Trichotillomania: Causes, Symptoms, Treatment, & More

Table Of Content

• Is hair regrowth possible after a hair-pulling disorder?
• How can you prevent trichotillomania?
• When to see a doctor
• Treatment for trichotillomania
• What Causes Trichotillomania?
• How does this condition affect my body?

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. If not treated, symptoms may come and go for weeks, months or years at a time. For example, hormone changes during the menstrual period can worsen symptoms in some females. Food and Drug Administration specifically for the treatment of trichotillomania, some medicines may help control certain symptoms, such as anxiety and depression.

Is hair regrowth possible after a hair-pulling disorder?

Both the CDC and the FDA warn against treating this common childhood condition on your own with non-prescription treatments. Our Medical Affairs Team is a dedicated group of medical professionals with diverse and extensive clinical experience who actively contribute to the development of our content, products, and services. They meticulously evaluate and review all medical content before publication to ensure it is medically accurate and aligned with current discussions and research developments in mental health.

How can you prevent trichotillomania?

In a U.S. survey of 10,169 adults, 1.7% of the respondents indicated that they have trichotillomania. Researchers did note that the clinical trials with these drugs had very small sample sizes. In adults, women outnumber men with this condition by as much as 9 to 1. Use these professionally produced online infographics, posters, and videos to help others find and prevent skin cancer.

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When to see a doctor

People with trichotillomania pull out their hair using their fingers, tweezers, or other devices. The most common place for hair pulling to occur is the head, but hair is also often removed from eyelashes, eyebrows, armpits, beards, and genitals [1]. Doctors are also working to identify changes in brain function or chemistry that could lead to trichotillomania. Certain changes may affect a person’s ability to control impulsive behaviors, such as hair pulling. Due to the stigmatization of the disorder, many people with trichotillomania resist seeking help, avoid social situations, and experience low self-esteem. Luckily, treatment methods have been shown to decrease symptoms rather quickly–three to six months, on average.

Trichotillomania FAQs

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Often, they pull when they're stressed or bored as a way to soothe themselves. Another form of therapy to treat trichotillomania is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). CBT goes hand in hand with HRT but is a deeper dive into the thoughts behind a person’s hair-pulling. People who pull out their hair often cause damage to their skin and tissue just underneath the skin’s surface, especially if they use any kind of personal care tool like tweezers.

Treatment for trichotillomania

Many people are unaware that treatments for trichotillomania are available. HRT is often effective and is the first-line treatment in most cases. According to a 2011 review, some of the emotional responses people experience as a result of pulling out their hair can cause them to miss work, school, and social functions. Further controlled clinical trials are necessary to determine the safest and most appropriate drug treatments for trichotillomania. A 2013 review investigated the efficacy of different medications in treating trichotillomania.

What Causes Trichotillomania?

Your doctor may also recommend undergoing HRT in combination with traditional cognitive therapy or acceptance and commitment therapy. While the exact cause of trichotillomania is unknown, both genetic and environmental factors are likely at play in its development. Excoriation disorder (also referred to as chronic skin-picking or dermatillomania) is a mental illness related to obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Trichotillomania – A Serious Mental Condition

Skin and tissue damage sometimes need repair or skin grafting to fix. Damage to skin caused by hair pulling can also cause permanent hair loss in affected areas. Trichotillomania (often abbreviated as TTM) is a mental health disorder where a person compulsively pulls out or breaks their own hair. This condition falls under the classification of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). When it’s severe, it often has extremely negative effects on a person’s happiness, well-being and overall quality of life. For example, your health care provider may recommend an antidepressant, such as clomipramine (Anafranil).

How does this condition affect my body?

People with hair-pulling disorder feel an intense urge to pull their hair out and experience growing tension until they do. A person with trichotillomania may also pull their hair out because of stress. Sometimes, people with hair-pulling disorder don’t even realize that they’re pulling their hair. 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.

Trichotillomania, or pathological hair pulling, refers to an overwhelming urge to pull out hair. Among adults, research shows that trichotillomania is closely linked with other mental health disorders, including other types of OCD and anxiety disorders, as well as substance use. They might send you to a psychiatrist, psychologist, therapist, or other mental health care professional.

However, trichotillomania and OCD are two separate conditions and have many differences related to symptoms and treatment. Dr. Mansueto and colleagues continue to do clinical trials and research. However, clinicians working with individuals suffering TTM and other body-focused repetitive behaviors believe the ComB model is a better option than HRT alone. It is a unique but effective alternative to what is being used in treating the disorder. It is a comprehensive approach and addresses the diverse elements of TTM.

What is Trichotillomania Hair-Pulling Disorder

Table Of Content

• What is trichotillomania?
• Brain structure and function
• Frequently asked questions about trichotillomania
• How to take care of myself/manage symptoms?
• Treating trichotillomania
• Conditions
• Find more top doctors on

Doctors do not diagnose many cases of trichotillomania, which means there is very little information on effective treatments available. Most people with trichotillomania develop the condition in adolescence. Some of these people may then struggle with the condition continually or intermittently throughout adulthood. Diagnosis of trichotillomania is based on a psychiatric evaluation by a mental health provider such as a psychiatrist or therapist, as well as a physical examination.

