My Love-Hate Relationship with Tweezers

This week, I’m getting a little personal. As I process through my feelings about my trichotillomania, I’ve been struggling with the relationship I have with my tweezers. If anyone else has had similar experiences to mine, please feel free to reach out. I’m always learning and growing, and would love to hear your story! 

For the majority of my hair-pulling life, I’ve been a pull-with-my-fingers kinda gal. Within the past couple of years things have changed, and my tweezers have become a central part of my hair-pulling. 

If you’ve been following my blog, you’ll know I am a firm believer of accepting the entirety of my trichotillomania - the good, the bad, and the ugly. I do not define myself by my hair-pulling or the hairs I’ve pulled. 

Lately, I’ve been feeling like my relationship with my tweezers has become a bit toxic.

Because I use my tweezers for more than just trichotillomania-related hair-pulling, my tweezers and I have developed somewhat of a love-hate relationship. 

This time last year, I had 5 tweezers across my apartment, my car, and my purse. It was guaranteed that anywhere I was, my tweezers would be. If I lost one of my tweezers or one became too blunt, I would feel naked and lost. I would immediately start planning my next trip to the store to buy a new pair. I didn’t necessary have the urge to pull constantly, but I felt like I needed to have the ability to pull constantly. I was growing dependent on my tweezers, and that felt dangerous to me. 

I made some changes to my life. I threw away all but 1 pair of tweezers. This pair is not allowed to travel with me throughout the day (i.e. can’t be in my purse or my car). This pair is in a drawer, so it’s not as easily accessible.

These changes have helped. Yes, I still pull, and I still pull with my tweezers. But, I no longer feel the same level of dependency on my tweezers throughout the day. They no longer follow me around as a constant reminder that I pull my hair out. 

Once again, if anyone else has a similar experience with their tweezers or a different hair-pulling device, please message me or comment below! I would love to know how you navigate a healthy mindset toward your trichotillomania and your tweezers.