Hey luleee, are you still on your pull-free run? I hope so, because you've been doing such an amazing job. I'm alright -- today I pulled a bunch of eyelashes...lots of traveling to get back up to school now that break is over, and I found myself relaxing in bed and yanking some out. Not nice at all!! Speaking of being in Europe, my boyfriend is coming from England around Christmastime, so I'm trying to grow out my eyelashes so when he gets here they'll be long and gorgeous.

But I'm trying to remind myself that pulling doesn't make me who I am, it's just a small part of me! Trying to stay strong.

Hope you're doing well, you're been such an inspiration! x

Keep your hands busy doing things to keep them out of trouble. You and I did right by coming on the forum here to vent when starting on a pulling spree. The more we are here typing or busy with something, the better. Knitting, art, crafts, sorting out closets, drawers, etc., exercising is a good one too.

Question: Do you guys consider a Pull-Free day to be a day when you don't pull out any hairs? Wondering how I feel about that...wondering if I should consider days pull-free when I go to pull, try to find the "right" hair, stroke, etc. but don't actually pull any out.

Let me know! I'd love to hear your thoughts. Hope everyone is doing well :)

Hi :) I still call it a pull free day even if I'm fiddling with my hair. As long as I don't pull. Generally though I rate any day where I pull a 3 or less (I rate my pulling from 0-10, 0 being pf and 10 being the most I'd ever pull in one day) as a good day.

Thanks Confident! That's a good way of looking at it. So do you write your ratings down in a journal? I've been trying to get a hold of journaling but it feels so forced to me!

:)

Hi Paige. Journals are for writing anything and everything that comes to mind - your thoughts, feelings, goals, victories, struggles. Just write from the heart. You can choose to do a journal on here, and make it private for only yourself or for friends on here to read also. Or just keep a diary at home. A calendar is what a few of the members here like to use to keep track of the good and not so good days.

Take care xo

If I write down my ratings I do so on a printed calendar on my wall. I'll have to think of a digital way to record my numbers. Maybe in email. I feel sometimes we can get too caught up in the numbers though, so sometimes I do focus on them and sometimes I don't.

I gave the same issue with journaling. I want to get into it but blah... I Want to write about everything though, not Trich specifically.

Confident, so many things happening in our lives affects our trich for better or worse. So when venting about something else, it could still be connected. Not just the struggles, but the good things happening - these all affect how we feel, which in turn can decrease or increase the pulling urges.

Sort of unrelated, but has anyone seen the documentary called Trichster? I really want to see it but haven't been able to find it online..

Hi everybody, I had a bit of an epiphany today and I thought I'd come on here and share:

I woke up today (like I do many days) saying to myself, "Today I will be COMPLETELY pull-free". So begins the cycle, and, given that I gave myself the very difficult goal of not pulling at all, I couldn't quite meet succeed. I pulled out one single eyelash hair this afternoon. And I felt like the world was over. I began feeling sorry for myself, frustrated at myself, and feeling like a complete failure -- all because of one hair!!

But then I realized: Pulling out a single hair does not make me a failure. Hell, pulling out a bunch of hairs doesn't make me a failure! My error was in my thinking. I, like many of you I'm sure, can't help thinking of my trich as a nasty habit -- terribly stubborn, but a habit nonetheless. I tend to think, "If I could just get rid of it once and for all, if I could just stop pulling out hairs ENTIRELY, then I would be happy and my life would be perfect. If only I try hard enough". But that's not the right thinking. I need to realize that my trich is a disorder that, in all likelihood, will never completely go away. Instead, I need to make my main goal trying to MANAGE my disorder rather than get rid of it. And only when I give myself the permission to have both bad days and good days, only when I start to forgive myself for having this disorder will I truly get better. I still will challenge myself to pull out as few hairs as possible, but I will no longer hate myself when I make mistakes.

I am a person with trich and I am trying my very, very best.

I hope this helps some of you!! Xx

"I need to realize that my trich is a disorder that, in all likelihood, will never completely go away. Instead, I need to make my main goal trying to MANAGE my disorder rather than get rid of it. And only when I give myself the permission to have both bad days and good days, only when I start to forgive myself for having this disorder will I truly get better." YES!!! Ah, what a lovely realisation this is to have. I'm very happy for you :)

(Yes I have had this realisation too. Trich management for the win!)

Was pull-free for 2 days and just started to pull again today. Keeping my head up! Tomorrow will be a better day. :)

Woot! That's the attitude :) :)

A quick rant about eyelash pulling! URGH! I hate it so much. Not saying that pulling from one place is better than another, but I hate that fact that we each only have so many eyelashes, and once they're gone, there's no more hair left to help disguise the pulling. I hate wearing my trich on my eyes, where everyone can see. I pulled out two measly eyelashes today and I'm trying not to let it get me down....

it is just hair, after all. :) Hope you all are doing well!

I do know how I feel about the eyebrows. What I do now is massage the head, eyebrows, eyelashes and break the "hands in hair" pattern I previously had. By concentrating on the positive sensations I get from the gentle massage, it helps.

Best wishes! You are never a failure! Here's to your success!