Trich & Vacations

It's vacation time. For lash pullers, there is Eye Seal from Make Up Forever. Trichsters can use this formula to waterproof eyeshadows and eyeliner pencils.

I do this every vacation. I am also a scuba diver and a snorkeler. Believe me when I say that this stuff does NOT rub off. I have gotten out of the salt water and have rubbed my eyes over and over, and there wasn't even a smudge or a fade. This is a true miracle worker. Please note however, if you make the black eyeshadow waterproof (used as liner) but apply regular eyeshadow on your lid (without the eye seal), the regular eyeshadow may run on top of the black eyeliner since it is not waterproof. Although the black liner is still there and hasn't washed off, it may look faded if a lighter shadow on your lid has run down over the liner itself (this is particular to light eyeshadows, not dark ones). Just something to keep in mind.

Also note, it is not recommended you use eye seal to waterproof your liners when you are NOT in the water. If you rub your eyes, since the eye seal is dry, it will flake off. When it comes into contact with water, it has a particular reaction which makes is smudge-proof, flake-proof and virtually impossible to wash off. That is because the water reacts with the formula and is repelled. If there is no water to react to, there is nothing to repel and the waterproofed liner will flake off ONLY if it is touched. If it is not touched, it will remain exactly how you left it.

ALSO NOTE, be very precise. Once the eye seal dries, you CANNOT fix it. It does not smudge. You cannot make smoky eyes with eye seal. Once its there, its there and you can either spend 5 minutes rubbing it off (which will hurt) or you can use special waterproof makeup remover.

When you are in the water, eye seal will make waterproof all your shadows and eyeliner pencils. As a trichster myself, I guarantee this product. I have tried it and have been using it for years.

For scalp pullers, if the bald spot(s) are possible to hide in a ponytail, opt for these elastics with rubber for extra grip. These never slide, loosen or fall off (perfect for the water). If you click on the picture to enlarge it, you can see the rubber spiralled around the elastic itself. I use these all the time, and in all honesty, its really painful to take it out when your hair is still wet (its nearly impossible, rubber and wet hair should never mix), however this is a guaranteed way to make sure your pony stays exactly where it should (I promise!). Like previously mentioned, I am a scuba diver and have dived for up to 2 hours, these elastics are very reliable. They are sold at most pharmacies or wal-marts.

For those who cannot hide their scalp trich with a ponytail or updo, there are always water caps. Many people use them (because they dont want to wash their hair everyday) and if you think about it, it saves your hair and scalp from being dried and burnt from the sun. These also never slide off.

Most importantly, remember that you are not alone. You never were and never will be. The sun and the ocean don't care what you look like, they only want to warm and soothe you :) Happy holidays trichsters :) One day, we will have our own beach where only trichsters will be allowed, and makeup, hats and wigs will be prohibited :)

Trichotillomania In The Press

FutuRéale Magazine has dedicated one month's issue to create an Awareness Edition. This edition's Trichotillomania piece includes one of our anonymous posters who was kind enough to share their story, and also an interview with psychotherapist Karen Pickett from the OCD Center in Los Angeles (also known for her appearances on A&E's Obsessed).

The piece is now available online and can be viewed here.

Share your stories

FutuRéale Magazine is having an awareness issue for the month of October. The main feature is Trichotillomania. They have chosen to collaborate with me in contributing to the edition. I encourage all Trichsters to share their stories and experiences and have them published in the Awareness Edition of the magazine.

Names can and will be changed for privacy reasons.

All stories can be mailed to me at trichster@hotmail.com. An immediate response will be send to notify you that I have received your story. For privacy reasons, I will not forward your stories (in order not to share your personal information) but will send them from my personal email and I will let you know if your story has been chosen to be published. Once the edition goes up, I will be notified and in turn will let all contributors know.

If you wish to use your real name, please let me know and I will forward that information to the magazine.

This is a great opportunity to help other trichsters. Let your voice be heard and let the Trichster community come together in knowing that we understand each other and are willing to help by sharing our experiences.

