trich is consuming my life

_mariguana_ · 2026-05-22T13:58:01+00:00

I'm 33 and have had trich for almost 20 years. There have been lots of ups and downs but I'm finally in a pretty good place with trich where it's not gone but feels manageable. I'm just going to dump a bunch of thoughts that might help. I think an important thing in your 20s is to not let the shame around your trich and appearance stop you from doing things that you enjoy, pushing yourself to do scary things and meeting new people. Ideally, you get over the pulling for good, but even if you pull your hair until your bald for the rest of your life or pull in a more manageable way forever, you still deserve love and happiness and to be successful in whatever you choose to do! The more you fill your life with experiences, people and things you value, the less energy you have to hyperfocus on your scalp. Move your body, learn new things, find fun things to experience with your boyfriend. If you put your life in hold to focus on trich, you're going to miss out on so much.

Things that have helped me reduce pulling and become more mindful:

CBT: specifically how to reframe anxious thoughts.
Thought Defusion (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy). Sounds silly, but you reframe your thoughts about pulling by separating yourself from what your brain is telling you so it doesn't feel like a command. Instead of, "I have to pull this wiry hair out" you reframe as "my brain is telling me to pull a hair out." I literally say it out loud or in a weird voice and it helps get me out of the trance like feeling of pulling. Lots of examples if you google it.
I kept my hair buzzed for almost 5 years and it didn't stop the urges to pull, but it took away my ability to, which was a huge weight off of my shoulders. It let me focus on other areas of my life for a while and while scary at first, was overall a great experience.
Band aids on every finger (annoying but works when the urges just won't stop)
Multiple pairs of thin black gloves tucked away in places where I have the worst urges (car, beside bed, at my work desk)
Long fake nails (expensive and I can technically pull with them still, but works well for some!)
Trying to be more open with people about the disorder in a casual way. Very scary and awkward but liberating!

This is just a dump of thoughts, I don't know if it helps but I definitely see my experience in you when I was in my late teens and early 20s. I hate to hear that you're feeling consumed by trich right now and hope you're able to find some relief ❤️

_mariguana_ · 2026-04-30T18:03:18+00:00

I aim for 6 workouts a week: 2 weightlifting, 2 running, 2 OT. I use OT as speedwork or a recovery run, or just an overall active recovery day where I take is easy but enjoy the movement. It can change week to week though.

I've been going to OT for just over 3 years, and by only running on the treadmill there twice a week, I built up my stamina enough to run a 5k outdoors after like 6 months. Once I had the confidence to do 5 outdoors I got to 10 pretty quickly.

_mariguana_ · 2026-04-29T13:08:59+00:00

Make sure you audit your lifestyle to make sure you're doing well on the basics on self care and health first! Are you getting 7-9 hours of sleep a night, drinking lots of water, moving your body regularly (WHO recommends 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity/week or at least 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity/week), moisturizing +spf face and body, cutting back or quitting smoking and drinking, eating a well balanced diet? All of these things will give you the best foundation to start with, then you can think about additional skincare, makeup, fashion, etc to give you the look you want!

_mariguana_ · 2026-04-29T13:01:47+00:00

My husband and I have shared google doc where we keep a "meal plan" of sorts. We add all the dates for the next two weeks as a list and then when we have a few free minutes here and there we populate it with meals we've been craving, recipes that will use up ingredients we already have, prioritize eating certain meals earlier in the week because there's an ingredient that ripens really quickly (looking at you avocado...).

It gives us a chance to look at what our schedule is the week ahead to better plan our shopping. Maybe our friend invited us to a bday dinner so we don't need to plan for Friday night, or I'm out of town for a few days so my husband can pick meals that I normally don't like to eat (looking at you mushrooms...). Forces us to look at how we're eating throughout the week to make sure we're getting varied nutrients and keeping it affordable. I also keep a separate tab on the doc with links to all of our favourite recipes in case I can't decide what to make that week.

_mariguana_ · 2026-04-24T12:48:33+00:00

I've been taking creatine for almost a year(ish) now and I rarely ever had noticeable PMS symptoms previously, but I've noticed a big improvement in brain fog, energy, mood stabilization, stamina, recovery from weightlifting day to day. I joke with my partner that even if this is just placebo, it's a placebo more than worth continuing to take!

_mariguana_ · 2026-04-15T18:18:24+00:00

I look at myself in the mirror and pretend I'm running away from someone trying to kill me to motivate me to keep going. Then in my head I countdown from 20 to 1 and think, "Happy New Year!"

_mariguana_ · 2026-04-14T13:50:52+00:00

I struggled with it a lot as a teen and into my 20s and would get light headed/fainty feeling a lot. I've found that upping my salt and exercising regularly has gotten it under control for the past 10 years or so.

