Trichotillomania
People with trichotillomania (TTM) pull out the hair from their scalp, eyelashes, eyebrows, or other parts of the body. It is currently defined as an impulse-control disorder, but there are still questions about how it should be classified. It may seem, at times, to resemble a habit, an addiction, a tic disorder or an obsessive-compulsive disorder. Although the symptoms range greatly in severity, location on the body, and response to treatment, most people with TTM pull enough hair over a long enough period of time that they have bald spots on certain areas, which they go to great lengths to cover and hide. The persistence of TTM differs from person to person. For some people, the urge to pull hair is more like a habit, is mild in form and can be quelled with some extra concentration, awareness, or effort. For others, the urges are so strong that they feel completely uncontrollable most of the time, and make thinking of anything else nearly impossible.
TTM seems to occur most frequently in the pre- or early adolescent years. The typical first-time hair puller is 12 years old. A form of TTM that affects very young children appears to occur in males and females at an equal rate and seems to be more benign in nature. Often, TTM sufferers pull for many years into adulthood.