Trichotillomania Support in Ontario
Find a therapist in Ontario who understands trichotillomania. Whether you pull your own hair or you’re supporting a child or someone you love, search by city or town, from Windsor to Thunder Bay, for someone near you, or choose Online to see who works with people anywhere in Ontario.
Find a therapist for trichotillomania in Ontario
About 4 in 10 Canadians live in Ontario. The province also has more than 14,000 Registered Psychotherapists, alongside its psychologists and social workers. Yet very few of them learned about hair pulling in training. Connecting you with people who already understand it is the reason this directory exists.
Everyone listed has told us they understand hair pulling and already help people who pull. Each listing shows how the person works, whether they see people in person, online or both, and what they charge. Each one has a private contact form.
The directory includes psychotherapists, psychologists, social workers, counsellors, CBT therapists, occupational therapists, hypnotherapists, EFT and NLP practitioners, and BFRB coaches. BFRB stands for body-focused repetitive behaviour, the group that includes hair pulling and skin picking. If the nearest city is a long drive away, see who works online across Ontario.
We’re building the Ontario directory.
Keep updated as we’re a new directory actively seeking new trich-aware therapists to join.
See practitioners who work online →Tell me when a practitioner lists in Ontario
Frequently Asked Questions about Trichotillomania in Ontario
Find a TherapistHow do I find a trichotillomania therapist near me in Ontario?›
Search the directory by city or town, such as Toronto, Ottawa, Mississauga, Hamilton, London or Thunder Bay. Every listing shows how the person works, what they charge and whether they see people in person, online or both. You can message anyone directly.
Can I have sessions online from anywhere in Ontario?›
Yes. Many people listed work online with clients anywhere in Ontario, from Windsor to Kenora. Psychotherapists, psychologists and social workers registered in Ontario can see you wherever you live in the province. Hypnotherapists, EFT practitioners and coaches aren’t tied to a province.
How much does trichotillomania therapy cost in Ontario?›
Private sessions in Ontario usually cost $120 to $250, and around $150 to $200 is typical. Toronto runs highest, and psychologists often charge about $250 an hour. Every listing shows its own prices, and many offer a free first call. OHIP doesn’t cover private sessions, but some insurance plans pay part of the cost for some practitioner types.
What kinds of help are there for hair pulling in Ontario?›
People who pull work with psychotherapists, psychologists, social workers, counsellors, CBT therapists, hypnotherapists, EFT and NLP practitioners, occupational therapists and coaches. Different people find different things helpful. Everyone in our directory has told us they understand hair pulling and already help people who pull.
Do I need a doctor’s referral or a diagnosis to get help in Ontario?›
No. You can contact anyone listed in our directory directly, without a doctor’s referral or a diagnosis. Just tell them you pull your hair and you’re looking for someone who understands trichotillomania.
My child pulls their hair. What do I do first?›
Stay steady and don’t tell them off, because pressure and punishment reliably make pulling worse. Start with The Parent’s Guide to Trichotillomania, then look for someone in the directory whose listing says they work with children and teens.
Are there trichotillomania support groups in Ontario?›
We haven’t found an in-person group just for hair pulling in Ontario that’s meeting right now. The IOCDF lists free online BFRB groups, and the Canadian BFRB Support Network offers peer support. If you run a group in Ontario, tell us and we’ll list it for free.
How common is hair pulling in Ontario?›
About 1 in 50 people have trichotillomania, so more than 300,000 people across Ontario. It’s a recognized condition, not a bad habit, and it usually starts between ages 10 and 13. Learn more in our complete guide to trichotillomania.
How to get in touch with a therapist
You can message anyone listed here today. You don’t need a doctor’s referral or a diagnosis.
When you write, say what it is: “I pull my hair. I’m looking for someone who understands trichotillomania.” Their reply tells you a lot about whether they’re the right fit.
Most practitioners in Ontario work in the Greater Toronto Area, Ottawa, Hamilton and London. North of Sudbury, towns are far apart, and Thunder Bay is more than 1,300 km by road from Toronto. Online sessions close that gap.
Psychotherapists, psychologists and social workers register with Ontario colleges, and can see you online anywhere in the province. Hypnotherapists, EFT practitioners and coaches aren’t tied to a province at all.
Ontario also runs a free program, Ontario Structured Psychotherapy, which adults can refer themselves to for anxiety or low mood. That route exists, and it often takes longer, usually without a choice of someone who understands hair pulling.
How to choose who to work with
People who pull find help from many directions: psychotherapists, psychologists, social workers, counsellors, hypnotherapists, EFT and NLP practitioners, occupational therapists and coaches. Different people find different things helpful.
If you’d like to check a licensed professional, Ontario has free public registers. Only members of the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario can use the title Registered Psychotherapist (RP). Look them up on the CRPO public register. “Psychologist” is protected too, and the College of Psychologists and Behaviour Analysts of Ontario keeps a public register. Registered social workers (RSW) are listed by the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers. Hypnotherapists, EFT and NLP practitioners and coaches belong to their own associations instead.
Everyone on this site has one thing in common: they’ve told us they understand hair pulling. On a first call, you can ask:
- Have you helped people who pull their hair before?
- How do you work? What happens in the first few sessions?
- What if I feel it isn’t right for me?
There’s more in our guide to how to talk to someone who can help.
Charities and groups in Ontario
Canada’s national non-profit for body-focused repetitive behaviours started in Toronto. These organizations can help.
Canadian BFRB Support Network
A volunteer-run non-profit founded in Toronto in 2013 by Sarah Robertson, who has trichotillomania herself. It offers peer support and information for people who pull or pick, and for their families, and runs a Canadian support group on Facebook.
