Trichotillomania (Hair Pulling) Support Group

Impulsive control disorder is the inability to resist an urge, temptation, or impulse, even when it may cause negative effects to the self or to others. If you or a loved one suffers from impulsive contorl disorder, join the community to find support and share your challenges with others who know what you're going through.

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katielynn08
katielynn08
so i work for a agency where i take care of mentally challenged people. one of the patients has trich...and part of my job is to tell her "Stop doing that. you're hurting yourself" and i cant seem to bring myself to it because I PULL TOO! I would HATE to have someone tell me to stop doing that. It's not that simple. So instead of saying what I'm supposed to, I just nicely say "sweetie, put your hands down." It still sucks though....ugh.
Trickster2011
Trickster2011
That must be hard. You need to tell yourself that too - put your hands down sweetie :) I wish you well. Keep coming to the forum daily - it has helped me tremendously.
deleted_user
deleted_user
You're handling it beautifully. I'm sure your patient appreciates hearing your kind, gentle words instead of something more severe. Thank you for being so nice.
confidenticandoit
confidenticandoit
I agree with eturtle. Perhaps you could refer them to the TLC website, which lists UP TO DATE ways of treating and approaching people with trich. Telling them to stop or put their hands down is NOT one of those ways. But I love the way you've approached this within the confines of your job.
healingslowly
healingslowly
I love how you are handling this too! What an awkward position to be in though -I feel your pain.

I would definitely bring this up to the manager and explain that this is a disorder where saying "stop" is not going to help. Perhaps they choose this route of behavior modification for the patient's condition -but still...trich is trich (no matter who it affects).
healingslowly
healingslowly
I love how you are handling this too! What an awkward position to be in though -I feel your pain.

I would definitely bring this up to the manager and explain that this is a disorder where saying "stop" is not going to help. Perhaps they choose this route of behavior modification for the patient's condition -but still...trich is trich (no matter who it affects).
guitarragal89
guitarragal89
That seems so difficult! But it seems as though you're handling it well. :-) Good luck with that!