Why We Pull In Episodes

There are specific spots in which we prefer to pull.

Eyelashes especially, when we have pulled out all of them, there is nothing left to pull. We are forced to stop pulling because we can't. How can we pull lashes if there are none left?

For many it's similar for the scalp. Many prefer to pull on the crown, where the roots are harder and stiffer. This makes pulling more pleasurable and much easier. Once we have developed the bald spot due to hair loss, all we can do is rub the empty skin, and temporarily we break the habit of pulling in that area....because there is nothing left to pull.

For sufferers of OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder) the therapeutic method used to break the habit is called exposure. The compulsive act to do whatever is it we have programmed ourselves to do (in this case, pulling) has to be stopped by exposing ourselves to the anxiety we get when we don't participate in this habit. Instead of compulsing, we sit in the anxiety that makes us want to pull. This method teaches the body and brain that eventually the anxiety will go away (after reaching it's peak) and it wasn't necessary to pull in order for that to happen.

Almost all of us relapse, however. Relapsing is nothing to be ashamed of. It's how the brain works. Once it habituates itself to a routine that it believes is good (this includes almost everything from sexual habits to eating habits), then it will want to repeat it simply for the good result (in our case, stress or anxiety relief). It's all with good intention.

If pulling made us feel really good even once, the brain will remember that should similar emotions arise, pulling could be of some help. So every time we are anxious, the brain automatically induces the urge pull because it has been known to rid us of stress.

How we get into the habit, or develop it, is a different story however.

Foods For Thought

Foods That Help Reduce Pulling

Oranges
Apples
Fructose
Red Wine
Lemons
Cherries
Beef
Garlic
Onions
Kiwi
Limes
Rippening Bananas
Decaffeinated Tea
Ginger Root
Papaya
Guava
Kefir
Pineapple
Mustard
Cabbage
Unsweetened Live Yogurt
Brussel Sprouts



Foods That Increase Pulling

Sugars and Sweeteners
Egg Yolk
Caffeine
Chocolate
Corn
Nuts (all types)
Alfalfa
Asparagus
Seafood (all crustaceans: pawns, lobster, crab etc)
Soy
Butter
Fish (all types)
Peas
Beans




Source: http://www.trichotillomania.co.uk/Info/Food.htm

Will It Always Grow Back

Yes and no.

We are genetically programmed (like balding) to have our hair grow and continue to grow up until a certain age. But what if we constantly pull it out?

Unfortunately, after many years of abuse, only about 60% of the hair will grow back. The rest might but will be weaker and thinner. Knowing this, it doesn't become any easier to pull less.

Drinking lots of water and taking multi-vitamins every day, apparently, speeds up the hair growth process (your nails grow a lot quicker as well). Eating healthy, of course, also contributes to faster and stronger hair growth. You can always tell a persons diet by their hair. Hair feeds off of blood, and depending on how many nutrients our blood carries (dependant on what we eat) it will show in our hair. People with very poor diets have thin, weak, and not so healthy looking hair. Versus nutritionists and people who lead a healthy lifestyle, who have silkier, shinier hair.

Then there are those bastards with amazing genes who can have the shittiest lifestyle, and the hair of a god.

Trichotillomania on Obsessed

Part 1
http://wn.com/Obsessed__trichotillomania_part_1

Part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YijDnZM1pI4

It's Not About The Hair, It's About Control

We often watch commercials or movies, and think to ourselves "Wow, she can just do a close up and everything is there, no lash gaps, no bald spots, I wonder what that's like".

We don't realize, however, that it's not really about the hair. It's about control. We feel like freaks because we can't wake up in the morning and just walk on out. People complain they look terrible in the mornings, but to us that's such an upgrade from having to hide our secret before we even walk into the kitchen. Waterproof eyeliners and gels we use even on our heads. Black eyeshadows and eyebrow pencils. What is it like to not have to worry about missing hair?

On top of that, we have the fear that it will never grow back. It has so far, but we notice thinning. We spend ridiculous amounts of money on lash growth stimulators, eyebrow growth stimulators, and use them excessively in hopes everything will grow back soon. We even use these stimulators on our heads, and various creams or shampoos that promise hair growth. Deep down we know they won't help much, but we have no other resorts.

We feel ashamed not because we don't have hair, or because we are missing lashes or have to draw in our eyebrows. We feel ashamed because we did this to ourselves. How do you explain to someone that the reason you never wear your hair down is because you pull your own hair out? How do you tell someone you can't go outside without makeup because all your lashes are missing? How do you explain to them that you do this to yourself, and in order to avoid this problem all we have to do is STOP.

It's about control. It's about consciously stopping the pulling once we see the root of that first hair we pull. It's about controlling our impulses to even rub those spots, because we know we are rubbing only to feel the hair, or lack of hair. We are so addicted to this sensation.

Most of us don't even remember our first pull, or how we started. We only remember our first serious lapse of hair loss, and our shame and embarrassment.

Drug addictions, hoarding, trichsting, OCD, food, television.... all these addictions are about control. Our excess leads to problems and we can't seem to control ourselves. So we aren't embarrassed because of our hair loss....there's plenty of other people in the world with the same problem. People who have had accidents, or have bad genes. People who have had surgery and needed a part shaved off... or eye medication or creams that cause lash loss. We are embarassed because we can't control ourselves... and right when we think we have it all good, we relapse.

Strangers don't understand that this is something we fight every single day. It's like drugs, you can be sober for years but you still think about it every, single, day.

Hats

Hats are a great way to hide bold spots, but more importantly, they seem to give you an edge; more of a character. I like hats even more because not only do they never go out of style, but whenever you want to pull, the hat acts as a conscious barrier and a reminder that you are about to pull. This helps us realize how often we pull, and especially in public! Its not that we want to pull in public per se, but we rub and rub to make sure the little fuzz thats growing back is still there....or perhaps to check up on our bold spot and empty skin to see how its doing. Regardless, hats make us comfortable (because everything is hidden) and at the same time work to help us become aware of our habit. I guess there is temporary relief for those of us who want to forget about it even just for a few minutes.