Though largely unheard of, many parents have encountered or witnessed their child pulling hair. This can actually include their own hair and the hair of other children, animals or even objects such as carpet. There are even accounts of children pulling eyelashes out. If you do see your child pulling hair out, then they may suffer from a condition known as trichotillomania. Diagnosis of this condition is difficult as a general rule do to the fact that the activity is usually not seen.
Children like adults who suffer from this condition will frequently cover up the physical marks caused by the activity. A child pulling hair can actually pull chunks of the hair out leading to small bald patches. What makes this hair pulling disease even harder to detect in children is that fact that children pulling hair is not entirely uncommon in normal children.
If you believe your child pulling hair out may in fact be trichotillomania then there is cause for hope. A psychologist who specializes in the treatment of this disorder should be able to effectively diagnose if your child pulling hair out is in fact trichotillomania.
- Currently a trichotillomania cure does not yet exist, however there is a trichotillomania therapy.
- Treatment for your child pulling hair out should begin as soon as possible because most studies suggest the earlier the condition is caught and dealt with the easier the therapy will be.
- Treatment of a child pulling hair out involves either the use of habit reversal therapy or hypnotherapy. Habit reversal therapy will involve finding the direct causes of this hair pulling habit and then a parent maintaining a watchful eye on the child under these circumstances to prevent the actions.
- Hypnotherapy involves using hypnosis to train the child to use alternative, non destructive methods of dealing with the condition. Both have proven highly successful if the parents are willing to take the necessary steps and follow through with the recommendations made by the psychologist. They do however take a fair amount of work and time.
Unfortunately no drugs exist which can aid in this treatment for a child pulling hair. There has been some success using antidepressants such as Fluoxetine (Prozac) in adults but unfortunately these antidepressants require the patient to be at least eighteen. This effectively rules out any form of drugs for treating a child pulling hair. If you have a child pulling hair it is recommended you consult your child’s pediatrician to find a local psychologist who can show you your options on how to deal with this condition.
Discover how you can join over 132,533 ex-sufferers who have already ended their years of OCD related conditions permanently (including trichotillomania, pulling hair disorder, anxiety & phobias) and had completely stop pulling hair. This method had been medically & psychologist endorsed (recommended by the NHS in the UK).
Popularity: 14% [?]
