Sara was over-medicated
I was 15, sitting in chemistry when I saw the girl in front of me pull out a hair and eat the end of it.
I thought to myself “what is she doing?” At the end of class I went up to her and asked her if it hurt and she said “Nope, I like it, it makes me forget about things”.
So there I was, little miss Sara, sitting in front of my lighted mirror at home going through the strands of the back of my hair, feeling them. They were so course and nasty. I pulled one out. It didn’t hurt, so I pulled another. Next thing I knew, there were hairs in my binder at school, on my pillow at home, eyelashes all over my desk in my room. I grew 2 BIG bald spots.
This went on for about 2 years. I went to Utah one summer for vacation to see my family and I was swimming with my cousin when she looked up and said ” is your hair falling out?” I got out of the pool and felt a breeze on my head. The bald spots had gotten so big that when water hit my head you could see where the hair parted and the scalp showed.
I went to my aunt’s house and she sat me down and said “I know your mother thinks it’s just a bad habit, but Sara my GOD that’s not a habit”. My mom took me to therapy. They diagnosed me With OCD, ADHD and very heavily angered outbursts : they thought I was Bipolar along with severe depression. The doctor thought that the root of all the anger stemmed from my dad who is my step dad. I was angry all the time. Everything made me angry. When I drove and someone hit the brakes in front of me for no reason I would get so mad I’d have to take another route. The doctor put me on 2 doses of Ritalin, Prozac, and 2000 ml of Neurotin a day.
I became a walking zombie. I was on so much medicine i didn’t even know who I was. I would get angry because I would go to cry and I couldn’t.
I came off the medication about 5 months ago when my tonsils were removed. The hair had grown back to about 4 inches long. I broke up with my boyfriend about 2 months ago and already I have the spot back again in full effect. Taking 2 Neurotin pills a day makes me feel better, although it hasn’t stopped the hair pulling. I urge anyone with this problem to get help. It not something that I could just stop on my own.
Sara