Could Trich be an avoidance behaviour?

Some Trichsters have mentioned that pulling was a help in avoiding other behaviours, such as smoking or sexual thoughts. Could it be possible that Trich is really an avoidance behaviour? And if so, what is it we are avoiding exactly?

Some research has suggested that Trichotillomania is a way the brain manages to control avoidance behaviour.

You can view the entire book here

Historical References to Trich

"In ancient works of literature there are numerous references to pulling and plucking of hair; but I could find only one reference that I thought was clearly a reference to Trich behaviour. Most references were in the context of grief, torture, fashion or vanity.

But Epictetus (c.60-c.117 AD) was more interesting. In one reference, men who plucked hair for fashion/vanity reasons apparently fell into habitual behavior:

"Indeed I think that the men who pluck out their hairs do what they do without knowing what they do."
["The Discourses" by Epictetus (101 AD), Book 3, Chapter 1]

And further on is a reference which appears to be Trich behaviour under stress. Agamemnon was legendary, rather than historical, but presumably the description reflects observations made in everyday life.

"But neither was Agamemnon happy, though he was a better man than Sardanapalus and Nero; but while others are snoring what is he doing? 'Much from his head he tore his rooted hair.' And what does he say himself? 'I am perplexed,' he says, 'and disturbed I am,' and 'my heart out of my bosom is leaping.'"
[Book 3, Chapter 22]

Homer, in The Iliad (c.750 BC), wrote of a hero's response to frustration:

"... even so oft in his breast groaned Agamemnon, from the very deep of his heart [,] and his spirits trembled with him. And whensoever he looked toward the Trojan plain, he marvelled at the many fires that blazed in front of Illios, and at the sound of flutes and pipes, and the noise of men; but whensoever to the ships he glanced and to the host of Achaians, then rent he many a clean lock forth from his head, to Zeus that is above, and gently moaned his noble heart." (Lang et al. 1945, pp. 165-166)

There is a biblical account of hair pulling, in the book of Ezra: "At this news I tore my garment and my cloak; I tore hair from my head and beard and sat down, quite overcome." (Ezra 9:3).
"

Source

Hair Reversal Training

"Habit Reversal Training (HRT) has the highest rate of success in treating trichotillomania.[3] HRT has been shown to be a successful adjunct to medication as a way to treat TTM.[1][19] With HRT, doctors train the individual to learn to recognize their impulse to pull and also teach them to redirect this impulse. "

Trichotillomania: Recognition and Treatment

Trichotillomania Case: Treated with Homeopathy

"Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies have demonstrated that some individuals with Trichotillomania have abnormalities of the lenticulate. Abnormal brain metabolism ,serotonin deficiency,: Positron emission tomography (PET) scans have revealed that some individuals with Trichotillomania have a high metabolic glucose rate in the global, bilateral, cerebellar, and right superior parietal areas."

Full story here

To all Trichsters

I encourage you to share your stories, your thoughts, your episodes, your experiences, your regrets, your shames, your frustrations, your progressions, your regressions, your triumphs, your advice, your struggles... and let us post them here for all Trichsters of any severity, age, gender, culture, status, sexuality, race or religion.

This is a fight we will fight together. You are not alone. You never were and you never will be.

In a Trichster

The urge.
The reach.
The grasp.
The pull.
The inspection.
The regret.
The self-loathing.

Repeat.

Another Episode

Things were going great until a recent event triggered another episode. Up until this point, I was able to refrain from pulling even in the most emotional of situations, including breakups. However, an unfortunate event having to do with work triggered the worst lash episode I have had in a long time. All the lashes from my right eye are gone...all within 10 minutes.

The wave of regret cannot be any heavier. It takes so little time to destroy something that takes months to grow. Now what?

Times like these create unnecessary anxieties and fears of stressful situations, and that's no way to live either. Sometimes I wish I could just live in an impenetrable bubble where money was coming in incessantly, relationships were never so stressful and the sun was always shining.

