The Hair Pulling "Habit" and You: How to Solve the Trichotillomania Puzzle Paperback – October 16, 2000

My 14-year old has Trichotillomania (along with anxiety) and her therapist required that we get this book to work through as a family, and then they discuss it during their sessions. The illustrations are poor and the book isn’t much to look at, but content is very good. It really helped to open up dialogue between us and our daughter. She was way more receptive to using it than I had expected. As a parent of a teen with Trich, I would say that this book is a very good resource for an older child - adult who is ready and WANTS to stop pulling. It’s meant to help the process of identifying triggers, paying attention to behaviors, and choosing to try to replace with non-injuring other behaviors.

I bought this book for my 8 year old daughter who suffered through trichotillomania for almost a year. We saw a counseler and tried many different techniques to try and help her. The first part of this book is good because it helps you and your child figure out their triggers for pulling and the places that they are most likely to pull so you can find ways to help them stop. The last part of the book I would NOT recommend. It requires that your child actually count the eyelashes or hairs that they are pulling out so they can keep track and see if they are getting better. Right off the bat I felt that this was not a good idea, my daughter already felt bad and counting the actual hairs is just going to make her feel worse. I asked her couselor about it and she agreed. The last thing you want to do is make your child MORE ashamed of what they are doing. After months of trying different techniques and giving her little "prizes" for doing well there was only one thing that has gotten her to stop cold turkey. We promised that if she didn't pick her eyelashes we would take her to Disneyland for spring break. It has been 2 months and she has lost the urge to pick and all our mirrors are hanging back up. She still has 8 months to go before Disneyland but she has tried harder for this than any other prize.

this book was helpful to a 21 year old cognitively and physically challenged young woman who could read and re-read that she was not "weird" and could try a variety of ways to help modify her problematic habits. Her parents and care-givers also read it with her so literally they were "all on the same page". This lessened family tension which was beneficial for all concerned. As her skin and hair became less of a focus her anxiety and sadness about her life found its way into tears and eventually words..

We used this bought and used this book over 2 years ago at the request of our child psychologist. It was such a fantastic help - especially the strategies! This disorder can turn into a life long problem. We were lucky enough to spot it quickly and get it addressed. Within a week of working with the therapist, this book and having the back up of my daughters school teacher she stopped pulling. There have been no more incidents (her eyelashes were completely gone at the time) and only occasionally I notice her hands drifting to her eyelashes. This book is a MUST for any parent dealing with this problem. I am so grateful to the author!

But as some other reviewers noted, not all the advice is good for all patients. Talk to therapist before implementing.

I really love how this book is written. It's supposed to be for kids and teenagers but as an adult with trichotillomania, I've found a lot of actionable steps for myself. There's not a one size fits all approach, everything is custom tailored to help individuals who are dealing with hair pulling in different ways.

I'm a psychologist who specializes in anxiety and OCD. This book is geared to an adolescent patient; however, I would not hesitate to recommend to an adult as well. Very thorough and practical cognitive-behavioral techniques/strategies throughout.

As a Child/Adolescent Psychiatrist I see children and adolescents with trichotillomania. I usually work with the parents and try to get the children to participate. This book is now an invaluable part of my work. The child/adolescent is taught, step-by-step, to develop their own interventions. They feel part of the treatment and empowered to take control of their hair pulling problem. Thanks to the authors for this much needed book. Larry B. Silver, M.D.

A great book for parents who are despairing on how to help their child. I'm a senior mental health practitioner with CAMHS in somerset. I back this book. Really helpful.

This book has been really useful for my 9 year old son who has trich. It has made him realise that he is not the only child in the world who pulls his hair and has really opened up a dialogue between us. He says it has helped him to talk about it which makes him feel much better. The techniques are really effective and the positive approach makes him believe that he can stop. The rewards really motivate him and he finds this part a lot of fun. His pulling is reducing week by week. I would highly recommend this book

I never understood why my daughter pulled now I do I help her we talk openly about it she is nearly 7 n did a project on her hair for no pull week n explained to her class why she super cool n has cool short hair like rhi n Audrey Hepburn she is doing amazing no one bullys her they all love her as she amazing I thank this book it's so important to love and support your child n never be embarrassed by them pulling talk calmly explain I hold her hands at bed we doing great highly recommend this book for those struggling n parents

Previous reviews very important as this book can be advanced for young children

Very interesting book ideal for people to understand what to do in situations when someone you know suffers with this illness