Low self-esteem and tension lead to 'pulling.'

Trichotillomania is a term coined by a French dermatologist in 1889 to describe the compulsive or irresistible urge he saw in patients to pluck out their hair. The word trichotillomania is derived from the Greek thrix, hair; tillein, to pull; and mania, madness or frenzy. This name is somewhat of a misnomer in that people with trichotillomania are not "mad", "psychotic" or "crazy" as the name suggests. In psychiatry, trichotillomania is classified as an impulse control disorder as are conditions such as compulsive gambling, kleptomania (compulsive stealing) and pyromania (compulsive fire setting).

Impulse control disorders are characterized by the inability to control or resist the temptation (or impulse) to do something harmful to oneself or someone else. A sufferer sometimes experiences a sense of increasing tension before performing the behavior and can feel a sense of relief or release of tension afterwards. Sometimes people even express a degree of pleasure after having performed the act.

Features of trichotillomania that fit the description of an impulse control disorder include the inability to resist urges to pull out one's hair, mounting tension before pulling and feeling of relief afterward.

Quick Facts

• Trichotillomania is a neurological disorder not just bad habit
• 2-4% of the population may suffer from chronic hair pulling that's 8 million people in the U.S. alone
• Many different treatments are available and treatment outcome is good when appropriately accessed
• The average age of onset is 12 to 13 years old