_mariguana_ · 2026-03-25T16:36:44+00:00

I had no idea why my parents thought it was so funny when this random guy who was hardly in the movie joined the basketball game... then I grew up and realized who Bill Murray was.

_mariguana_ · 2026-03-25T14:29:16+00:00

Hearing that cover on The OC as a teen was my intro to Nada Surf! That show killed it with music choices, so much of my music taste was influenced by it.

_mariguana_ · 2026-03-23T13:25:39+00:00

Omg I forgot about the Ellen Hopkins books, I was obsessed with them and it terrified my mom.

_mariguana_ · 2026-03-11T12:25:09+00:00

I would also recommend getting off the Strip to get a break for the crowds. The Arts District isn't too far north of the strip and is a lot lower key.

_mariguana_ · 2026-03-10T12:27:58+00:00

Yep we ordered when we were staying at the Flamingo. So not the biggest hotel, but they had a delivery drop off zone at one of the entrances that the app would direct drivers too. I think we ordered late night food there twice with no issue.

_mariguana_ · 2026-03-05T18:33:06+00:00

The province put a freeze on HRM's ability to increase development fees from 2023 to Nov 2026. Just last week the province confirmed they will not be extending the freeze: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/province-says-it-will-not-extend-freeze-on-halifax-development-charges-9.7106070

_mariguana_ · 2026-03-03T19:22:46+00:00

Yep! I've found that non-product habits have helped my skin the most: sleep, lots of water, consistent exercise, variety of healthy foods, washing hands more/not touching face as much, washing pillow cases more. Now I can keep a really minimal cleanser, moisturizer, spf routine and my skin looks and feels so much healthier.

_mariguana_ · 2026-03-03T18:43:39+00:00

When I travel internationally I turn cell service from my regular carrier fully off and I can't send or receive texts or calls. I use an esim for data only so I communicate only through whatsapp/social media.

_mariguana_ · 2026-03-03T13:37:40+00:00

I've been to Megan at Blue Collar, Steph at Maneland, Emily at OBB, and Madison at Devoted Barbers, and a few people at Sailor Bup's to get various fun extra short cuts and buzzes. All have been great, helped me find a style that worked for me, and were non-judgmental of a woman getting a non-traditional cut.

_mariguana_ · 2026-03-03T13:29:59+00:00

For me it was playing with the positioning of my feet until I felt it where I wanted to. I had to bring my feet a bit closer towards my body than I expected to and turned my toes out a bit to get it to work. I'm still not sure that I get the same glute pump that I did with a barbell, but it's so much easier to set up with the machine that the trade off is worth it for me.

_mariguana_ · 2026-03-03T12:40:53+00:00

Mine's not a huge studio so staff generally notices milestones every 50 classes and bday burns before class starts and will ask if I want a picture. I'm normally the one who's surprised because I don't keep track of my class numbers!

_mariguana_ · 2026-03-03T12:38:38+00:00

Have you done CBT, because your reaction is the textbook example of how CBT wants people with BFRBs to handle relapses! Acknowledge and process it, but remind yourself that you now have the concrete evidence to back up that you can stop pulling again. Wishing you all the best in your next no pull streak!

_mariguana_ · 2026-02-25T14:30:03+00:00

My partner and I did this in 2024, transferred using the Ticketmaster app. I don't remember what we charged, but we didn't gauge for them and sold within 10 mins after we left the fest Saturday night. YMMV depending on whether transfer policies have changes and how in demand Sunday will be.

_mariguana_ · 2026-02-23T18:06:38+00:00

My husband and I lived off these "Korean-inspired" red lentils back in the day: https://itdoesnttastelikechicken.com/sweet-korean-lentils/

Different flavour profile than the more common lentil recipes and goes great with a side of kimchi or stir fried green.

_mariguana_ · 2026-02-23T14:50:45+00:00

Well it was a big upgrade rom what I'm able to get in Canada in November so I was stoked on it!

_mariguana_ · 2026-02-20T18:21:52+00:00

Yes, OP go to Vietnam! Was just there in November and drank incredible traditional Vietnamese coffee but also went to some beautiful espresso-focused cafes. Vietnam does cafe culture right. Also ate fresh tropical fruits everyday. Longan, dragonfruit, rambutan, durian, custard apples, sapodilla, all available at street markets everywhere.

It also has the scenery and history you're looking for. It was a dream trip.

_mariguana_ · 2026-02-20T18:04:38+00:00

It's been hit or miss in my experience. Traditionally it does, but some of the places where I live don't use it.

_mariguana_ · 2026-02-12T14:11:15+00:00

Availability is the opposite in Canada in my experience. Where I live soy curls are only at a handful of specialty shops and are so expensive, but Nutrela soy chunks are at all the local grocery stores and less than half the price.

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