Trichotillomania Support in Maine

Find a therapist in Maine 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 Portland to Bangor, for someone near you, or choose Online to see who works with people anywhere in Maine.

Find a therapist for trichotillomania in Maine

Maine is one of the most rural states in the country, with about 6 in 10 people living outside its cities. Most people who understand hair pulling work around Portland, Lewiston and Bangor, so many Mainers live hours from anyone who gets it. That gap is the reason this directory exists.

The directory includes therapists, counselors, psychologists, psychotherapists, CBT therapists, occupational therapists, hypnotherapists, EFT and NLP practitioners, and BFRB coaches. Every listing explains how that person works, whether they see people in person, online or both, and what they charge. Each one has a private contact form. From York County to Aroostook, many people listed also work online.

Open the full directory →

Frequently Asked Questions about Trichotillomania in Maine

Find a Therapist

How do I find a trichotillomania therapist near me in Maine?›

Search the directory by your city or town, or choose Online to see people who work with clients anywhere in Maine. Every listing shows how the person works, whether they see people in person or online, what they charge, and has a private contact form.

Can I have sessions online from anywhere in Maine?›

Yes. Anyone licensed in Maine can see you online wherever you live in the state. Maine has also joined agreements that let psychologists and counselors from many other states work with you online. Hypnotherapists, EFT practitioners and coaches aren’t bound by these rules.

How much does trichotillomania therapy cost in Maine?›

Private sessions usually cost $100–$200, with around $130–$160 typical. Prices tend to run higher around Portland. Every listing shows its own prices, and many people offer a free first call.

What kinds of help are there for hair pulling in Maine?›

Therapists, counselors, psychologists, CBT therapists, occupational therapists, hypnotherapists, EFT and NLP practitioners, and BFRB coaches all help people who pull. Different people find different things helpful. What they share here is that they understand hair pulling.

Do I need a doctor’s note or a diagnosis to get help in Maine?›

No. You can contact anyone listed in the directory directly, without a doctor’s note and without a diagnosis. Just say you pull your hair and want someone who understands trichotillomania.

My child pulls their hair. What do I do first?›

Stay steady and don’t tell them off; pressure and punishment reliably make pulling worse. Read The Parent’s Guide to Trichotillomania to understand what your child is going through. Then look for someone whose listing says they work with children and teens.

Are there trichotillomania support groups in Maine?›

We haven’t found an in-person group just for hair pulling in Maine yet. The IOCDF lists a free online BFRB group open to Mainers, and NAMI Maine runs peer groups statewide. If you run a group, tell us and we’ll list it for free.

How common is hair pulling in Maine?›

Trichotillomania affects about 1 in 50 people, which means thousands of people in Maine. It usually starts around ages 10–13 but can begin at any age. Most people who pull have never knowingly met another person who does. Read 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 note or a diagnosis. Use the private contact form on their listing and say what it is: “I pull my hair. I’m looking for someone who understands trichotillomania.” Plain words like that save you from being steered toward general stress work.

In Maine, most people who understand hair pulling practice in Greater Portland, Lewiston-Auburn, Augusta and Bangor. Down East, in the western mountains or up in The County, the nearest office can be a long drive, especially in winter. Online sessions mean you can work with someone who gets it from your own kitchen table.

Maine was among the first states to join agreements that let psychologists and counselors licensed in many other states work with you online. Hypnotherapists, EFT practitioners and coaches aren’t bound by those licensing rules.

If you have MaineCare or insurance through work, your plan can also connect you with someone. That route exists, and it often takes longer, and you usually can’t choose a person who understands hair pulling.

How to choose who to work with

People who pull find help from many directions: therapists, counselors, psychologists, hypnotherapists, EFT and NLP practitioners, occupational therapists and coaches. Different people find different things helpful. What matters is that the person understands hair pulling and that you feel at ease with them.

If you’d like to check a licensed clinician, Maine has a free public lookup. The Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation licenses psychologists, clinical professional counselors (LCPC), marriage and family therapists (LMFT) and clinical social workers (LCSW). You can search them all at Maine’s license lookup. Hypnotherapy, EFT, NLP and coaching aren’t licensed by the state. Practitioners in those fields 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?

Charities and groups in Maine

Maine has no charity just for hair pulling right now. These organizations can help today.

International OCD Foundation (IOCDF)

The main US home for BFRB support. BFRB stands for body-focused repetitive behavior, the group that includes hair pulling and skin picking. It runs online events and keeps a list of support groups, including groups for people who pull.

NAMI Maine

The state branch of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, based in Hallowell and working since 1984. It runs free peer-led groups across Maine for adults and for families, plus a helpline. It isn’t focused on hair pulling, but it helps with the anxiety and low mood that often come with it.

Intentional Peer Support Warmline

A free, statewide phone line for adults, open 24 hours a day at 1-866-771-9276. You talk with a trained peer who has lived experience of mental health struggles. It’s for when you need to talk, not only for emergencies.

