Treatment of Trichotillomania by Habit Reversal

Abstract

Trichotillomania (TM) is characterized by hair loss due to failure to resist impulses to pull out ones own hair. Traditional psychotherapeutic approaches to the treatment of TM have not been very successful. A 24 years old female with a long standing history of hair-pulling was treated by recording daily number of hairs pulled and habit reversal. The results indicate a great decrease in numbers of hairs pulled, and a cessation of the nervous habit at the end of the treatment.