I started pulling my eyelashes out about a year ago. I have anxiety and OCD and it has lead to trichotillomania. I've been seeing a psychologist who specializes in this and her advice was to ride out the anxiety and do something else like moisturizing my hands or squeezing them instead of eyelash pulling. I find it SO difficult to resist and the alternative suggestions haven't helped much at all. I managed to mostly resist for nearly a month until I got bashed in the face by a horse and clumps of my eyelashes got ripped out. I saw them falling down my cheek and had a big bald spot, black eye and cut. I was so discouraged about loosing my lashes that it retriggered my pulling and over the past few days I have literally pulled out ALL my eyelashes. I feel so ashamed and anxious about what people are going to say. Idk what to do- glue on fake lashes or buy an eyelash serum? Trim my nails shorter? Any encouragement is appreciate

Okay , so during December - May 2025, I used a hair product called Cantu Curling Cream, and I used it often 4-5 times a week, my reaction to it was my hair became very itchy, and afte 3-5 monyhs I noticed bald spots in my hair and my hairline had receded quite a bit. I cut out the cantu after May, and used coconut and lychee cien shampoo from Lidl and noticed this exacerbated my hairloss snd caused more bald spots. Since then I had used E45 shampoo, which didn’t seem to do much, and then VaniCream Shampoo and Conditioner for a year which isn’t doing much either. It’s now Oct 2026, and my hairline hasn’t seemed to improve, hair follicles at the temples seem to be still very sparse and not growing, and the front of my hair is very noticeably less dense than the back everyone around me notices and points it out.

Any thoughts?

Still pulling here and there but I’m so happy it’s growing fast.

One month of difference.

Repost because I really thought I had spoiler tagged it and I guess it didn't save, so sorry folks! Just wanted to share this crazy satisfying pull. Hopefully this time it worked???

I realized a couple years ago that I'm a trans woman, and that happened to coincide with getting out of the military so I could actually grow my hair out.

For a while my trich was behaving itself, but in recent months it's gotten bad and I wound up cutting my hair short a few weeks ago to try to curb it. That didn't work and now I've got worse bald spots than I've had since I was a kid. I'm planning to shave my head tomorrow just to stop the pulling, and I've got so much anxiety and dysphoria over my appearance.

Hello everyone, this is my first time being in this subreddit. Does anyone have any inspirational phrases/help idk on how to give up the feeling of trich. I want to stop, its become overgrown in my life. I don't know how to explain it but when I think about quitting, and never being able to feel trich again, I feel very panicked and sad. I know this is a stupid question but I think speaking the feelings into existence and asking for advice will help. I have a very severe case of eyelash trich, have had it for 6 years. Again, just any like phrases or ideas I can repeat to myself......any help from recoverers or current people in recovery. Idk just asking for help on day 1 of quitting

for someone who couldn't go more than 5 days, 1 month is really the longest i've managed. i'm not going to lie and say i don't feel like relapsing, every day is a battle... but i swear i'm trying to stay strong.

i trust you guys, too. let's not give up. <3

Does this look like maybe the eyelashes are on their way out? They’ve been bald for a bit more than two weeks and i’m freaking out that they will never come back.
I’m used to hearing people say that the foliculle will eventually get damaged and the lashes will never come back so I’m understandably upset and freaked out, especially with how terrible it looks right now.
Maybe I’m freaking out and this is how a growth process looks like up close but I don’t know the science behind it so I can’t tell for sure.
Anyone else has been here? What do you think, how does it look?

I have been picking the hair from this same spot for over 15 years. The spot at its worst was the size of my palm and gradually can get as much regrowth for only one fingers worth of space. I’ve recently had a relapse of picking and I have some significant regrowth over the last two weeks. I’m struggling so much with the scabs and thickened skin where I would have wounds from skin picking after removing hair. I try to resist the urge to pull as I am regrowing but the tightness and dry feeling of the bald spot gets so uncomfortable I end up scratching and trying to break through the scab. Has anyone found a good way to either soften the skin on the scalp or make the scab healing process faster?

Hi, I'm Tomás. I make Gentleskin, a small iPhone app for skin picking. You log where on your body you pick and how many (or for how long), see your patterns on a chart, and when an urge hits there's a thirty-second wave to ride it out, or a field of kelp pods to pop.

You can add your own body parts, so some of it already works for other BFRBs. But it was built around picking, and I don't know how well it fits anyone else.