What is trichotillomania?

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People with OCD often feel anxiety or fear about their obsessions. For example, someone might worry obsessively about things being out of order and feel a compulsion to arrange their things in a certain order. Most of the time, people with trichotillomania pull out their hair with their fingers, but you might also use tweezers or other tools. With focused pulling, people know that they are doing it but can't stop themselves.

Brain structure and function

Many people who have trichotillomania feel embarrassed or ashamed to let other people know they pull. They may try to hide their bald patches or hair loss with hats, scarves, or wigs. They might also wear false eyelashes or use makeup to try to cover up the physical effects of trichotillomania. Some people will stay at home or avoid social situations if they are self-conscious about their hair loss or pulling. 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.

Frequently asked questions about trichotillomania

Researchers have found that individuals who are reluctant to seek conventional treatment may benefit from Internet-based interventions or support groups. While no medications are approved as a first-line treatment for TTM, some antidepressants, antipsychotic medications, and cannabinoid agonists have shown promise in limited studies. In some cases, clinicians will examine patterns of hair loss to determine the disorder’s severity or rule out other possible causes. Hair pulling disorder, also known as trichotillomania, is a mental health condition that typically begins in adolescence or early adulthood.

How to take care of myself/manage symptoms?

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Symptoms may affect a person for just a few months, while it may affect another person off and on for many years. To diagnose trichotillomania, a doctor will talk to you about your medical history, as well as symptoms you may be experiencing. They will likely use the criteria in the new edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) to see if your symptoms match up. A 2013 case study suggests that symptoms of trichotillomania may be impacted by hormonal changes during pregnancy.

Treating trichotillomania

There is also an increased risk in those with a relative who has OCD or an anxiety disorder [7]. Dr. Charles Mansueto, director of the Behavior Therapy Center of Greater Washington, and his colleagues have been doing extensive research for TTM treatment. They have written scientific papers and have presented their findings to various entities including the Trichotillomania Learning Center. A treatment that covers the behavioral, affective, and cognitive variables had been absent. For this reason, Dr. Mansueto and his colleagues developed the Comprehensive Behavioral (ComB) model to cover those missing areas. If you find yourself regularly pulling out your hair or experiencing other symptoms of TTM, it’s time to talk with your doctor.

Conditions

Some people don’t seek treatment because they believe medical or mental health professionals don’t know much about the disorder. For many people with trichotillomania, hairpulling is a response to stress, frustration, or boredom. It can feel comforting and give you a place to direct your energy or something to do. Even if you know you might feel upset about it later, pulling can feel pleasant and satisfying in the moment. It might also help you feel in control during stressful situations.

Some data suggest that women are four to nine times more likely to experience trichotillomania than men, but other research suggests that women are simply more likely to seek help. ADHD is a mental health condition that affects focus, attention, activity, and concentration. While ADHD is not an impulse control disorder like trichotillomania, it can cause problems with impulse control. For this reason, scientists think ADHD and trichotillomania might have some connection with each other, but scientists are still learning about these links.

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Trichotillomania appears in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Version 5 or the DSM-5. This is the manual most mental health experts use to diagnose mental health-related conditions. The reviewers identified olanzapine, N-acetylcysteine, and clomipramine as the only drugs to have a significant treatment effect on trichotillomania. Because this condition can cause shame and embarrassment, many people find it tough to discuss it with a doctor.

For the psychiatric evaluation, your provider may use a variety of questionnaires and other tools to ask you about your experience. In addition, some research suggests that people with trichotillomania have higher gray matter density in some regions of the brain. Some people feel itchiness or tingling in their eyebrows and pull in response. Other people pull or over-pluck their eyebrows because they are worried about how they look or to help themselves deal with stress. Trichotillomania (TTM) is a mental disorder in which people feel an overwhelming need to pull out their own hair.

Patchy eyebrows or sparse eyelashes are visible clues, as well as bald or thin patches on the scalp, especially in persons too young for typical pattern baldness. Many people who have learned to manage their trich say that speaking to others about the condition led to a reduction in hair pulling. Our approach centers on treating people with the same kindness and respect that we value for ourselves.

Therapy is considered the front-line treatment for all BFRBs, including trich. Other kinds of therapy such as ACT and dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT) have also shown promise, especially when combined with HRT. Trichotillomania is a condition characterized by a compulsive urge to pull out one’s hair. In some cases, a “punch biopsy” (where your healthcare provider takes a skin sample for lab analysis) is necessary to confirm a diagnosis of TTM. This test can also rule out other skin conditions that might be the true cause of hair loss or hair pulling.

Adolescents, teenagers and adults with this condition tend to have much more severe problems. Most of the physical complications of trichotillomania can often lead to emotional ones. The patient eventually suffers from lowered self-esteem and social isolation resulting from the physical damage and embarrassment surrounding the condition. In an attempt to avoid discovery, the patient feels he or she must hide the disfigurement that trichotillomania causes. They typically achieve this by avoiding people altogether - causing relationships and job performance to suffer. Left untreated, trichotillomania can lead to clinical depression.