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline

Call or text 988 at any time if distress turns into a crisis. In Maine, calls are answered by the Maine Crisis Line.

Support groups in Maine

We haven’t found an in-person group just for hair pulling in Maine yet. Most groups for people who pull meet online right now. Here’s what we’ve been able to confirm:

IOCDF online BFRB group: a free Zoom group for anyone with hair pulling or skin picking, plus family and friends. It meets twice a month and is listed on the IOCDF’s support group directory.
NAMI Maine groups: free peer-led groups in towns from Farmington to Blue Hill, plus family support groups. They aren’t specific to hair pulling, but they’re open to anyone living with a mental health condition.

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 a Maine group? Tell us and we’ll list it for free.

Focused and automatic pulling

Not all pulling looks the same. Many people describe two kinds, and most people who pull know both.

Automatic pulling happens outside awareness. A hand drifts to the scalp while reading, driving or scrolling a phone. Minutes later, there are hairs on the desk, and no memory of pulling them. People often say this is the part that scares them most.

Focused pulling is different. The person knows it’s happening. It often starts with an urge, a tension or a hair that feels “wrong”: coarse, kinked or out of place. Pulling it brings a moment of relief or satisfaction. Some people then look at the hair, run it along their lips or check the root.

The two can blend in a single day. Someone may pull without noticing in the car, then pull on purpose in front of the bathroom mirror that evening. Stress, boredom, tiredness and quiet time alone often set the scene for both.

None of this is a bad habit or a lack of willpower, and it isn’t self-harm. It’s how trichotillomania works for many people. Knowing which kind shows up, and when, can make the condition feel less mysterious. It also gives you words for a first conversation with someone who understands.

About this page

Sources: International OCD Foundation (including its BFRB support group listings); NAMI Maine (including its support group listings); Maine Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Behavioral Health (Intentional Peer Support Warmline and Maine Crisis Line); 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline; Maine Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation (license lookup); PSYPACT Commission and Counseling Compact Commission membership lists and Maine Revised Statutes Title 32, Chapter 147 (2026); US Census Bureau American Community Survey via America’s Health Rankings; published Maine therapy cost data (2026).

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 a Maine therapist or practitioner who works with trichotillomania?

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About Maine

Maine is the largest state in New England and the only US state that borders just one other state. It joined the Union in 1820 after separating from Massachusetts. Augusta is the capital, and Portland is the largest city. About 89% of the land is forest, and the coast runs for some 3,500 miles once you count its bays, inlets and islands.

Each region has its own character. Portland’s Old Port packs restaurants and shops into brick streets beside Casco Bay. Lewiston grew around its textile mills and is home to Bates College. Bangor, on the Penobscot River, is the gateway to the North Woods and Down East coast. Midcoast towns like Bath and Rockland have long shipbuilding and fishing histories. Aroostook County, known simply as The County, is potato-farming country along the Canadian border.

Attractions in Maine

People come to Maine for its rocky coast, its lighthouses and some of the wildest land in the eastern US. These five are spread across the state.

Acadia National Park, Mount Desert Island

Acadia was first protected as Sieur de Monts National Monument in 1916. It became Lafayette National Park in 1919, the first national park east of the Mississippi, and took the name Acadia in 1929. Cadillac Mountain’s pink granite summit rises over 1,500 feet. About 45 miles of carriage roads, built by John D. Rockefeller Jr. between 1913 and 1940, wind through the park.

Portland Head Light, Cape Elizabeth

Maine’s oldest lighthouse was first lit on January 10, 1791, with 16 whale-oil lamps. Construction was authorized under President George Washington. The 1891 keepers’ house is now a museum of lighthouse lenses and local history. It stands in Fort Williams Park, a 90-acre public park on the headland at the entrance to Portland Harbor.

Farnsworth Art Museum, Rockland

Lucy Farnsworth left her estate to found this museum, which opened in 1948. It focuses on Maine’s role in American art and holds one of the country’s largest collections of work by three generations of the Wyeth family. The museum also looks after the Olson House in nearby Cushing, the setting of Andrew Wyeth’s Christina’s World.

Baxter State Park, near Millinocket

Former governor Percival Baxter gave the first 6,000 acres, including Katahdin, to the people of Maine in 1931. He kept buying land for the park until 1962, on the condition that it stay “forever wild.” It now covers more than 209,000 acres. Katahdin, at 5,267 feet, is Maine’s highest peak and the northern end of the Appalachian Trail.

Maine Maritime Museum, Bath

The museum sits on 20 acres beside the Kennebec River. It includes the Percy & Small Shipyard, which launched the six-masted schooner Wyoming in 1909, the largest wooden sailing ship ever built. Original shipyard buildings still stand. A full-size metal outline of the Wyoming stretches across the lawn where she was built.