trichotillomania in a 7 month old?

yo'ma

Tue, Jan 18 2011, 5:27 pm

My 7 month pulls on his hair, but nothing comes out b"h. He seems to only do it one area. He also has cradle cap, so maybe he's trying to scratch. I checked it out online and I read that it usually starts at a year of age. He only does it maybe 2-4 times a day. Do you think it could be trichotillomania. I'll be going to the doctor in a few weeks with him, so I'll ask her, but for now...

obagys

Tue, Jan 18 2011, 6:01 pm

Babies can have a lot of strange habbits. Most of the time they are harmless even though they can seem alarming. It's worth mentioning to the doctor but looking up a diagnosis on the internet is often totally inaccurate and can cause unnecessary worry. Hope your baby is ok!

sruth1

Tue, Jan 18 2011, 8:21 pm

yo'ma wrote:

No at this age it would not be Trichotillomania. In order for it to qualify as trichotilomania your seven month old would eed to be experianceing anxiety prior to pulling out the hair and pull out the hair in order to relive that anxiety. Also the hir would actually need to be pulled out of the head to qualify for such a diagnosis. He is probably justa baby being a bay but if you are concerned speak to your doctor.

amother

Tue, Jan 18 2011, 8:29 pm

my son used to pull out his hair and EAT IT!! I know this because I used to find it in his diaper still inside his body. I was VERY concerned about tric, but it turned out to be a sensory thing. (he started at about a year)

mamommommy

Tue, Jan 18 2011, 10:33 pm

Trichotillomania is considered an impulse-control disorder (closely related to OCD). There is no way that your ds would ever be diagnosed with it at this age, and it's also pretty uncommon to develop it at such a young age as well.

The anxiety that others are speaking of actually refers to anxiety that one would feel from wanting to pull the hair (and not doing it immediately) or from trying to suppress the impulse to engage in the behavior, but anxiety is not what actually leads to the desire to pull out the hair.

If no hair is coming out, I wouldn't worry about it at all, and would probably just view it as a sensory-seeking activity. If, as he gets older, the behavior continues and he begins to experience hair loss/bald patches, then I would consult a doctor.

Isramom8

Wed, Jan 19 2011, 7:23 am

Tricotillomania means chronic hair pulling, so it's just a different word to describe this. One of my kids did this from age one and a half till eight or ten, when he stopped of his own accord. Nothing we tried could get him to stop before that, and his stopping had nothing to do with anything we did. His friends wanted "haircuts" just like his. When a classmate drew a picture of him with the title Mr. Karachat (Mr. Baldy) our kid laughed and showed it around proudly to all his classmates.

Today he has a full head of hair, but alas, ADHD and related issues. This doesn't have to be your child. Just saying to be alert to any signs besides this baby behavior, which can be just a passing quirk. Babies can be funny. One of mine used to nod her head vigorously to questions at age 6 months; people said it was bizarre. And one baby used to look people in the eye at that age and say seriously and clearly, "blah blah blah". They were just passing quirks.