"I began pulling out my eyelashes when i was in grade 5. I didn't know why, and told my mom they were "falling out" or that i never noticed it happening. She knew eventually that I did it for a reason, and began helping me to stop"
How I did it: When my mom first noticed what i was doing, she just figured i could mentally psych it out. In a sense, she "bribed" me to stop pulling. I was rewarded for every week that I didnt pull any eyelashes out. To make sure that I wasn't doing it, she told my teachers to watch and stop me if i was doing it in school. I didn't think that much of it then, all I knew was that it made me look bad, and with the help of mom, and mentally telling myself how bad i looked, i stopped for a while.
I never fully stopped, always pulled at them one at a time and would stare at myself in the mirror and pull at ones that i didnt think would be noticeable.
Over the past year, stress has been getting more extreme for me, and i need to sooth myself more. Unfortunately, pulling out eyelashes does that for me. I spend most of my time on the computer, and that's when i do it most. Under passive activities like watching tv, being on the computer, reading, or doing school work; anything that involves mental concentration and control.
I didnt look the condition up until today. Trichotillomania. In some cases, you cannot mentally get rid of it, you may try therapy, putting vasaline on your eyelashes, or other methods suggested by doctors, but it wont always work. I look at putting vasaline on my eyelashes as an obstacle or challenge, oppose to a reminder to not do it.
So today, after researching the issue, I have come up with ways to try to stop or decrease the pulling.
I find telling people helps, it may be embarrassing, but then they can offer assistance and tell you to stop if you're doing it.
What I am going to do, is begin a journal, or diary, of the activities in a day that i do, and when i start pulling. Also, keep track of what I eat, because certain diets can also have an effect on it. Also in the journal, i will set goals for myself, and do as my mother did and reward myself for every period of time that i resist the pulling.
Sleep can also have an effect on it, because i notice that if it is late at night, i start pulling. So i will also keep document of how late and early i go to sleep and wake up, and the effect each has on my improvement.
I dont have a severe case, but if you do, trying this may work for you also.
Your mind is the most powerful part of you, you just have to make sure that the right parts of it, are controlling your actions.
Lessons & tips: Try writing a diary or log on when you pull, and everything that you do in the day that you pull. Vasaline may work for you, it makes your eyelashes harder to grip ,i find would cause for frustration and would cause me to want to pull more. However, that effect may cause you to relate pulling with frustration, and mentally you may stop.
Set goals for yourself, and rewards. Don't allow yourself to get postive things if you've pulled, to help relate it to a bad and negative effect, oppose to the soothing relief it causes.
Hopefully you, and I can recover fully! because ii know i dont want to keep living with worrying about how bare my eyes look!.
Ou, and also! find other things that could sooth your stress, and do more relaxing things! you'd be surprised what activities can calm you or help you to be occupied with your hands. Wear mittens or gloves, to make it harder to grip. I play a game on the computer that i find destresses me, and helps me a lot to be able to focus on it, oppose to my eyelashes.
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Feb 08, 2009, 12:33PM PST
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