Hi. I suffer from trichotillomania- it's sort of a form of OCD usually caused by stress and in my case, a kind of side-effect of my depression. Trichotillomania is where the term "pulling my hair out" (as in "i was so stressed i was pullin my hair out at work today"- sorta... lol...). but anyways- apparently a lil under 8 million ppl in the US suffer from this embarrassing and stressful disorder. Does anyone else out here have it? and if so, do u have any advice on how to stop? i hate having it- my bald patches aren't really that bad but i'm definitely afraid they'll get worse. i don't have the time or money to get professional help, so does anyone have any good advice? and plz remeber i am here to get advice not hear any mean or harsh criticizing from ppl. i really would appreciate sincere help here.... thanx...
2006-10-11 14:51:56 · 2 answers · asked by ♥_mrs.smith 4 in Health ➔ Other - Health
Well if you haven't heard of TLC (the Trichotillomania Learning Center) definitely check it out and join if you can. Meditation, accupressure, and anti-anxiety medicines have helped me over the years. Joining or starting a local support group is great. Also there are many online support groups like on yahoogroups.com. The best advice is to believe that you DO have ultimate control and if you believe that, you can stop. I'm not telling you to "just stop" cause it's not that simple of course, but if you are in the right place mentally with the right tools, you do have a choice on whether you want to let trich control you.
2006-10-12 11:09:08 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Have you looked for information on the internet?
Look at these websites about it:
From the National Institutes of Health:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001517.htm
From the Mayo Clinic:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/trichotillomania/AN00026
From Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trichotillomania
And many more, from a Google web search:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=trichotillomania&btnG=Search
Good luck!
2006-10-11 14:54:26 · answer #2 · answered by Jim 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I don't have your specific type of OCD..in fact, to tell you the truth I haven't been profesionally evaluted for OCD at all. But when I'm going through a bad patch of OCD-like symptoms, I listen to music. Lots and lots of music. And I think and fantasize about whatever. Killing people, helping people, fantastic sex, whatever. It helps me get my mind off of what's stressing me and then I can go back to my life all happy again :)
2006-10-11 14:54:56 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have a friend with it, she shaved her head and wore wigs to try and break the habit. I think zoloft finally helped her.
2006-10-11 14:54:30 · answer #4 · answered by parental unit 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