Causes and Symptoms of Trichotillomania

1938 Words4 Pages

Having a mental disorder, including Trichotillomania, does not make you any less of a Christian, despite the popular controversy of mental disorders and the Christian faith. In fact, many people who suffer from mental disorders use their Christian faith as a form of treatment in the lifelong battle they are fighting. This paper will examine what Trichotillomania is, including the causes and symptoms, how a Christian who suffers from Trichotillomania uses their faith as a part of their treatment, and how the Christian faith is impacted by Trichotillomania.
Trichotillomania is the compulsion to pull out one’s own hair from their head and body according the American Psychiatric Association. Trichotillomania is classified as an impulse control disorder according the DSM-IV-TR (Stein, page 611). It often causes for bald spots to be left behind. Hair pulling can range from pulling single strands or pulling clumps of hair out at once. The DSM IV said that those who suffer from Trichotillomania pull their hair in order to reduce anxiety. According to McDonald (2012), the cause factors of Trichotillomania are “largely speculative”, which results in the risk factors “being equally unclear” (page 422).
Many theories have proposed that the cause(s) of Trichotillomania are a combination of social, biological, and psychological factors. There are many proposed causes of Trichotillomania. “One case study, for example, claimed that TTM was amphetamine induced (Hamalian & Citrome, 2010), but this is the only case that makes the claim that TTM [Trichotillomania] can be induced by stimulants” (McDonald 2012, page 422). Another possible cause for Trichotillomania is trauma and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, because of the limited re...

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...rrelates of Pulling in Pediatric Trichotillomania. Journal Of The American Academy Of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 52(3), 241-249. doi:10.1016/j.jaoc.2012.12.019
Stein, D., Grant, J., Franklin, M., Keuthen, N., Lochner, C., Singer, H., and Woods, D., (2010). Trichotillomania (Hair Pulling Disorder), Skin Picking Disorder, and Stereotypic Movement Disorder: Toward DSM-V. http://www.dsm5.org/Research/Documents/Stein_Trich.pdf
Strickland, L. (2011). Why Do I Pull? A Testimony from Texas Trichotillomania Christian Ministry’s Founder. http://trichkidsnashville.wordpress.com/2011/07/01/why-do-i-pull-a-testimony-from-texas-trichotillomania-christian-ministrys-founder/
Szepietowski, J. C., Salomon, J., Pacan, P., Hrehorów, E., & Zalewska, A. (2009). Frequency and Treatment of Trichotillomania in Poland. Acta Dermato-Venereologica, 89(3), 267-270. doi:10.2340/00015555-0630

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