International OCD Foundation (IOCDF)
The main international home for BFRB support since the TLC Foundation for BFRBs wound down. Its directory lists free online support groups for hair pulling and skin picking, open to people in Ontario.
CMHA Ontario
The Ontario division of the Canadian Mental Health Association, with local branches across the province. It isn’t focused on hair pulling, but it can help with the anxiety and low mood that often come with it.
ConnexOntario
A free, confidential service open 24 hours a day. Call 1-866-531-2600 or text CONNEX to 247247, and trained staff will help you find mental health services near you.
Kids Help Phone
Free, private support for young people, day or night. Call 1-800-668-6868 or text CONNECT to 686868.
9-8-8 Suicide Crisis Helpline
Call or text 9-8-8 at any time if things ever feel too much to handle on your own. Support is available in English and French.
Support groups in Ontario
We haven’t found an in-person group just for hair pulling in Ontario that’s meeting right now. Most groups for people who pull meet online, and for something this private, many people find that easier.
- IOCDF online BFRB groups: free groups on Zoom for anyone who pulls or picks, listed on the IOCDF support group directory.
- Canadian BFRB Support Network: peer support and a Canadian Facebook group for people who pull or pick.
- CMHA Ontario branches: local peer groups across the province. They aren’t specific to hair pulling, but many cover anxiety.
For parents: watching your child pull is hard. The Parent’s Guide to Trichotillomania helps you understand what your child is going through.
Do you run an Ontario group? Tell us and we’ll list it for free.
Why Hair Pulling Often Runs in Families
Many people who pull have a parent, sibling, aunt or cousin who does too. Often nobody knows until one of them says it out loud.
Research on families and twins points the same way. Hair pulling is more common among close relatives of people who pull, which suggests genes play a part. What gets passed down isn’t the behaviour itself. It’s more like a tendency, one that shows up differently in each person. One relative pulls from the scalp, another from the eyebrows. Someone else picks their skin or bites their nails.
This matters for parents. When a child starts pulling, many parents blame themselves or wonder what they did wrong. Some recognize it because they pulled as children and never told anyone. Neither is a sign of bad parenting. Trichotillomania is a recognized condition, not a habit a child picks up from home, not attention-seeking, not self-harm and not a lack of willpower.
A family link can also make the first conversation easier. Sometimes a child who pulls learns that their mother or grandfather did too. For many, that’s the first time they realize they aren’t the only one.
About this page
Sources: Statistics Canada and the Ontario Ministry of Finance (population); College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario; College of Psychologists and Behaviour Analysts of Ontario; Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers; Ontario Psychological Association 2024 fee survey, Inner Room, Graceway Wellness and One Psychology (session cost data); Ontario Health (Ontario Structured Psychotherapy); Canadian BFRB Support Network; International OCD Foundation (including its BFRB support group listings); CMHA Ontario; ConnexOntario; Kids Help Phone; 9-8-8 Suicide Crisis Helpline.
Things change. We check this page often, but always check prices and qualifications with the person you contact. This page is information, not medical advice.
Are you an Ontario therapist or practitioner who works with trichotillomania?
Be found by people looking for help with hair pulling across Ontario, in person or online.
About Ontario
Ontario is Canada’s most populous province, home to more than 16 million people. Toronto is the provincial capital and the country’s largest city, and Ottawa, on the Ottawa River, is the national capital. Ontario borders four of the five Great Lakes. Further north, the Canadian Shield stretches through lakes and forest to the shores of Hudson Bay and James Bay.
Each part of the province has its own character. Hamilton grew up around steel on Lake Ontario. Kingston was the first capital of the Province of Canada. London and Windsor anchor the southwest, and Windsor faces Detroit across the Detroit River. Sudbury is built on nickel mining, and Thunder Bay sits on Lake Superior. In Toronto, the Distillery District keeps the Victorian brick buildings of the Gooderham and Worts distillery. Kensington Market is known for its independent shops and food.
Attractions in Ontario
Ontario’s sights run from Toronto’s skyline and Niagara’s falls to a 19th-century canal, Canada’s oldest provincial park and a giant coin in the north.
CN Tower, Toronto
Completed in 1976, the 553-metre tower was the tallest free-standing structure on Earth until 2007. Its LookOut Level has a glass floor 342 metres above the ground. On EdgeWalk, visitors in harnesses walk hands-free around the outside of the main pod, 356 metres up.
Horseshoe Falls, Niagara Falls
The Canadian side of Niagara Falls curves about 670 metres across and drops around 57 metres into the Niagara River. Watching from the promenade by Table Rock is free. Tunnels cut through the rock behind the falls first opened to visitors in 1889.
Rideau Canal, Ottawa to Kingston
Lieutenant-Colonel John By of the Royal Engineers built this 202-km waterway between 1826 and 1832. It links Ottawa with Kingston on Lake Ontario, and it is the oldest continuously operated canal system in North America. It became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007. By’s headquarters at the Ottawa end grew into Bytown, now Ottawa.
Algonquin Provincial Park
Created in 1893, Algonquin is Canada’s oldest provincial park. It covers about 7,650 square kilometres of forest, lakes and rivers between Georgian Bay and the Ottawa River. Highway 60 crosses its southern part for 63 km. Tom Thomson painted its lakes and forests before his death in 1917.
Big Nickel, Sudbury
This nine-metre replica of a 1951 Canadian five-cent coin went up in 1964, built by local firefighter Ted Szilva. The coin it copies marked 200 years since nickel was isolated as an element. It stands at Dynamic Earth, an earth sciences centre run by Science North, where tours go down into a model mine.