Pulling Out Your Eyebrows: Why It Happens and What Helps

If you keep pulling out your eyebrows, you may have spent years thinking it was a grooming habit that got out of hand, or something only you do. It’s neither. Eyebrows are one of the most common places people pull from, and there’s a name for it: trichotillomania (trich), a condition where people feel strong urges to pull out their own hair and find it very hard to stop.

This guide covers why eyebrow pulling happens, how it differs from over-plucking, what to expect as your brows grow back, and what helps.

Why do people pull out their eyebrows?

People pull their eyebrows because, in the moment, it brings relief, satisfaction or a feeling of getting something just right. It isn’t a bad habit, self-harm or a lack of willpower. Each time pulling eases an urge, the brain learns to reach for it again, which is why it’s so hard to stop.

A few things make eyebrows a common target:

• They’re within easy reach. A hand resting on your face while you think or read can start pulling before you notice.
• Brow hairs vary in feel. A coarse, wiry or out-of-place hair can feel “wrong” until it’s gone.
• Mirrors invite checking. A quick look for one stray hair can turn into a long session with tweezers.
• The urge to even things up. Taking a hair from one brow can make the other look uneven, and trying to match them can lead to more.

That last one isn’t the main driver for most people, though: in a large survey, more than half said they rarely or never pulled to make their hair look even.

Doctors also describe two styles of pulling, and most people do both. Automatic pulling happens without full awareness, often at a screen or while reading. Focused pulling is more conscious: a build-up of tension or an urge, eased by pulling, often at a mirror. Our guide to focused and automatic pulling explains why the difference matters for what helps.

Is over-plucking the same as trich?

No. Over-plucking means taking too much off while shaping your brows the way you want them to look. Trichotillomania is pulling that causes hair loss, that you keep doing even though you’ve tried to cut down or stop, and that upsets you or gets in the way of your life. Doctors don’t diagnose trich when hair is removed only for cosmetic reasons.

Have you tried to stop and not managed? Do you hide your brows, or avoid things, because of it? If so, you may well be dealing with trich, and it’s worth talking to someone who understands hair pulling.

Some people remove brow hairs because they’re preoccupied with a flaw in their looks that others can’t see or barely notice, such as brows they believe are badly uneven. That can point to body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), a separate condition in the same family as trich, so tell whoever you see what drives your pulling. Our complete guide explains how trichotillomania is diagnosed.

Will my eyebrows grow back?

Usually, yes. A dermatologist (skin doctor) at Cleveland Clinic says over-plucked brows most often grow back, depending on how often and how hard they were pulled. It’s slow because about 9 in 10 brow hairs are resting at any one time, and that phase lasts two to three months.

Two things are worth knowing:

• Regrowth can be a trigger. New brow hairs come through short and stubbly, the texture many people search for, so have your barriers ready.
• Years of heavy pulling can cause lasting damage. The same dermatologist warns that plucking every day can damage follicles and may cause scarring, after which hairs may not grow back. That’s a possibility, not a certainty. It’s a reason to get help sooner, never a sign that it’s too late.

If your brows are slow to return, a dermatologist can check your follicles. Several trials have tested minoxidil (a hair-growth lotion) and bimatoprost (a prescription eye drop approved in the US for growing eyelashes) on thin eyebrows, with encouraging results. These trials looked at thin brows in general rather than trich, and both can irritate the skin, so only use them with advice from a doctor or pharmacist.

Our guide to whether hair grows back after trichotillomania covers regrowth for the scalp, brows and lashes in more detail.

What helps you stop pulling your eyebrows?

The approach with the most research behind it is Habit Reversal Training (HRT), a behaviour therapy that teaches you to notice when you’re about to pull and do something else with your hands. The UK’s NHS describes it as the usual treatment for trich. A 2014 review of 11 trials found behaviour therapy led to large improvements, and trials with more therapy time tended to show bigger effects.

