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Millions of people live with trichotillomania, a hair-pulling disorder that causes an uncontrollable urge to pull out hair. You may find yourself doing it when you’re stressed, studying, watching TV, or even trying to fall asleep. The habit can feel impossible to stop, no matter how many times you’ve tried. But you’re not alone, and this is more than just a habit. It’s a recognized mental health condition.
What Is Trichotillomania?
Trichotillomania or hair-pulling disorder is a mental health disorder that belongs to body-focused repetitive behaviors. This condition involves the urge to pull out hair from various parts of the body such as the scalp, eyebrows, and eyelashes. Hair loss can be a common consequence for those who suffer from this disorder.
This condition cannot be regarded as a bad habit because trichotillomania is an actual problem related to brain chemistry and impulses. The patients with this disorder tend to pull their hair to relieve some tension or stress, thus getting into a vicious circle that only professionals can help breaking.
Recognizing Hair Pulling Disorder Symptoms
As mentioned earlier, trichotillomania may vary between patients, but some symptoms associated with this hair pulling disorder are repetitive hair pulling that one cannot resist, hair loss or bald patches, inspecting and/or manipulating pulled-out hair, ingestion of pulled hair (trichophagy), and increased tension or urges before hair pulling and decreased tension afterwards.
Patients tend to pull their hair either unconsciously during sedentary activities, such as reading or watching TV, or consciously during periods of stress and anxiety. Others suffer from both kinds of pulling.
Apart from hair loss, hair pulling leads to numerous health issues. First, repetitive pulling may damage the scalp, increase the risk of infection, and, lastly, trichophagy results in serious gastrointestinal problems, including internal obstruction.
Psychological Burden of Trichotillomania
In addition to physiological symptoms, trichotillomania has significant psychological implications. Among them are excessive shame and embarrassment due to hair loss; social anxiety because the patient tries to avoid being around other people; low self-esteem and poor body image; depression because he or she cannot stop pulling even if he or she wants to; and social isolation because patients usually do not tell anyone about their problem.
Many people with trichotillomania use significant resources to cover up their hair loss by using wigs, wearing hats, applying makeup, or styling their hair.
What Are the Causes of Trichotillomania?
While the cause of hair pulling disorder is still not fully known, studies indicate there are several causes such as genetic causes, which mean the disorder can be found in families; neurobiological reasons related to the structure of the brain responsible for regulating emotions and behavior; difficulty with emotion regulation, when pulling hair helps relieve stress or anxiety or alleviates boredom; and comorbid disorders, such as anxiety disorders, OCD, or depression.
Trichotillomania tends to develop during adolescence, although in some cases the disorder can be observed in early childhood and later on in adult life. The disorder affects women more often than men.
Trichotillomania Treatment That Really Works
The good news about trichotillomania treatment: It really works. There are many sufferers of this condition who manage to decrease or even stop their pulling behaviors with proper help from professionals.
Habit Reversal Training
This is considered to be the most effective method for treating any sort of body-focused repetitive behaviors. With HRT, one becomes conscious of the triggers leading to their pulling behavior and acquires competing responses to replace the urge to pull.
Comprehensive Behavioral Therapy
This therapy goes beyond the Habit Reversal Training as it deals with managing one’s emotions and sensations that trigger the pulling response. This treatment approach acknowledges that hair pulling is not a one-faceted problem.
Medication
In some cases, medications like SSRIs can be recommended in addition to psychological therapy, especially when trichotillomania is accompanied by anxiety or depression.
Support Groups
These groups provide valuable connections with others who understand the unique challenges of living with this hair pulling disorder, reducing the isolation many people experience.
How to Find Help with Trichotillomania?
If you think you are experiencing these symptoms, you should know that you have trichotillomania, a condition that is manageable. There is no need to feel insane, willfully disobedient, or seeking attention. Your problem is real, and there are effective ways to address it.
It is important to find a specialist with experience in treating body-focused repetitive behavior disorders because conventional psychotherapy might not help much with your problems. Blueroomcare allows you to contact professionals specializing in therapy wherever you are.
Having trichotillomania is a difficult experience, but it is still manageable. There is hope for those struggling with trichotillomania because treatment works, and many people succeed in decreasing their hair-pulling activities or stopping it completely.
- Need support? Start your care journey by booking a confidential therapy session and accessing daily journaling and wellness check-ins through the Blueroomcare App.
- Looking for more guidance? Explore our blog for more mental health tips.
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