Trichotillomania Tips

As you can tell by the title, this post is more serious than the rest. It seems appropriate to put a 'trigger warning' at the start.  Over the years a lot of people have mistaken Trich for self harm, and as much as I understand why they would think that- its not the case for most. We find it comforting, pleasurable even.  However, some people with Trich do harm in other ways. As you can imagine, having no eyebrows, eyelashes, or massive patches of hair missing isn't such a confidence booster. You feel isolated, all alone. Every second of the day is spent either worrying about people seeing your patches, making new patches, crying about them, or fighting the need to pull. I am sitting here typing this now, because I've just had a breakdown. I was sitting, playing with my hair, on a 10 day pull free streak- the longest I've ever gone without pulling. When all of a sudden, I feel the urge, the need to pull. Stronger than it's ever been. My hands and arms start ...

Hello everyone!  This entry includes tips on how to keep your hands away from your hair! "How does this differ from the previous entry?" Good question! Last time we talked about avoiding playing with your hair- this is the next step. I completely understand the struggle of not playing with it- I know it is done subconsciously.  If you mange it, very well done to you! Willpower is a massive part of beating this; I am aware some people, like myself, have little to none of it. In my next entry, I will be talking about how to strengthen willpower- and setting a challenge for you! Get ready for it.  Lets get back on track, keeping urges at bay and your hands away.  Please don't misunderstand me- I think that it's good for Trichsters to touch their hair every now and again, it can help with willpower and motivate you to keep going. every other day I like to feel my patches, and the spikiness of the new hairs. I find it soothing, perhaps that is because I...

As much as I'd like to, I can't just stop pulling just like that, and decide I'm never going to start again, I'm not sure about you, though. If you want to cut down on your pulling you first have to cut down on playing with your hair, wherever it may be. The first step is actually recognising that you're doing it- all too often daydreaming, reading, or watching TV leads to your hand wandering to your hair- I myself admit that on reading over this, I found  myself doing just that- without even realising. If you know when you do it, or where even,  and recognise what you are doing, it's a good thing. Even if you pull after realising, that's okay. We are taking baby steps here. Over the years I've learnt a few methods to do this, and while some have been successful, others have not. It's whatever works for you. The method I use (When I'm alone) is wearing a few loud bracelets, every time my hand goes to my head, or face, the brac...

In this section I'll be talking about questions asked by people new to Trichotillomania. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask them in the comments. Id like to thank everyone who took part in this, answering my questions! I appreciate it greatly. . If you're looking for a black and white answer, it's a hair pulling disorder. Is there more to it than just that, though?  Well, lets ask google, shall we? "People who have trichotillomania have an irresistible urge to pull out their hair, usually from their scalp, eyelashes, and eyebrows. Trichotillomania is a type of impulse control disorder. People with these disorders know that they can do damage by acting on the impulses, but they cannot stop themselves."-  https://www.webmd.com/anxiety-panic/guide/trichotillomania While I agree with most of this statement, some bits just don't sound accurate, for lack of a better word, to me. "Usually from their scalp, eyelashes, and eyebrows." Y...

First of all, I'd like to welcome you to this blog; Thank you for coming, have a seat. Can I get you anything? Tea? Coffee? Juice? Make yourself comfortable! My name is Rachel, and, if you hadn't guessed already, I have Trichotillomania. I've had it for 10 years now! More than half my life in fact. I know you're not here for my life story, (Although, on occasion, I may be writing about it) You are here to learn how to beat this thing! Well, I have some news for you, maybe you should prepare yourself for this, sit down if you hadn't already- I'm still learning too! Yes, I am a little bit sarcastic, you've noticed this by now I'm sure. I'd like to make an apology for that here and now, for the rest of this blog. I'd also like to apologise for my lack of grammar, spelling skills, and very short- but helpful- entries. This blog is a way for me to vent about the struggles and the affects that trichotillomania can have on not only the Trichster,...