Asking yourself “Why do I pull my hair out?” We have the answers
People affected by trichotillomania experience a strong urge to pull at their hair or eyelashes. The urge feels uncontrollable and usually gets worse at times of stress, tiredness, hunger or boredom. Hair pulling differs from self-harm because most of the time hair pulling doesn’t hurt, in fact it feels pleasurable. Pulling the hair feels good due to a release of dopamine in the brain.
How Does It Feel?
Hair pulling is often a subconscious way to escape from feelings that are hard to process, like anxiety, avoidance, boredom or stress. It can create a kind of ‘zoned out’ feeling of comfort and relaxation. After pulling the blocked out feelings return accompanied by more bad feeling caused by the act of pulling. Pulling is usually followed by feelings of self-blame, disappointment and despair, far out-weighing the positive feeling from the initial hair-pull.
People often try to hide or disguise their pulling due to embarrassment and fear. You can help by offering understanding and encouragement.
Pulling often begins at a young age, by the time it is addressed it has often become strongly ingrained as a habit and is difficult to break away from. We have all heard how hard it can be to stop smoking; well the processes in the brain relating to breaking the two addictions are the same.
You can find out more in the support & resources section where we have information for health professionals, teachers, partners, friends and family.
Why do I pull my hair out?
The simple answer is because you have a compulsive condition. It is NOT your fault.
Trichotillomania affects about 1 in 30 people, so you are not alone.
The act of hair pulling is addictive and is a conditioned response that releases dopamine in your brain. Dopamine is a ‘feel-good’ hormone associated with reward centres in the brain, so that’s why it feels good to pull. It might feel good at the time, but the negative impact of hair-pulling on our lives is huge. Pulling is usually immediately followed by self-blame, disappointment and despair, far out-weighing the good feeling.
The more we pull, the more we strengthen the neuro-pathways that cause the addiction. The good news is that we can re-condition our brains not to respond to pulling in that way, and the way we can do this is by not pulling.
The less you pull, the less you want to pull.
A cure for trichotillomania doesn’t have to be out of your reach. Support on this site is second to none. The people here are truly encouraging and rooting – not for that illusive right hair or lash, but for Growth. We know pulling can cease because we’ve stopped it ourselves, not for days but for YEARS, and so can you.
Our pledge is the provision of a safe zone where people can confide, create, recover and discover using interactive, cutting-edge technology, the power to challenge and change beliefs and behaviours that may have previously lead to hair or eyelash pulling.
There is always someone here who can help or just listen. Positivity is our priority and our emphasis is on GROWTH.
- Let your pupil know they can come to you with any concerns.
The primary factors involved in Trichotillomania are overwhelm, boredom and attention. It tends to happen to high-functioning individuals, so you might not initially recognise an attention problem.
Does the individual sometimes have problems arriving at school with the right things? Do they sometimes seem zoned-out or over-tired? You can help by watching for the signs which don’t get mentioned.
It usually isn’t a great idea to refer the child to the school counsellor, without that counsellor having training in supporting people with tics or body focused repetitive behaviours. This is a physical condition which usually does not have its roots in trauma. While the individual may have friendship problems, which the counsellor might help with, these will likely be due to emotional sensitivity and will not be the cause of hair pulling. Treatment of Trichotillomania MUST be by specialist in hair pulling recovery as looking for an emotional cause for hair pulling can be very harmful.
True life tale about a teacher with trichotillomania
How many people are affected by trichotillomania?
It is estimated that approximately 3% of the world’s population is affected by the disorder in some way. You’ll know how many children you teach each year, so you can estimate how often you might be in a position to help a child to cope with trichotillomania.
Here at Trichotillomania Support, we provide a safe zone where adults and children can confide, create, recover and discover using interactive, cutting-edge technology, the power to challenge and change, beliefs and behaviours that may have previously lead to hair or eyelash pulling. Our facilities include buddying, coaching and coaxing.
The abbreviated term for Trichotillomania here is tric (pronounced trick) and people with the disorder are known within our community as tricsters. TricSTARS are those who are more than 100 days pull free. You could even make a reward chart or encourage the child to confidentially talk to you about whether they have pulled each day. You really CAN make a difference. We’re grateful for your assistance and research and you can call us on 07910 114739 but we cannot return your call. We’re volunteer run, so if we are on another call or don’t have a volunteer available please try again. Please also give that phone number to your pupil, as we are here to help.