I've tried to put lots of ideas on other thread about ways to help fight it and some other people have put some ideas too so please look around. Also if you haven't told anyone I guess you have't had meds and you need to know that there are meds recommended that help some people. e.g. http://www.trich.org/treatment/article-medications-grant.html
They don't work for some people, and others hate taking them/the side effects. But I've personally found clomipramine and quetiapine both help (but your problem needs to be intrusive enough that the side effects are worth it - for me whilst studying I couldn't cope with drowsiness and stupidity on quetiapine).

On the clomipramine front; been getting horrid clusters of mouth ulcers on bottom lip (to the point my lip got fat). Didn't realize until this morning that is a listed side effect. I haven't had a mouth ulcer since I was a child otherwise so guess it is that.

P.s.s. I can't find the other post of ideas by the way (??!?) so thought I would put some here in case they help you (if you haven't thought of them already). Fidget/fiddle toys like tangle junior (they do textured but don't get the fuzzy one the plastic smells so awful), bead bracelets, spinner rings, magnetic clicky bracelets, wearing gloves around the house, removing mirrors completely, mirror alternatives, I've heard of people having numbing cream if sensations draw your hands to your hair (obvious no good for eyelashes), trying wheat free or sugar free or caffeine free or paleo diets (one at a time) to identify food triggers (caffeine and sugar DEFINITELY set me off), listening to CD/mp3 recordings as you fall asleep (I had one made by a church for pulling years ago, though it wasn't religious, it did help a little)... please reply with your ideas too x

And throwing out tweezers and, if like me, you figures out how to use those as tweezers, throwing out nail clippers too.

Thanks for the ideas. I had already hidden the tweezers, but alas, I'm pretty good using my fingers lol. I'm trying to stay away from medication if I can.

After reading on this site, I've discovered that many of the things people said about themselves apply to me. So, I'm trying to isolate those things by:
Not looking at hair more than absolutely necessary
Trying to not think about hair
Trying not to analyze hair.

I really feel that pulling can be broken down into purposeful and habitual. I'm working on controlling the self-perceived purpose for pulling, which for me, is usually something "special" about a hair. So I'm not looking at them individually. Habitual hair pulling I think is just another habit, which I think we can break. It's the purposeful pulling that makes us special I think.

So far, although I haven't met all these goals perfectly, I have been able to manage the urge to pull. However, I know from experience, that the path back to pulling is a short one. So, it's a day at a time.

42 years here. Wig wearer for life. I'm pretty sure answers about this will not come in my lifetime. I hope more researchers find answers in the future.

It definitely has a genetic component... perhaps a tendency. The reading I've done has convinced me that it isn't a compulsive disorder, but something different, which is why I try to avoid discussions that link the two treatment-wise.

I have noticed my Dad pulls the outer edge of his eyebrows when stressed and distracted e.g. working on his laptop. I agree that there is more to it than just 'compulsion' but I do feel there is a compulsive element by the very definition of compulsivity.

Hi 50 yrs and welcome to the forum. I started pulling at 9 yrs of age. I had to wear a wig during some of my school years. Later I quit pulling, but off and on the pulling urges returned through the years. I have had many years of having my own thick hair, but about 11 yrs ago the pulling started big time, and now it has been a real struggle since then, with small periods of having my own hair, but mostly wearing a wig. I am now 56 yrs old. I think that trich starts as a reaction to trauma/stress/anxiety/depression. I think it soon becomes a deeply ingrained habit that is very difficult to break. But it can be done.
I think that we need to really learn how to love ourselves enough that we will not destroy our looks this way. We need to learn how to break the habit of pulling. We need each other for support. We need to find something alternate to do when we feel we are about to pull, or start the pulling frenzy. We need to distract and act, whether it be to come to the forum right away and start typing and venting, or get out for a walk, or do a craft or art project etc. Something that keeps our hands and minds bus doing something other than pulling.
Perhaps we can msg each other and support each other in our efforts to become pull free. Feel free to msg me any time.

I just realized you are male. I have seen only a few males on the forum. Statistics say that there are more females than males with trich. But I am curious as to whether trichotillomania is in actual fact just as common with males as it is females, but males hide it better. They can shave their heads or be bald on top and nobody would think anything of it, and would never guess they have trich. Good for you, coming to the forum for support.