Hair-pulling or Trichotillomania: Uncontrollable Urges
Christina Pearson’s hand unconsciously kept searching through the hair on her head to find the “right” hair that “needed” to be pulled as she lay on her couch immersed in a book. By the time she finished the novel, an entire pile of blond hair lay at her side.
She was thirteen years old at the time and couldn’t believe or understand why she had compulsively pulled out so much of her own hair; neither could the doctor who examined her.
Through out her twenties, she remained captive to the inner compulsion to pull out her hair or pick at her skin terrified that she would be found out by others and fearful that she would never be in control of her own life again. It wasn’t until she was in her thirties that she learned there was a name for her condition.
Today, Christina runs a successful business, is on medication and uses various therapies to control her illness called trichotillomania, an impulse control disorder that causes people to pull out hair from their scalp, eyelashes, pubic hair and other parts of their body. Christina knew others must suffer like herself so 18 years ago she started the Trichotillomania Learning Center where there is support for the other 2-4% of the population that suffers from the uncontrollable urges of trichotillomania.
Treatment for trichotillomania is typically focused around Cognitive Behavioral Therapy counseling and medication. Medications that have been found to be the most helpful are serotonin re-uptake blocking drugs. There are alternative therapies such as biofeedback and support groups which also assist in treatment. Trichotillomania has been a difficult obsessive disorder to classify but is thought to fall into what is called Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors (BFRBs) along with skin picking and chronic nail biting.
A new study treatment by Dr. Jon E. Grant and colleagues from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis shows promise. The antioxidant called N-acetylcysteine, an over the counter vitamin supplement was given to 25 people in doses of 1,200 milligrams to 2,400 milligrams per day for 12 weeks. The 25 people in the placebo group did not receive the supplement.
We value and respect the experiences of all of our HERWriters, but everyone is different. Many of our writers are speaking from personal experience, and what's worked for them may not work for you. Their articles are not a substitute for medical advice although we hope you can gain knowledge from their insight.
Add a Comment26 Comments
Michele
Thank you for this information. I went to school with someone that in retrospect, probably had this problem. She was very introverted and pulled out her hair constantly and had bald patches - and another thing is that she sucked on the hair she pulled out - or at least ran each strand through her mouth. I haven't thought about her in years but reading about this reminded me. None of us knew what to make of her and I wish I had known more about it as perhaps we could have helped her. For some reason, I suspect all was not well with her homelife but we were all just kids and didn't know any better. We wouldn't even have known of this condition back then - this is twenty years ago. I hope she found help for it. And I hope that anyone with this condition reads your information and also seeks help.
September 21, 2009 - 12:21pmThis Comment
I just did a search for this school friend and it appears she is dead as of last year. I'm very sad to find this out, she was only 38. No details to be found.
September 21, 2009 - 12:33pmSorry about your school friend, it was nice of you to make the attempt to reach out to her. I too hope that this article helps someone, especially someone in their teens where it is already difficult enough to wrestle with your sense of self. Having an obsessive/compulsive disorder makes the struggle so much harder. The woman, Christina, who started the Trichotillomania Learning Center is incredibly brave to put herself out there to help others.
September 21, 2009 - 1:00pmHi Im a 36 year old male , and I just found out that what thouht it was a bad habbitt it is in fact a mentan condition , I tend to eat the hair from my chest, bear, arms etc , and lately I have been suffering of extreme fatige , anxiety etc , im wondering if this is caused by the hair I have been eating .please advice
October 14, 2009 - 2:24pmHi, Glad you found our site and I hope the article was helpful. It isn't clear to me whether you were diagnosed with this disorder by a doctor or you just have come to realize this by searching the web. I would suggest you approach treating your situation by 1. Making sure there isn't something else medical at play causing your nausea and fatigue. 2. Seeking the help of an experienced practitioner who can diagnosis and treat your mental/emotional health.
In order to rule out any medical causes you need to see an internal medical doctor. He may decide to send you to a Gastoenterologist who can evaluate whether there is anything in your stomach/colon causing the nausea. Depending on your insurance, you may need to stay within your plan. Otherwise call your local hospital and see if they have physician referral service to help you find doctors to go to or get a recommendation from others you trust.
The website at the end of my article has a Provider link where you can search by state to find a Psych type doctor experienced in Trichotillomania at http://www.trich.org/treatment/treatment-provider.html
October 14, 2009 - 5:16pmYou want to only see someone who has experience with Trichotillomania so they understand how best to treat you. Good luck, let us know how it goes.
I have suffered with Trichotillomania for thirty years. I pulled from the top of my head, most on the right side and then later I pulled down the middle too. I kept it a secret to most that I knew. I was so ashamed and felt helpless. Hair pulling wasn't something my family talked about much. My mother always felt that I did it for attention, but that was far from the truth. I was the youngest of five kids and the only one afflicted with this terrible and controlling disorder. My brother closest in age to me would twist his hair, but he never pulled, thank goodness. I hated having Trich, but didn't know at the time how to control the sudden urge to pull out my hair. So I grew up with bald patches and that is very belittleing, and worked in a negative way on my self esteem. I could go on and on, tell you about all the bad times, humiliating times, etc. But I will stop here. Let's talk about now. Now I have a full head of hair and one year ago I got my first hair cut in a salon. I am a new person, I have my life back and I feel nothing can stop me now. I am re-born you could say. I thank God for giving me the strength to be brave enough to fight the urges and to win the battle against this horrible MONSTER, called Trichotillomania. Just know if you are suffering with this disorder you can over come it's grip. I did and you can too, so just believe in yourself and begin your healing journey. It's a brighter day without Trich........ Best to you all Wanda
November 6, 2009 - 9:28pmWanda
We can't thank you enough for sharing your first hand account of dealing with Trich. And it's could to know that there is help out there and this condition can be overcome. Congratulation on your first salon trip and year ago and here's to many more!
If you'd like to share how you overcame your Trich, please do; it'll will help so many of our readers who remain silent about battling their own monster, as you so correctly put it, because they don't know where to turn.
Take care and thank you again!
November 7, 2009 - 6:18amThanks for sharing Wanda. I'm so glad you have found a path out of Trichotillomania. Good luck in your new bright future. Be well.
November 7, 2009 - 6:20amWanda - Please do share how you overcame. My story sounds like yours...except for the last year part! So, please tell us what exactly you did, what you experieced along the way, that enabled you to overcome. You will undoubtedly help many!
November 22, 2009 - 3:41pmHave this site send me your email and we can chat. I will be happy to help you.
respectfully Wanda H.
November 22, 2009 - 8:27pm