Hair Pulling - 2 year old

Hi everyone,


I wanted to check if anyone has any advise re: hair pulling. Our 2 year old has developed a habit of twirling her hair around her fingers and pulling it so hard that it comes out in clumps. The habit seems to have gotten worse since her little sister arrived 5 months ago.

I went in to pick her up this morning and there was clumps of her hair all over her bed. I am very worried about her as she seems to now have bald patches.


*I dote on her and there is lots of one on one time so I don't think it's an attention seeking habit.


Would love some advise on how I can stop this habit.


Thank you,


G.

hair pulling could be a sign of anxiety and stress. are you able to think back to when it first started? do you notice anything else that's changed in her behavior other than hair pulling?


even the doctor can't help you much since he/she can't be there to observe ur daughter on a day to day basis.

you'll need to observe her and make notes on the relative severity of her hair pulling. also record her daily activities along with that. then u may try to see if there's any pattern to her hair pulling. For example, you might notice she's pulling her hair more on the day before she needs to attend her swimming lesson. then u can then start to investigate around the swim lesson. just an example, but u see what i'm getting at?


also, she might not know she's doing it herself. so try not to go into too much details and try to stop her utnil u know the underlying cuase. u can gently move her hand or distract her, but dun make her feel bad about it.

Thank you - that makes sense. She pulls when she is tired, sick or bored. She has always twirled it but the pulling has become far worse over the last few months. I was really shocked by how much hair was in her bed this morning - not single strands but literal clumps.


We have made an appointment with the pediatrician today - she has a sty which needs to be checked. Maybe he might be able to give us some suggestions on how we can stop it.

This seems comparable if more severe than our daughter's habit of putting her fingers in her mouth. She does it when stressed/frightened/intimidated. We keep a watchful eye and gently tell her not to do it when she does. As she has gotten older, we have also explained why she shouldn't (impolite and unhygienic).


I agree with the above that you shouldn't make her feel bad about it. Stop the behavior when you see it but don't make a fuss. It took weeks for our daughter's fingers to stop going in her mouth all the time. Now it still happens, but rarely.


I also agree that looking for the underlying cause is most important. I see it as a sign that she is a bit scared or shy. While we don't pander to her fears, we can at least distract.

Dear all,


Can you tell me any resources or good pediatrician (cantonese speaking)? My daughter has the habit of pulling her hairs and I feel very frustrated. Dont know how can I help her.