New York woman with hair removal troubles shaves her head to try to control her impulses

A woman who spends three hours a day cutting herself with locks of her own hair began tearing her eyelashes at the age of eight. 19-year-old Megan Prosser suffers from trichotillomania, also known as trich, a mental disorder in which victims experience an irresistible need to pull their hair.

At a "draw attack", as Prosser calls it, the nanny and the facilitator can easily create a bald patch the size of her hand. Prosser, of Long Island, New York, tried to regain control by shaving his head, but admitted that tearing his hair still absorbs him.

WOMAN REMOVES 15-INCH OVARIAN SOLID KYST

"It takes me every second of my day," she says "I spend maybe three hours a day pulling my hair, but I would not be surprised if it's longer." I hope I can control it, but I do not know if I can ever stop it completely. "

When she started pulling her lashes like a child, Prosser thought of them as "wishes" that she was gathering.

"When an eyelash falls on your cheek and you remove it, you are supposed to make a wish," she said. "I thought I would have unlimited wishes if I continued to remove them. I did not know that I could not stop myself.

Prosser's mother, Tania, an educational assistant, was shocked when she noticed that her daughter's eyelashes had all disappeared.

"My mother gasped and said," What are you doing? "" Remembers Prosser. "She tried to help me stop. We went to the doctor and I was diagnosed with trichotillomania. I went to therapy but it did not work. I did not stop pulling my eyelashes, it was a way for me to control my body.

"I had never heard of trichotillomania before and I was both shocked and curious," said Tania Prosser. "All the while, I thought it would be temporary, I did not know it would last long."

At age 12, Prosser started tearing her hair.

WOMAN LEAVES THE FOUR EOURCILS AFTER THE FAILED MICROBLADING PROCEDURE

"My friend straightened my hair and noticed a few curly locks around my separation," she said. "I started taking them out and I could not stop that either. I pulled a large amount of hair, several locks at a time. "

Soon, Prosser's head was covered with bald patches and she endured vile comments at school.

"At school, people would say that I looked like a stranger, pointed out my bald spots and gave me odd looks," she said. "But once I explained the situation to them, they would stop being mean, curious and just ask questions."

Finally, Tania Prosser took her daughter to a salon to install a weaving machine that ended the situation.

"The weaving covered my head so I could not pull my hair," said Prosser. "Later, I wore weaving like a wig with a bandanna on top so that I could not pull my hair out."

But while Prosser was preparing to leave high school at age 18 and worried about her future, the situation is recovering and she soon pulled more hair than ever before.

"I started to viciously withdraw," she said. I did not know what I wanted to do in my life, my boyfriend had joined the army, my friends had gone to university and I was alone at home, at the university. community college. I felt as if everyone was moving forward and I was staying here. I went out too much to count, I went crazy. "

"In the Trich community, we call moments like this a" pull attack, "she said." I also pulled my hair to the eyebrow. This is noticeable but it does not work for me, I do not feel the same desire to pull this hair. Sometimes I pulled handfuls of hair and threw them in the toilet because I did not want people to see them in the trash. . "

She hid her hair loss by painting her bald areas with a powder designed for women hiding gray hair. She was wearing false eyelashes to hide her eyes without lashes.

Although some health professionals consider trichotillomania to be a form of self-harm, Prosser compared his urge to want to scratch the itch.

"It's almost like I have a lot of itching, it's a strange sensation, it's like it will not go away unless I pull out all the hair in that area. it's not an act of self-harm, it's a lack of control. I feel relief afterwards and, although it is sometimes uncomfortable, it never hurts. "

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

In January, she shaved her head to try to stop shooting.

"I wanted to shave my head since high school, but I was worried about what my classmates would say," she said.

But Prosser always pulls her hair every day and fears never to stop.

"I hope I'll stop one day but I do not know how much it's likely," she said. "I do not know if I will really stop."

Prosser, who shares his experiences with Trichotillomania under his name on YouTube, has decided to talk about his disorder to encourage other patients to confide in their friends and family.

"Many people who are suffering from it are really afraid to tell others to have their hair pulled," she said. "My family knew about my trichotillomania, but hiding it from my friends made it worse. Once I spoke to people, I wanted to stop them so that these people could see that I was progressing. It helps you talk to people, it encourages you to stop.