Trichotillomania: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment
Table Of Content
Certain changes may affect a person’s ability to control impulsive behaviors, such as hair pulling. If you regularly give into the urge to pull your hair, see a doctor. Trichotillomania is under-reported because of the shame and embarrassment felt by those who suffer from it. However, getting a proper diagnosis from a doctor can provide you with a treatment plan to help with your symptoms. Make sure to tell your care team if you experience obsessive thoughts, compulsions, anxiety, or fear. Your mental health professional can help you figure out if you have OCD or an anxiety disorder and include helping you feel better in your treatment plan.
What are BFRBs?
This is the manual most mental health experts use to diagnose mental health-related conditions. A 2013 review investigated the efficacy of different medications in treating trichotillomania. Excoriation disorder (also referred to as chronic skin-picking or dermatillomania) is a mental illness related to obsessive-compulsive disorder. There is no certain cause of trichotillomania, but the current way of looking at trichotillomania is as a medical illness. One theory on a biological level is that there is some disruption in the system involving one of the chemical messengers between the nerve cells in parts of the brain.
Online Test for Hair Pulling
TTM is a relatively straightforward condition to diagnose, but people with this condition often hide it out of shame or embarrassment. That can make it harder for your healthcare provider to diagnose this condition based solely on asking questions. About 20% of people with this condition eat their hair after pulling it, a condition known as trichophagia (from Greek words “tricho” for hair and “phagia” for eating). This can lead to hairball-like blockages in their digestive tract. Those blockages are sometimes dangerous and often cause damage that needs surgery to repair. Often trichotillomania also includes picking your skin, biting your nails or chewing your lips.
Trich-o-treatment
While research has provided some evidence of this, the reason behind it is still a mystery. Those who have TTM regularly have unexplained, uncontrollable urges to pull out their hair, even though they make many attempts to stop or decrease the behavior. Treatment may also involve keeping track of hairpulling in a journal and identifying your triggers, which might occur when watching TV or lying in bed. Nearly one-third of adults with trichotillomania report a low or very low quality of life.
How common is this condition?
A recent brain imaging study found “significantly increased cortical thickness in a right frontal cluster.” This region of the brain suppresses inappropriate motor responses. In other words, the part of the brain that tells the body to stop a function is different in people with trichotillomania. The study did not explain how or why the thickness contributes to trichotillomania. According to this theory, the problem is with the brain’s ability to stop a behavior once it starts. Research indicates that some people may have an inherited predisposition for skin picking or hair pulling. Several studies have shown a higher number of BFRBs in immediate family members of persons with skin picking or hair pulling disorders than would be expected in the general population.
The DSM-5 diagnostic criteria include:
Amy Schumer gives hair-pulling condition the exposure sufferers like me need - NBC News
Amy Schumer gives hair-pulling condition the exposure sufferers like me need.
Posted: Sat, 23 Apr 2022 07:00:00 GMT [source]
CCCA and LPP fall under the umbrella of lymphocytic scarring alopecia. The telltale signs of these conditions are chronic inflammation of the scalp and the scarring of hair follicles, which can result in irreversible hair loss, Agbai notes. Alopecia areata is an autoimmune condition that is characterized by “round patches of hair loss on the scalp,” although it can occur elsewhere on the body, Agbai says. While the exact reason for this type of hair loss is unknown, it is generally understood that “the immune system mistakenly attacks hair follicles, leading to hair loss,” she adds. Traction alopecia is the result of environmental factors, such as wearing your hair in tight hairstyles, Agbai says.
Although trichobezoars are rare, they are a serious risk for those who ingest hair. People with hair-pulling disorder do not pull out their hair because they are concerned about their appearance and trying to fix it (as people with body dysmorphic disorder are). However, they may feel tense or anxious just before they do it, and hair pulling may relieve that feeling. Over time, continuous hair pulling can cause partial or complete removal and loss of the eyebrows and eyelashes. The scalp may also become patchy and have bald spots of varying degrees. While the scalp is the most common area for hair pulling, the eyelashes, eyebrows and other facial hair can also be affected.
Treatments
People with trichotillomania may experience bouts of depression or anxiety over their inability to control compulsive hair pulling. People who have developed hair loss as a result of the condition may feel additional concerns about their appearance. Currently, no medications are specifically approved for the treatment of trichotillomania. However, some patients have benefited from antidepressants—especially if comorbid anxiety or depression are present—or other psychiatric medications, including atypical antipsychotics. Supplementing with the amino acid N-acetylcysteine has proven effective at reducing hair-pulling behaviors in some small studies. They may pull hair from other areas like the eyebrows, eyelashes, or any other area on their body that has hair.
Symptoms typically vary in intensity but may continue throughout life. According to 2020 research, trichotillomania rates of 0.6% to 3.5% were found in small samples of university students. Eating plenty of fruits, vegetables, protein, and foods with iron in them (red meat, beans, etc.) may help your eyelashes grow faster. Researchers did note that the clinical trials with these drugs had very small sample sizes. • Engage in a physical, relaxing, or distracting activity (e.g., exercising, taking a bath, using deep breathing exercises, journaling).
If you have TTM, it’s important to see a healthcare provider (or multiple providers) with specialized training and experience in treating this condition. They can best guide you on what you can do to minimize the impact of this condition on your life. Trichotillomania often results in the complete or partial removal of hair from the body, most commonly from the scalp and face. The symptoms and effects can be severe but are often manageable with treatment.
For people with trichotillomania, that may include an overwhelming urge to pull out your own hair. Over time, repeatedly pulling hair out can lead to bald spots and even more emotional distress. Trichotillomania, or hair pulling, can have a severe effect on your mental health. People with this condition often feel ashamed, embarrassed or guilty because of it. If you have TTM or know someone who does, it’s important to remember this is a medical condition and that hair pulling is very difficult to control or stop on your own. But with treatment, it’s possible to limit how often you pull your hair or stop pulling it.
Researchers are continuing to evaluate medications that may reduce the symptoms of trichotillomania. Trichotillomania is a rare medical disorder that can greatly affect a person’s quality of life. Trichotillomania appears in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Version 5 or the DSM-5.
Most of the time, people with trichotillomania pull out their hair with their fingers, but you might also use tweezers or other tools. Trichotillomania can cause physical damage to skin tissue that may lead to infection, especially if tweezers, scissors, or other sharp objects are used to help facilitate hair pulling. The repetitive motions involved may also, in some cases, trigger joint injury or muscle pain. According to a 2016 study, the typical age for the symptoms to appear is between 10 and 13 years old. Symptoms usually start with pulling out the hairs on the scalp, which makes the person feel less anxious or stressed. The devices, often used together with mindfulness therapy, help a person become more aware of their hair-pulling behaviors.
Women who have trich, for example, reported that the severity of their pulling behaviors increases during times of high progesterone levels. However, this does not mean that all people with trich will experience more severe pulling behaviors with high progesterone levels. Another correlate suggests the disorder may be linked to a gene mutation. Scientific studies on laboratory mice with a mutation of the HOXB8 gene, a gene also found in humans, recorded several abnormal behaviors that included hair pulling. The research is limited to mice, however, so there is no way to conclude whether the gene mutation is present in people with trich. Research into treatments for BFRBs, particularly hair pulling and skin picking, has grown steadily over the past decade.
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