just be confident and determined and expect things to fix themselves. Admittedly, it takes a lot of effort. Here are some of my methods:

-if you get that 'urge' to pull, get up and do something else. Sometimes you just need a change of pace to shake it off.
-For those of you who pull lashes and brows, wash your face and eyes with a warm washcloth if you really feel like you're gonna pull. Warmth is comfortable and relaxing.
-Say, "I'm not going to pull for TODAY." Just take it day by day. And if you do pull, just say, "It's okay, because I'm not going to pull tomorrow."
-If you have a bad pulling day, it's ALL RIGHT. Just because you messed up doesn't mean you failed.
-It WILL take more than one try to stop pulling for good. It will take a WHILE. Perseverance is the key. With an "I can't do it" attitude, of COURSE you won't be able to do it. Keep pushing. You CAN do it.
-It's tempting to reach up towards your lashes/brows and just feel around with your fingers. It's so tempting to find that thickest, most prevalant hair and pluck it out. You make it that much harder to resist the 'urge' if you reach up and start feeling around. KEEP YOUR HANDS DOWN.
(After all, putting your hands up is the universal sign of surrender... Don't surrender.)

Remember, everything you do is in your control. Don't let the disorder control you. Be a leader, not a follower.

Im a 21 year old male, I know that I have this condition because I have been pulling for about 3 years off and on. I usually pull from my feet, hands and my chest. Sometimes, I do pull from my scalp on the top of my head and I recently had a bad pulling binge and I have a bald spot on the top of my head, Out of the three years I have been pulling this is the first bald patch that is noticable. I was embarrased so i shaved my head. a week later only half of it regrew with the rest of the hair i did not pull out. Now im on the second week and i have a little fuzz but its still noticeable. I tell my friends that I got into a fight and got my hair pulled out or that someone played a mean joke and used clippers on me. Now I was a handsome guy, but this bald spot is driving me crazy and i have not pulled for 2 weeks. I was wondering if my hair will go back to its original thickness or at least blend in with the rest of my hair. Like I said before I usually don't pull from my scalp, but from my hands and feet which they are all bald. This was just one day when my hair was very long and I went on a crazy hair pulling thingy on my head. Will it eventually come back or a least blend, please I need help. thankx

It'll definitely grow back. Just give it some time. It may take longer just because it was plucked, and when you pluck hair you pull the root out too sometimes. But hair follicles will work their magic.

Like I said in the previous post, I used to not have any eyebrows, but they're almost done growing back now, so I almost have a full set again.

Thanks DC111, Im gonna wait another 2 more weeks to see how much more hair i can get back then I will post again to write the results and let you peeps know how Im doing. Until then I wish you guys good luck. Maybe I will post only in 1 week if i see good results.

Okay, cool. But don't expect 'em to grow back if you keep pulling at them before they have a chance to. Just be cautious & make sure you're paying attention (I say this because a lot of times, I used to pull without even realizing what I was doing). Good luck

I've been pulling hair off and on most of my life. Ever since I was little, I would twist up my hair on my finger...and PULL. Some came out, but not a lot. Then I started pulling at the crown of my forehead when I was maybe 7. I ended up with a baldspot like an "inverted widow's peak." The past three years have been the worst (I'm 17 now). I have a huge spot behind one ear stretching down the side of my head that is very patchy with some short hairs regrowing. I've been working really hard the last month or so to stop myself, but it's not easy.

My mom wants me to go in for a haircut, but I'm scared of what my hairdresser will say. I have never had a patch this bad.

I want to tell my mom, but I'm so embarassed by this. I can't control it, I know, but I am still scared to tell anyone. What should I do? Was anyone in a similar situation? How did you break the news to them?

ever since i was in fifth grade, i started picking out my hair.
i didn't think of it as a problem. actually, i guess i thought it was a phase that all kids went through and that i'd stop. i didn't pick at my hair as much as i do now then. in the summer before sixth grade i had an inverted widows peek from picking at the top of my head. i blamed it on a zit on my forehead that made me stratch the zit and stratch hairs away on accident. in sixth grade i didn't do it much at all, then in seventh grade it got terrible. i never wore my hair down once in seventh grade because of the patches that were growing short, and bald spots in places. then in eighth grade, what i'm in now, it's at its' worse. the whole top of my head is were i pick. the hairs there are only 1 to 2 inches long when i have long hair, so i do sort of a comb over. two weeks ago i told my parents. it was horrible since i'm such an emotional person. they didn't understand why i did it so they just dropped it. but they offered to take me to a phychiatrist. i've done a lot of research on this to make sure i have it and all these stories are EXACTLY like mine. so i told my parents we are going to have a convorsation about it tonight, i really want to stop this before highschool. it's tearing my self esteem apart.

i arent alone

ive had this problem since i was maybe 9ish, im 17 now.
its intresting to know it can be inherited, ive noticed my mum do it a couple of times when shes watching tv, no were near as much as i do.

i look for split ends like crazy and when i find big ones or lots on one hair i get excited,
i look for really big black thick coarse hairs and make my own split ends then split them.
this obviously isnt normal :/
its sooo annoying when my mum and co tell me to stop it
I CANT STOP IT :@

hey im 31 and i have been pulling since i was 14. same pattern as everyone else. pulling the thich hairs, biting of the roots. pulling infront of the TV. I have been on meds, but i dont think its the solution. i also see a shrink. she's a cool friend and it helps to talk about it. i shaved my head. the one thing that really helps is hair fantastique. it helps the hair grow back faster. check their website. good luck...im still fighting this battle.

i never knew there was so many others out there with the same condition. its hard to find support from people sometimes as not many people at all who dont have it can understand it..but i think it is best to search for it because just knowing that theres others that want you to get better can put a little motovation in your mind. im 13 and i've been doing it since i was about 8 or 9 so not too long compared to some people.
i ussually pull from my eyelashes -thats what it started as.i have very noticible bald patches on my eyes and in my eyebrows, it gets very embarrassing at times but i usually can just hide my eyelashes with eyeliner and people dont tend to notice.i also pull from my head sometimes when it gets really bad and my pubic hair..which i dont tell people for obvious reasons..
its great to hear other peoples stories especially recovery it really helps me to realise that i CAN stop i just have to try very hard.
i have stoped before and its mostly on and off but i think that used to mainly be that once all my eyelashes were gone- and that wasnt hard, i didnt have any to pull..(and i had just noticed that i momentarily stopped typing to pull there..but im not going to!)
id like to thank all of you, especially DC111 for your wisdom and pride
i hope to get better and for everyone who reads this to have hope that it can get better, you are not the only one fighting this battle.
perservarance is the key i suppose
good luck to all of you