9 year old pulling out her hair

amother

Firebrick

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 3:16 pm

amother wrote:

This is not about asking her to stop. She has no control at this point. She needs to see a psychiatrist and be prescribed meds.

Agreed 100%! OP, you have no idea how hurtful it is when people tell me to stop pulling. It’s not in my control, and I don’t like feeling crazy - telling me that I’m nuts and need pills is just mean. And it most definitely won’t make me stop.

I’m surprised that there are so many trich sufferers on Imamother. Guess I’m not as unique as I think I am Smile

amother

Bronze

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 3:16 pm

Bought the multi vitamin. Unfortunately the store was out of the supplement another poster recommended...
The school gave me a name of a social worker to call. They have had experience using this person for this specific issue .

They also said I shouldn't discuss it all all with my child. No requests to stop etc...

amother

Pink

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 3:20 pm

amother wrote:

To the last poster, this issue is 2 days old! Why psychiatrist before social worker?!

No it's not 2 days old!! If it's noticeable for the first time now that means it's been going on for a while. She just couldn't hide it from you anymore!

amother

Bronze

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 3:25 pm

Ok pink. Its certainly a possibility. I still think I'll have her try CBT that will give her tools for life rather than medication to start with. ...like why bandaid the problem? Rather learn coping techniques, am I wrong ?

amother

Pewter

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 3:33 pm

Did not read other replies but trichotillomania/ocd tendencies/body focused repetitive behaviors (nail biting, scab picking, compulsive nose picking) are really neurological symptoms and may be totally unrelated to stress or trauma and are more related to serotonin and dopamine levels in the brain. Similar in some ways to tics (also closely related to ocd, tics are just the compulsions without the obsession, same way you can have ocd with just obsessions and no compulsions). There are many reasons for why this happens, and just as many things to try to correct this. High doses of NAC have been shown to help stop compulsive nail biting and may work for trichotillomania too. As always with ocd tendencies in young children, it's a good idea to test for strep titers.

amother

Bronze

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 4:00 pm

That last response was very helpful. I can try to get pediatrician to test. That supplement is something I plan to buy, store was out of it.

Her pediatrician has a question desk. When I asked them to ask the dr about her symptoms, they called back with a few points. One was to make sure shes sleeping well. Is that related to dopamine or serotonin levels?

In any case she goes to bed quite late as she cannot fall asleep. I have tried melatonin ih the past and it didnt work. I gave up on her going to bed at a normal hour as she is functional and not grumpy the next day. Is that a wrong outlook? Besides melatonin what else can help her sleep?

amother

Pewter

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 4:22 pm

amother wrote:

So the way I see it, sleep is super important for brain health of course, but once neurotransmitters have tipped into imbalance, sleep alone is not going to fix it. It's a piece, but not all of it.

Not being able to fall asleep = insomnia, and that is not a cause, but rather another symptoms of neurotransmitter imbalances. Sleep depends on dopamine and serotonin level too. If she's not grumpy and appears rested it may be that she really is getting enough sleep, but often kids like this appear "wired, but really tired".

Supplements for neurotransmitter support that can help with both the trich and the insomnia: a little bit it will really depend on what is the cause behind the imbalance, but in general, you need a good foundation of high doses of magnesium and all b vitamins, and then on top of that you can try any or all of the following: glutathione, gaba, tryptophan, 5htp, l theanine, inositol, tyrosine. Herbals: valerian, ashwaghanda, lemon balm,, chinese skullcap. Note that b vitamins can interfere with sleep so they need to be given at least 5 hours before bed. High dose niacinamide can be very helpful. This is a great link https://selfhacked.com/blog/wa.....mine/

Keep in mind that if she has high strep titers, her symptoms might be related to strep induced autoimmunity in the brain, and then you will need to address that in order to really get rid of the issue. The other things may help, but they will just be covering up the true cause.

amother

Natural

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 4:29 pm

Hi OP,
I recently found the group on facebook and asked to join. It's called Trichy Picky Parenting and I find it so helpful!
There is also an organization https://www.bfrb.org/
The TLC foundation for body focused repetitive behaviors. I have reached out to them and they are helpful.
I wish you lots of luck.

amother

Aqua

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 4:44 pm

I did this as a child (I pulled my eyelashes) and I was being abused. I wish someone looked into it to figure out what's going on. I never got help, just constantly being told to stop. I ended up mostly stopping when I had no eyelashes left but I still touch them when I'm bored or stressed and I have bald spots.

amother

Bronze

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 4:50 pm

Natural, thanks for your reply.

Thanks to the imamother who listed the FB group.

Aqua, I am so sorry for your experience...

amother

Aquamarine

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 5:20 pm

amother wrote:

Metoo- pulled , abused... hugs to you