Although mental illness and anxiety disorders are becoming more commonly talked about (thank goodness), it’s still hard to find people to talk to when you battle a hair pulling disorder.
I first started this blog because I had a hard time telling anyone that I pulled my hair out. It just didn’t seem normal to me to come out and say that to anyone. No one I ever knew had come to me and said it…at least not before I started this blog they didn’t.
Where Do You Find Someone To Talk To?
If you want to talk to someone about your hair pulling that will understand, the best place I can recommend is online groups. There are a lot of them on Facebook. Nice thing about most Facebook groups is that they are closed, so people can’t see your conversations.
I first started finding people to talk to about trichotillomania in these groups because I didn’t want to tell a doctor or anyone else for that matter, it felt like no one would understand.
When I found groups online, I found it a lot easier to talk to people about having trich because they all had it too and were openly discussing it.
The nice thing about having people to talk to that understand trichotillomania is that you can discuss products and solutions that you’ve tried and whatnot.
There are a lot of different groups on Facebook to try, some might not mesh well with your personality so its nice to have options.
I personally started a Christian group for people with trichotillomania because I wanted a more positive, uplifting, spiritual place to find like-minded souls.
Another place to look is Instagram, I’ve personally tried to do IG but it’s hard for me because I’m not really into all the pictures, but I do love that there’s places to find people to talk too.
On Instagram, simply starting putting in hashtags around #trichotillomania and you’re going to get taken down a bunny trail of more and more hashtags with people who are wanting to talk about trichotillomania just like you.
Social media has given us a lot of outlets where we can find someone to talk to about trich. I’ve met a lot of great people and found a lot of great products that I keep in my trichotillomania toolkit to help me.
Since starting this blog, I’ve opened up a lot about my hair pulling experiences and I’ve felt more free to be since doing so. I don’t feel as ashamed, alone and depressed as I once was.
Finding people to talk to helped me realize that I was one of MANY people battling this disorder and that there is help available in different forms.
It does seem like there are more women battling this disorder in the groups and in general, but there are some men.
You can always talk to your doctor if you’re comfortable with that but I find it’s probably best to tell someone else first. A doctor could be a source of discouragement if you’re not talking to someone about the condition before going to them.
You will need to screen groups just like you would doctors, so it’s not all rainbows and unicorns once you do find one but there’s usually a lot of great conversations going on that you can read through and while reading through those conversations, you’ll begin finding people you mesh well with.
Most groups on Facebook have a search box you can also go through if you are looking for something specific. If you are up to it, you can always just start your own thread in a group and see who jumps in.
I only mention talking to “strangers” online because I know from personal experience it helps and that these “strangers” somehow become more like real friends and family over time.
I’ve spent my whole life alone and NOT talking to my family and friends about it, that’s why I think having someone online to talk to is very beneficial for some of us who haven’t been able to talk to anyone for whatever reason.
A lot of people with trichotillomania are introverted (I would say most of us) and finding someone online to talk to can actually be easier than a face to face or over the phone conversation.
I’ve met some really amazing people to talk to about hair pulling who understand me and I’ve found so many helpful resources in the process.
Related: Trichotillomania Support Groups Online
