My 12 year old granddaughter pulls out her eyelashes. We have done everything we could to stop her. What would make her do this. If she keeps it up will they stop coming back? She has long lashes and says they get in her way, they are not that long.
Hi. Your granddaughter may have trichotillomania. It is an impulse disorder causing people to pull out eyelashes, hair from the scalp, or eyebrows. They have a website with more information on the topic- www.trich.org. (http://www.trich.org.) Good luck!
Hi,
I use to do the same thing when I was younger and it drove my mom crazy. I'm now 45 and I still pull them sometime, but YES they do grow back.
There is an article about this on Wikipedia.org. It is called Trichotillomania. I suggest you research this as well as call her pediatrician, and give her lots of love and support and work to minimize stress in her life. She is not doing it on purpose. Good luck.
Hi Sherry,
I saw a talk show that can relate to this issue. It was about kids with disorders called o.d.d (I think), one of the stories was of a girl who pulled her hair until bold, every time she was nervous or anxious she react like this. I know it may sound silly but u should take her to a doctor and maybe they could be more helpful.
It is called trichotillomania. There are some websites about it that will give you more information. There is no "cure". Other than behavior modification techniques and sometimes antidepressants, she may struggle with this for quite some time. It has nothing to do with them getting in her way. Pulling out her lashes is a way to deal with tension just like people bite their nails. Do not shame her or nag her about it. It won't help. Refer her to one of the websites (such as www.trich.org) so she can learn about it, that she isn't alone, and there are support group blogs there too.
I see that alot of agreed on the same dignoses. But I say do not take these as dignoses.I don't confirm or deny that her signs may be that of what pposets said but I think you should take her to her doctor and go from there.I would not stress yourself over it just yet or go in your grand daughters doctors office saying you think it's what others think it might be.Get this checked out and please let us all know what happens.I wish you luck.
Hi Sherry,
There is no known cure for Trichotillomania from the medical community. The natural community would say that there probably is, but there are also things that exacerbate it.
First, she needs good nutrition. Remove the processed foods from her diet and get her on a good absorbable multi-vitamin. You also need to get the chemicals out of the house and off her body. Diseases like this come from the way the brain processes information. The outside stimuli of chemicals that are neuro-toxins make these issues worse. (Pledge, Windex, laundry detergents, shampoos, soaps, etc, anything at Walmart...)There may even be a metallic toxicity in her body.
I would suggest getting her to a Naturopath immediately for specific help and also to an upper cervical chiropractor. Not just any chiropractor can help with a situation this serious. You need a specialist.
I've dealt with Autism, Asperger's, ADHD, OCD, SPD, and the like before and there are ways to alleviate symptoms. If you would like more information please ask, I'll be glad to help.
regards,
Mimi
I have read the other posts and think this is a nervous reaction also. Take her to a doctor so that she can be properly dianosed and treated. Good luck!
I have to admit I did the same thing when I was younger. I did it mainly when I was nervous and it was a habit. I even find myself doing it today when I'm in stressful situations.
Don't worry, her eyelashes will grow back. In fact, my eyelashes grew back longer and thicker.
My mom would give me a barbie doll to tug at instead of my eyelashes. I would just talk to your granddaughter to find out if she's upset or nervous about anything. Sometimes talking can help.
I'd have said exactly what Christ S. said. Check out the websites. Good luck.
My mother has done this for most of her life. She would give us the excuse that they "itched" or bothered her, but her doctor said that it had to do with her way of dealing with nerves and anxiety. When they treated her with anti-anxiety medication, she stopped pulling them out and some did grow back. But, since she has stopped the medication, she started pulling out her eyebrow hairs as well. Maybe you can take her to the doctor to see if she is dealing with some anxieties, etc. before it gets to that point.
I knew someone with this problem a few years back. It is a condition that needs medical and psychological help. It can be an obsessive compulsive disorder. I would suggest that you get her into see a doc soon. The girl that I know who had the problem never got most of her eye lashes back so you want to try and get her help before the problems gets too serious. Try not to react to her behavior until you can talk to a dr. Putting pressure on her may cause the behavior to increase. Good luck!!!
I had a friend in high school who suffered from a disorder that caused her to do this. It eventually lead to her pulling out hair as well. It is a true disorder and she needs to see her pediatrician about it.
Absolutely -- talk to her pediatrician! Sounds like OCD.
I knew a mom who's son was doing the same thing. (When asked why, he said because he liked the "pop" when he bit on the follicle.) Once on meds, he stopped and seemed a generally more happy child.
Have you tried an eyelash curler? Maybe this will keep the eyelashes out of her eyes.
Trim them with a pair of grooming scissors. Because they won't grow back after so long of pulling them out.I know a lady who had that problem as a child and she has on eye lashes now. Good Luck.
Hi Sherry. There is a condition called TRICHOTILLOMANIA and it sounds like this may be what your granddaughter is experiencing. An excerpt from wikopedia:
"Trichotillomania (TTM), or "trich" as it is commonly known, is an impulse control disorder characterized by the repeated urge to pull out scalp hair, eyelashes, facial hair, nose hair, pubic hair, eyebrows or other body hair, sometimes resulting in noticeable bald patches. Trichotillomania is classified in the DSM-IV as an impulse control disorder..."
also from the same page:
"TTM seems to strike most frequently in the pre- or early adolescent years. The typical first-time hair puller is 12 years old."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trichotillomania
I would suggest getting her in to see a pyschologist for this and exploring behavorial modification and possibly medication, if the problem persists.
Good luck with everything.
I'm thinking you should take her to a psychiatrist. It could be signs of obsessive compulsive disorder or a condition where people pull out their hair. It may not be either of these, but it's worth at least calling someone. Brian Thomas and Lisa Huber are located on Piedmont Road in Buckhead - they are both very good child psychiatrists. You could always just discuss it with them over the phone and see if they feel she should be brought in for an evaluation. Good luck! Debbie D
Sherry, sorry to say, I am 37 and have been pulling out my lashes as well!! I wear contacts and used to have problems with lashes getting into my eyes and having to remove the contacts because of it. Anyone that wears contacts knows what a pain that is. I have been doing it for at least 2 years now. My fiance always points out that I don't have many, and he has really long lashes. I want him to pull his as well. They do grow back. Bad habit I guess. Wish you well