Adults with trichotillomania frequently report that their pulling worsens during periods of heightened anxiety [9]. Alternatively, hair pulling for many adults leads to avoidance of social activities and results in anxiety during intimate situations [6], [10], [11].
Trichotillomania can be related to emotions, including: Negative feelings. Pulling out hair may be a way of dealing with negative or uncomfortable feelings, such as stress, anxiety, tension, boredom, loneliness, extreme tiredness or frustration.
Children commonly pull their hair in this way, but that behavior is often a self-soothing act. Children often grow out of this behavior and don't have any long-term negative effects. Adolescents, teenagers and adults with this condition tend to have much more severe problems.
This can range from a small reduction in the volume of hair re-growing, to chronic permanent damage where most or all of the hair is no longer re-growing in the area that has been pulled for normally many years.
Recently, a strong relationship of family chaos during childhood and trichotillomania has also been reported, in which 86% of women with trichotillomania reported a history of violence—for example, sexual assault or rape—concurrent with the onset of trichotillomania.
“Don't Look Up” actor Leonardo DiCaprio is believed to have trichotillomania due to openly sharing on multiple accounts of suffering from OCD. Leo has spoken about living with OCD throughout his childhood and adult life.
Can Trichotillomania Cause Health Problems? Hair pulling can leave bald patches or areas without hair, eyebrows, or eyelashes. It can cause the skin to become sore or infected. It can leave scars.
In addition to reducing the urge to pull, it is believed vitamin D supplementation significantly improved hair regrowth, which is often not seen after treatment with antidepressants or other medications alone. Studies have identified the use of vitamin D3 analogs to stimulate hair regrowth.
In young children, treat trichotillomania as a short-term habit disorder by cutting the hair very short (like a crew cut in boys) and applying Vaseline to the hair. “They stop their habit right away because it's so slippery they can't pull,” Dr. Kwong said.
Habit reversal training.
This behavior therapy is the main treatment for trichotillomania. You learn how to recognize situations where you're likely to pull out your hair and how to substitute other behaviors instead. For example, you might clench your fists to help stop the urge.
SSRIs and clomipramine are considered first-line in TTM. In addition, family members of TTM patients are often affected by obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorders. Other drugs used in the treatment of TTM are lamotrigine, olanzapine, N-Acetylcysteine, inositol, and naltrexone.
With a 1% prevalence rate, 2.5 million people in the U.S. may have trichotillomania at some time during their lifetimes.
Individuals may be misdiagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), an anxiety disorder, body dysmorphic disorder, or even drug addiction.
Although many variables have been examined as potentially contributing to the manifestation of trichotillomania (TTM), little research has focused on problems in social interactions. Hair pulling has many similarities to the stereotypies seen in autism spectrum disorders (ASD), and is not uncommon in those with ASD.
Don't say, “You need to learn to relax, and maybe the pulling will stop automatically.” Usually, this isn't true. My clients with trich have hairpulling on their mind constantly (which can be mentally exhausting) and have uncontrollable urges to pull.
N-Acetylcysteine (NAC): NAC is an amino acid that has shown promise in reducing compulsive behaviors, including skin picking, in some studies. It may work by increasing levels of the neurotransmitter glutamate, which plays a role in impulse control.
"Good" foods include allicins (onions, garlic), tannins, yogurt and tropical fruits [5]. There are no published studies of the efficacy of this diet in trichotillomania.
Trichotillomania is part of OCD and is thought to be largely related to anxiety disorders. There have been twin studies that have demonstrated genetic anomalies associated with trichotillomania and other OCD-related disorders.
The good news is that trichotillomania hair loss typically isn't permanent, and there are plenty of ways to encourage new growth, from PRP therapy to topical medications.
Other imaging studies of trichotillomania reported reduced gray matter in the left inferior frontal gyrus23 and reduced cerebellar volumes. More recently, whole-brain analysis identified increased gray matter densities in the left caudate/putamen, bilateral cingulate, and right frontal cortices.
24.9% of the entire sample of people with lifetime trichotillomania reported that they no longer had symptoms of trichotillomania and had never received therapy or medication treatment for it (i.e. they experienced natural recovery).
In fact, about five percent of the U.S. population suffers from TRICH. There are even some very well-known people who have revealed that they have Trichotillomania, including Olivia Munn, Megan Fox, Charlize Theron, Katy Perry, Victoria Beckham, and Justin Timberlake!
1. The Hidden Struggle of a Renowned Actress. One celebrity who has openly discussed her battle with trichotillomania is Megan Fox. The actress revealed that she has been dealing with the disorder since childhood, specifically her inability to use silverware in publicly shared spaces.