HRT has three main parts, and each fits brow pulling well:

1. Noticing. Log each pull for a week or two: where you were, what you were doing and how you felt. Brow pulling often clusters around one mirror or one time of day.
2. A competing response. When you feel the urge, or catch your hand heading to your face, do something your hands can’t pull during. Make a gentle fist and hold it for about a minute, or squeeze a stress ball, until the urge eases.
3. Changing your surroundings. Set things up so pulling is harder to start and easier to notice.

For brows, that last step often looks like this:

• Put the magnifying mirror away. The Cleveland Clinic dermatologist tells patients to get rid of theirs, because constant close checking leads to more plucking.
• Keep tweezers hard to reach, in a box on a high shelf, in another room, or with someone you trust.
• Cover your pulling fingertips with plasters, or wear thin cotton gloves, during risky times like screen time or reading.
• Give your resting hand a job. If you prop your head on your hand while you work, hold a smooth stone, a fidget or a pen in that hand instead.

If you’ve tried these steps steadily for a few months and still feel stuck, a practitioner who understands hair pulling can help you build a plan around your triggers. Some medicines and supplements have also been studied for trich, with mixed results, so talk to a doctor or pharmacist before trying any.

Our guide to how to stop pulling your hair has a two-minute plan for when an urge hits. Our guide to Habit Reversal Training explains each step in more detail.

How can I cope while my eyebrows grow back?

Look after how you feel as well as how your brows look. Shame after a pulling session is one of the strongest triggers for the next one, so a kind reset helps more than being hard on yourself.

• Use makeup if it helps. Brow pencils, powders and gels can fill gaps, and some people find they fiddle less with filled-in brows.
• Tell one person you trust. The NHS notes that many people who manage their trich say talking about it led to less pulling.

Our guide to eyebrow and eyelash makeup, microblading and false lashes goes through the options. If you also pull your lashes, our guide to pulling out your eyelashes covers what’s different there.

When should I get help for eyebrow pulling?

Get support if pulling upsets you, takes up your time or affects your life, or if you’ve tried to stop and can’t. You don’t need to wait until your brows are gone.

Many doctors and therapists have never worked with someone who pulls. Everyone in our directory has told us they understand trichotillomania and already help people who pull, in person or online. You can search the directory. Our guide to finding someone who understands trich explains what to ask on a first call.

If you’re a parent reading this for your child, start with The Parent’s Guide to Trichotillomania: understanding what your child is going through.

If you’re feeling very low or hopeless, please talk to someone today.

In an emergency, call 995 or go to your nearest emergency department.

• Samaritans of Singapore (SOS) — 1767 (24h)
• IMH Mental Health Helpline — 6389 2222

Questions people ask

Sources

1. Woods, D.W., Flessner, C.A., Franklin, M.E., Keuthen, N.J., Goodwin, R.D., Stein, D.J., Walther, M.R. & the Trichotillomania Learning Center-Scientific Advisory Board (2006). The Trichotillomania Impact Project (TIP): Exploring phenomenology, functional impairment, and treatment utilization. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 67(12), 1877–1888.
2. Chanasumon, N., Sriphojanart, T. & Suchonwanit, P. (2018). Therapeutic potential of bimatoprost for the treatment of eyebrow hypotrichosis. Drug Design, Development and Therapy, 12, 365–372.
3. Cleveland Clinic (2020). 5 ways to get overplucked eyebrows to grow back. Health Essentials.
4. McGuire, J.F., Ung, D., Selles, R.R., Rahman, O., Lewin, A.B., Murphy, T.K. & Storch, E.A. (2014). Treating trichotillomania: A meta-analysis of treatment effects and moderators for behavior therapy and serotonin reuptake inhibitors. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 58, 76–83.
5. Phillips, K.A. & Stein, D.J. (2025). Trichotillomania (hair-pulling disorder). MSD Manual Professional Edition.
6. Phillips, K.A. Diagnosing BDD. International OCD Foundation.
7. NHS. Trichotillomania (hair pulling disorder).