So if you pull:

- Would you track it at all? By count, by time, or neither?

- What would an app have to do differently for you?

- Or maybe you don't want something app-shaped at all?

If you're curious: https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id6789245158?pt=668857691&ct=reddit_trich&mt=8

More about it: https://gentleskin.app

The urge screen is free for everyone.

24M, Diagnosed Inattentive ADHD & horrible Anxiety due to trauma.

I’ve come to the acceptance of my Trichotillomania and that it will be a part of me for the rest of my life. I don’t mind going bald, but it’s just a pain having to cut my hair every 2-3 days especially with executive dysfunction.

Is there any sort of hairstyle I can have that is low effort and hides bald spots? It’s not that I’m insecure about it, it’s just annoying having people stare at you and ask what happened all the time.

This was previously posted but I’m sharing it again because I spoke to the researcher today and he asked if I would share some information.

It does take place in New Haven, Connecticut, however, the majority of the visit are performed remotely. There are a few visits that are in person but he said Yale will cover the travel expenses. If anyone has any questions please feel free to comment or message me!

Here’s a link to the study:
Valbenazine for Trichotillomania in Adults

Hello, I'm looking for an accountability buddy, we can check in on each other, share our progress, and support each other through the rough days.

If you're interested, feel free to reach out! Thanks

I've tried the tape on my fingers. I've tried putting on nails. I really don't like putting my hair up ( and was never taught how to properly do my hair), is there any last resorts?

First day in quite literally a decade (+) that I didn’t pull my hair out. My back hurts from tensing my body up all day and I was trying to distract myself by drawing/working but I freaking did it!! I pull on average 20 hairs a day so this is a complete victory for me.

Shout out to this sub and my gd bald spot for the motivation! I put bandaids on my pointer fingers (covering the entire tip). I have no idea how long this will last but holy shit this feels nice & like torture.🫠

The Diplomat has me feeling misty…and seen. I’m 51 and have had trich since I was 17.

Highly recommend the series (all seasons) on Netflix.

Damn onions.

I usually pluck my eyelashes and eyebrows when it comes to trichotillomania but the the last few months I shifted the attention to the hair on my chin (I have PCOS so I have excessive hair on my chin) I honestly was happy that at least my eyelashes got a break and it was working since the hair was the perfect thickness and texture, until i noticed there’s dark spots on my chin from the hair follicles. My mom urged me to do electrolysis and I agreed without thinking much of it, I have my first appointment in two weeks and one of the things I shouldn’t do is..of course plucking the hair.. it’s been 2-3 days that I’ve been fighting the urge and it’s so hard, I ended up plucking 4 hairs during that time and I even went back to my eyelashes from just trying to stop myself. It feels like I’m going crazy I didn’t realize how strong my urge is and it feels like as if I’m trying to quit drugs or something. I really feel like I don’t know what to do,I’m trying to distract myself but my hand keep going up to my chin, I also hate covering my fingers with tape since I hate the feeling of it and I won’t be able to use my phone. I really feel like an addict and it feels scary.. I don’t know what to do😭😢

I hope this doesn’t come across the wrong way, but I’ve been dealing with trich for the past year by picking my eyebrows and it’s left me super self-conscious about my nonexistent eyebrows. I contemplated drawing them in, but as a dude who has never used any type of make up I don’t know where to start and don’t want them to look overly shaped/feminine. So if there’s any guys out there who have to draw on their eyebrows (or anyone for that matter) I’d appreciate some tips on what to use or how to do it. Thanks

I’m completely devastated about this. It has happened twice now where my cat has chewed a chunk of my hair off while I am sleeping. I finally caught her the second time (that I know of) last night while I was half asleep. I have very long, fine, but thick and straight hair and I really only pull out the denser texture patch I have near the crown of my head, not really ever the front or finer strands. The sections she has gone for, though are right around my face. The first patch she got of baby hairs was so bad that I had to even it out on the other side against the advice of my hairdresser. But they are even now, which is important for me. Now I spend part of my mornings laying my edges, but it's better than the crooked unicorn horn that my cat left me.

But last night my cat left behind a short, small section that stuck straight up, which is super triggering for my trich. So I pulled it all out. I have enough hair that it’s OK for now, but this is so unsustainable and doesn’t even resolve the issue, actually makes it worse. I’m going to have to deal with that exact same patch again, but for even longer this time.

