I Have Trichotillomania

This blog will tell of my experiences growing up with Trich - but first, a little background information, for those who don't know about it:

Trichotillomania - described as a medical condition in which the affected person will pluck or pull out their own hair, whether it be the hair on their scalp, their eyebrows, their eyelashes, pubic hairs or any other hair on their bodies in a repeated manner, often referred to as an ICD, or Impulse Control Disorder.

This is not to be confused with people who pluck their eyebrows for cosmetic reasons.

People with Trich (as it is called) usually associate hair pulling with a relief of tension, and will commonly associate it with a tingling sensation of the skin, like an itch that can only be relieved by pulling the hair. Often, trying to suppress the urge will only make the tingling or the urge worse - this is probably because the stress of suppression adds to the anxiety the subject is feeling at the time.

Often, Trichotillomania will develop during puberty, but it's not uncommon for children as young as one years old to develop it, nor it is uncommon for people to develop it as an adult.

The Impulse Control Disorder or Obsessive Compulsive Disorder type seems to be tied in with perfectionism and high stress, and seems to run in families, however, it's usually more than just genetic, multiple causes combine to create a person with Trichotillomania, just as with any disease symptom.

It seems that a lot of "cures" for Trichotillomania include drugs, like Prozac and Lithium - happy pills. However, any pills are just a temporary measure. The most effective cures include rather intensive therapy with psychologists familiar with Trich, and who have studied it and understand it.

If you think you have Trichotillomania, and you want to seek help for it, try to find a therapist who specializes in treating Trich. It's not nearly as uncommon as you think. You might want to visit Trich.org to read more.