It doesn't seem fair that on top of the usual daily stress, we are burdened with a stress that stems from regular stress. I wonder what it's like to just worry about the problem...and not have to worry about my trich at the same time. The rest of the world seems so beautiful right now...at least they have eyelashes at the end of the day.

Eye Seal

Eye Seal is a liquid that, when mixed with eyeshadows, makes them waterproof. One drop of eyeseal, mixed with chosen eyeshadow, makes it waterproof and it does not smudge. I used it particularly with black eyeshadow, and with a very thin brush, applied it along my lash-line (or where the lashes should be) when I went on vacation. Even after rubbing my eyes from the water, the liner remained and did not smudge one bit.

Highly recommended product for Trichsters. This makes it possible to go swimming and do other activities (with profuse sweating).

It's so difficult.

You desperately want to talk to someone about it. Someone who gets it. Someone who can listen and understand exactly what you are going through. Yet no matter how many chat rooms we look for, or forums in which we post, it just doesn't seem enough.

We need AA meetings for Trichsters. Friends don't get it, family doesn't get it. Only fellow trichsters can really understand the depression, the shame and embarrassment, the loneliness and the anger and mix of emotions that comes with pulling and the having the deal with yourself not being able to deal with it.

It's so complicated and simple and so difficult to convey the feelings, especially in cases where there are other issues that contribute.

I want us all to remember that we are all in this together. Even if no one else knows that you have this secret, I understand you. We have all been there if we haven't yet left that dark, humiliating, cold corner of a place where we don't understand why we are doing what we are doing, or why we can't understand ourselves.

We get you. We have all been there. We are all in this together.

Stimulus Regulation Model of Trichotillomania

"It is my belief that in those who suffer from TTM and similar behaviors, the mechanisms that are supposed to balance internal levels of stress within the nervous system do not appear to be working properly. This is most likely the result of an underlying genetic predisposition, and one that acts through the serotonin and sometimes the dopamine systems of the brain. It has always been my observation that people pull when they are either overstimulated (due to stress or either positive or negative excitement) or understimulated (due to being bored or physically inactive). It would appear that pulling might therefore be an external attempt on the part of a genetically prone individual to regulate an internal state of sensory imbalance. It is truly ironic that something like TTM could satisfy a biological need and yet be so destructive at the same time."

Full Article Here

Miracle Oil to reduce pulling

It has been found that Miracle Oil containing hemp seed oil, tee tree oil and vitamin E helps in reducing the sensation (on the skin itself) to pull. It also helps heal and reduce soars as a result of constant itching and plucking.

The Media

In horror films we see drains clogged with hair while scary music plays over.
In exorcist films we see the possessed have bald spots due to excessive scratching.
In psychological thrillers we see drug addicts half bald due to their habits.
In drama we see struggling characters shave their head in their desperation.

The media puts such negative connotations on hair loss, yet they tell us we shouldn't feel like freaks, like outlaws, that we shouldn't feel embarrassed.

Explain that to your fucking grandchild when they see mental patients on television shows pluck out their hairs while popping pills.

Burdock oil and Regrowth

Hair follicles are sensitive. After years of abuse eventually they will stop growing.

This is because we have damaged the root so much (constant pulling when it's not ready to fall out) that the growth has stunted. Burdock oil is known to reduce and even reverse these effects, helping hair grow back as it once did. "It combines immediate relieving effect with nutritional support of normal functions of sebaceous glands and hair follicles. Regular use of Burdock oil helps restore and maintain healthy scalp and hair."

There are many other oils and herbs that promote hair growth, but after tons of research, this one is the primarily ingredient of all natural hair growth systems.

Another way of helping hair grow is massaging the area (scalp only). Constant massage in that area (not rubbing) promotes blood flow to that area, and blood flow is what causes hair to grow (as follicles feed off of vitamins and minerals found in our blood).

For foods that increase or help reduce pulling, check out Foods for Thought