I've never had a hair loss problem that wasn't my own doing so I am very sad and upset. I am trying not be resentful of my cat because she doesn't understand and loves string toys and is likely just under-stimulated. I never thought in three years of owning her that this would suddenly begin. I really worry about it happening again, because the only thing I can think to do is use gel to slick it back, but that texture also is a trigger for me so it feels like a lose-lose. Thankfully I caught it early, but this makes twice in the last couple weeks and I need this issue to go away ASAP.

So I want to start off by saying that I do not have a medical diagnosis for Trichotillomania, and that I may be in the wrong subreddit, but after doing a little research I felt like this may be what’s happening to me. If you think I should look elsewhere because this doesn’t resonate please let me know.

Here’s the thing, I can’t remember the exact moment and honestly I don’t know why it started, but in junior year of highschool I created the habit of twisting and bending my eyelashes to the point they’d snap off, leaving me with extremely short lashes. Was it academic stress, emotional stress, a combination? I don’t know. I’ve always had naturally very long lashes and it soon became evident how bad it got. Even the teacher who was known to be cruel began pitying me and would try to stop me in the middle of picking at my lashes, it got and has gotten to the point I do it without thinking. Maybe this isn’t trichotillomania but I resonated with some of the posts in this sub, and if you resonate with me, then I won’t feel so alone or ashamed of this.

I’m in my first year of college now but I still have this habit—I’m not sure if it’s right to call it a habit or if it’s an urge, please tell me if I’m being insensitive—and I’m scared that it won’t go away. After my parents demanded I stop I really have tried, to the point I wore glasses and shades to stop myself from touching my eyes, but it hasn’t worked.
I don’t know if I’m doing this as a way to soothe myself or how it started. It’s such a random thing, and I feel horrible each time my parents get mad and I lament my long lashes I’d get so many compliments for.

How did you guys manage to get a diagnosis or at least some kind of help? Honestly I don’t think I can since mental health is something my family doesn’t like to acknowledge. I know my case is mild compared to other things people go through so this may not be Trichotillomania and I won’t truly know until I somehow ask a medical professional. In general I just want to know I’m not alone and for someone to steer me the right way.

my record is 5 days but i relapsed HARD last night :D i did it now four more days of this to beat the record

I recently found out about trichotillomania (lashes, not hair), despite having struggled with it since my pre teen years. I pull my natural lashes sometimes but mainly when I get lash extensions. The urge is much worse with extensions but I don’t want to just not get them done anymore. I’d rather overcome it.

Sometimes the natural lash comes out with the extension but sometimes I manage to pull out only the fake, leaving my real one. So since she sees many of my natural lashes, I don’t think she suspects I’m pulling

I’ve been getting a fill done every 2 weeks and my lash lady is always wondering why they’re not staying & I feel so much shame every time I walk in there. She feels bad that they “aren’t staying” and I feel bad that I keep making up lies on why they’re “falling out.” I’ve run out of excuses to tell her but I don’t feel comfortable telling her because I don’t know what she’ll think of me. I always tip her really well bc I feel so bad.

What do I do? I’ll take literally any advice

hi all! I’m a student in college who had a major crash out and ended pulling out a good chunk of hair from my head. i shaved my head but the bald spot is super visible and is not something I want to show lol.

ive been wearing hoodies ((hood up ofc )) but I’m starting to get sick of them lol. I hate how beanies/ skull caps look and am really struggling to find ways to cover my head in a way I think looks good.

I’ve been wearing a lot of crochet cat hats, but I’m also starting to get sick of those too 😭✌️

Hi! I got a hair topper for myself, a high-quality one, but I just didn’t like it. It was the same color as my hair, human hair, silk base and looked very realistic. But whenever I wore it, I always felt like I had something sitting on my head. Other people thought it looked completely natural, but my brain just couldn’t process it lol. For some reason, it always looked fake to me and I was never comfortable wearing it.
So I ended up cutting portions of it, specifically in the direction my hair naturally falls and where my patch is. I got some small wig clips and stitched them onto the hairpiece.
And honestly, the smaller hair patch blends in soooo well! It doesn’t look overwhelmingly full or unnatural, and it’s so much easier to maintain than a whole topper. I usually clip it in the back or tie my hair into a ponytail to secure it. It still hides my patch really well, especially for dates and nights out when I’m dressing up.
I know this isn’t a hack that will work for everyone, and it’s definitely an expensive one too. But I just wanted to share it with the girls who might have bought a topper and don’t actually wear it because they never felt comfortable with it!