Trichotillomania Support in Nottinghamshire

People who pull find help from all kinds of practitioners: therapists, counsellors, psychologists, psychotherapists, hypnotherapists, EFT practitioners and coaches. Different people find different things helpful. What matters most is that you feel understood.

You can also check a clinician’s registration if you’d like. Titles such as “clinical psychologist” and “counselling psychologist” are protected by law in the UK. The Health and Care Professions Council keeps a free register lookup ↗ for them. Many counsellors, psychotherapists and hypnotherapists belong to registers approved by the Professional Standards Authority, which runs its own practitioner check ↗. Other good kinds of help aren’t regulated at all and belong to their own associations instead.

There’s more in our guide to how to talk to someone who can help.

Nottinghamshire has no charity just for hair pulling or other body-focused repetitive behaviours (BFRBs). The UK’s BFRB charity runs its groups online, and Nottinghamshire Mind covers the city and the whole county. These are the organisations most useful to people in Nottinghamshire who pull.

We haven’t found an in-person trichotillomania group in Nottinghamshire yet. Most people here who pull connect with others online, and for something this private, many find that easier.

• BFRB UK & Ireland adults group: a free peer-led group on Zoom, once a month, for anyone 18 or over who pulls or picks.
• BFRB UK & Ireland under-18s group: a monthly Zoom group for children and teens aged 7 to 18.
• BFRB UK & Ireland parents and loved ones group: a monthly Zoom group for anyone supporting someone who pulls.

For parents: our guide The Parent’s Guide to Trichotillomania helps you understand what your child is going through.

Do you run a Nottinghamshire group? Tell us and we’ll list it for free.

Many people who pull describe the same loop, even if they’ve never put it into words.

It often starts with a build-up. That might be tension, restlessness or an itch-like feeling on the scalp or brows. Sometimes it’s a sense that one hair feels wrong and has to go.

Pulling brings a moment of relief. Some people describe it as calm. Others describe a small, sharp satisfaction. For a few seconds, the build-up eases.

Then the feeling changes. Regret, embarrassment or frustration often follow, especially when you see the gap or the hairs on the floor. Those feelings bring their own tension. And tension is often where the loop began.

This is why pulling can feel so hard to explain to people who don’t have it. From the outside, it looks like something you could just stop. From the inside, each step makes sense in the moment.

Trichotillomania is not a bad habit, not attention-seeking, not self-harm and not a lack of willpower. It’s a recognised condition, and the loop is part of how it works. Noticing your own version of it is a useful thing to bring to a first call. “I pull when I’m tense after work, and I feel awful straight after” tells the person you contact a great deal.