#pushingthepull

[moneknows]

Up late submitting my work for the @spfftl Pushing the Pull open call before the deadline! :: #pushingthepull #spfftl #fatvillage #fatvillageartwalk #isprojects #girlsclubfll #printmaking #contemporaryart #fineart #installation #art #artist https://www.instagram.com/p/BndGRyPBdeY/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=4gb3b9jnwkfk

[pushingthepull]

Hey, just wanted to mention that I've spruced up my blog this week, and I've added a few pages. Notably Trich Tips, which is a collection of posts made by various trichsters on tumblr over the past year or so. Yay, easy browsing. Hope it's helpful (:

[secondintermission-blog]

Trich Survey 2013

TRICH SURVEY 2013 QUESTIONS:

1. Age: 17 2. Gender: Female 3. From where on your face, head, or body do you pull? Head, Eyelashes, Eyebrows 4. For how long have you had problems with hair-pulling? About 7 years 5. When did you discover that your hair-pulling compulsion is called Trichotillomania? How did you find out? I discovered around 4 years ago by a friend who thought she had it. She told me the symptoms and it just all clicked together. 6. List any triggers that you are aware of. Stress, stress, stress, stress, talking to my mom, stress, school, stress, any kind of stress. 7. Do you know how your pulling originated? For example, did you start by simply scratching, stroking, or searching for hairs that don’t belong? Probably from stress. It was in my 6th grade math class. We had a really tough teacher who liked to single out her students, and all of a sudden one day I just started pulling. There was hair all over the floor and I had to kick it around at the end of class. 8. Do you experience any other disorders or illnesses? (E.g. Dermatillomania, Trichophagia, Anxiety, Depression, Anorexia, OCD, Diabetes). Dermatillomania, anxiety, possibly ocd and depression. 9. Do any of your family members suffer from a disorder or illness? (If uncertain, do you think they have tendencies towards Anxiety, Depression, OCD, ICD, etc.?). I’m convinced my mom has OCD, but she has never sought out treatment for it. She had intense anxiety when she was in her late teens and early 20’s. She couldn’t leave the house for a year because of her anxiety. She couldn’t sleep, and she resorted to buying self-help tapes from an infomercial because she didn’t know what else to do. She has seen her number of therapists. My aunt on my moms side had OCD, undiagnosed, but it was obvious to her family. 10. Do you eat a balanced/healthy diet most of the time? Do you consume sugar and/or caffeine on a daily basis? I try! I guess it’s not the healthiest, but it’s pretty normal. I have a sweet tooth, but I try and cure that with honey nut cheerios as much as I can to resist unhealthier sweets. 11. Do you find that exercising reduces your urges to pull? I haven’t really tried that, I guess. I’m working a pretty physical job right now and it reduces my urge. 12. Do you take medication to help with Trichotillomania? I don’t, I don’t think I would want to either. 13. Do you feel the need to be organised and in control? Yes, intensely. Especially in control…it’s alarming to me. I can’t even go under anesthesia because I won’t be in control. If I’m going out with friends, I have to drive, or I won’t go. 14. In what situation (or location) are you most likely to pull? (E.g. In bed, in front of the television, at work, studying, driving). Using my laptop in the livingroom, in the bathroom, driving, being reprimanded by my mother. 15. Do you ever pull in the presence of other people? It depends. I can pull in front of my family, with limitations. My mother doesn’t really stop me even though she’s completely aware. My father and my brother don’t know. I can pull in front of my boyfriend, but he’ll stop me. Anyone else I try not to, but if I see an opportunity to safely pull, I’ll do it. 16. Is your family aware of your Trichotillomania? If so, are they accepting or supportive? My mother is. She doesn’t take it seriously, I guess is the best way to put it. When I told her a couple years back, she disregarded it completely, saying it was just a phase. I’ve had many nights sobbing to her, trying to get her to understand and the response is always “you have to help yourself first.” It’s incredibly frustrating. My aunt who is also my hair dresser knows. I recently told her, she was pretty understanding, but she doesn’t recognize it, at all. She doesn’t mention anything about it while shes doing my hair, even after I spilled my heart out to her about it. It’s better than her having a negative reaction though. 17. Do you have any friends outside of the Internet that you can confide in? Yeah, quite a bit of my friends know about it. It’s uncomfortable for most of them to talk about, so I rarely bring it up. But there are one or two I can vent to every so often. 18. Have you spoken to a GP or a psychologist about Trichotillomania? If so, would you recommend making an appointment? I have not, I’m planning to this fall though. 19. Have you had mostly positive or negative experiences with hairdressers? I’ve had mixed experiences. My aunt has done my hair since I was a baby, and I think she was harder to tell than it would be to tell a regular old hair dresser. She’s accepting of it. 20. Do you think your hair-pulling urges will lessen in the future? Do you see yourself overcoming the disorder? My urges come and go in waves. I’m not doing so good right now, it’s the worst it’s ever been. I can see the disorder lessening in the future if I get help, but I doubt it’ll ever just disappear. 21. Describe the sensations you experience leading up to and/or during a ‘pulling session’. A lot of tension in my shoulders, my minds running a million miles a minute, something stresses me out and I can’t help but reach up to pull. It’s either that or, pure boredom. 22. Are there any techniques to reduce pulling, or mask damage, that you have found to be helpful? Playing bubbleshooter, getting up and doing something, working, being around people. I use a lot of hair products, get my hair cut certain ways, and don’t let anyone play with my hair. 23. Do you pull quite regularly, or do you go for days, weeks, even months without any urges? Some years will be different than others, I went through a period where I hardly pulled at all, but chewed the ends of my hair. It’s mostly a constant thing.

24. Does Trichotillomania effect the way you view yourself? Most certainly. It’s painful emotionally. I don’t see myself as this beautiful young girl with lovely hair anymore. 25. Are there any books or websites that you would recommend? Definitely trich.org, and the book Marnie. 

[pushingthepull]

hey, I'm 16 years old and I've had trich for 5 years, since I developed anorexia. I recovered from my eating disorder last year but my trich never got any better and I always assumed to two were interlinked in some way. recently I got a whole heap worse and my eyelashes won't grow back anymore and it really gets me down. I am terrified to go back to a doctor though incase they re-diagnose my eating disorder. that's my biggest fear. what should I do? I've had it with this disorder:(

First of all, well done on recovering from your eating disorder. That is really fantastic to hear!

If you would like to try and tackle Trich on your own I would recommend using Coconut Oil. This product is great for hair growth and makes it hard to grasp the hairs when applied.I can understand why you would feel an aversion to the doctors, however a visit to your GP would most likely be a positive thing. They only have your best interests at heart. They may have to look at your diet and how it is affecting your hair growth, but most of the time Trich is treated using cognitive therapy. Good luck x