What Is Trichotillomania?

Lots of teens don't think about losing their hair because it seems like something only adults need to worry about. However, if you're a teen with trichotillomania, hair loss can be a serious reality.

Understanding Trichotillomania
Trichotillomania is a type of psychological disorder known as an impulse control disorder. Impulse control disorders are characterized by an uncontrollable urge, or impulse, to do something that can bring harm to oneself or others.

People with trichotillomania repetitively pull their hair out at the root from places like the scalp, eyebrows, or eyelashes, sometimes causing baldness.

Research suggests that trichotillomania affects between 1% and 2% of the population. Girls are more likely to have trichotillomania than guys. Kids and teens are also more likely to have it than adults.

Symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder  (OCD) often go along with trichotillomania. People with OCD often have unwanted (and mostly untrue) thoughts that repeat themselves over and over and seem impossible to control. Having the unwanted thought creates a feeling of worry that is only relieved when that thought is followed by a certain behavior.

For example, a person may keep having the thought that she has too many germs or is super-dirty in some way, and she may feel the urge to wash her hands over and over again. Only then can she relieve (for a short while) the uncomfortable feeling of being dirty. Because people with trichotillomania often report uncomfortable feelings that are relieved for a while when hair is pulled out, some doctors consider trichotillomania a form of OCD.

Doctors aren't sure exactly what causes trichotillomania. It sometimes begins after a stressful event in a person's life, like the death of a loved one. Trichotillomania may run in families, and some theories suggest that it may be linked to certain neurotransmitters (chemical messengers in the brain).

What Are the Signs and Symptoms of Trichotillomania?
Trichotillomania is characterized by certain symptoms:

People with trichotillomania often pull out their hair one strand at a time and then inspect the strand after pulling it out. They sometimes chew the strands, twirl or play with their hair, or even eat their hair. People with trichotillomania sometimes engage in other behaviors such as compulsive nail biting or skin picking. They often have accompanying problems like depression .

Usually, trichotillomania causes the person who has it to feel embarrassed, frustrated, ashamed, or depressed. They usually try to hide their behavior from others, which can mean using makeup to hide their bald spots, wearing wigs, and avoiding social situations and activities that would expose their condition, like swimming.

The good news is that with proper treatment, which may involve therapy , medication, or a combination of both, most people with trichotillomania are eventually able to stop the impulses that lead to pulling out their hair. If you think you have trichotillomania, talk to a parent or another adult you trust who can help you to get treatment.