My Strange Addiction- Review

Okay- for any of you who missed it, tonight (well last night I guess, it's 1:12 AM) TLC premiered a new episode of their show "My Strange Addiction". It is a show that showcases exactly what the title suggests- people who have odd addictions and a glimpse into their struggles. As I said in my last post, I was apprehensive about watching it, fearing it would make people with Trich look like freaks or weirdos. After watching it, though, my main reaction is kind of a "whatever". It wasn't BAD by any means, but it sure wasn't good either.

Here's what happened (I took plenty of notes LOL!)
The half-hour long show was actually based on two different "strange addictions": hair pulling, and a girl who was addicted to buying shoes and thought they had feelings. That immediately left me unsettled. I pull my eyelashes due to a real medical disorder- I don't talk to my high heels. Also, I didn't like how Trich literally had less than 15 minutes of air-time. But anyway, the woman that's story was being shown was a young mother named Haley. She pulls the hair from her head and eats the follicles, and has been doing so since she was sixteen years old. She has a (I believe) two year old daughter that has never seen her without the bandanna she wears whenever she is in contact with people. Her story in the beginning was a bit bland, and really never explained the reasoning behind her Trich except for her saying "it was like this drive inside of me" and that her "obsession with hair led (her) to hair pulling." It also started out a bit negative in the sense that when the text went across the screen explaining her Trich, it said "and even worse- Haley also eats her hair follicles." Okay- we get it, Trich sucks. But I'd rather not see the dramatic wording, especially since people who don't understand that this is actually an incredibly difficult thing to overcome are watching. Haley was mostly shown in her bathroom, pulling out her hair in pain because she had pulled so much her skin was sore. That scene was replayed a lot and should have been filled with more Trich info.

In another scene, she was shown talking to her best friend about her Trich, and how she felt about how it affects her relationships with people. She says "it makes me feel self-conscious, it's humiliating." She proceeds to show her friend her nearly bald head for the first time, and that was one of the true emotional parts of the episode. We all know that revealing our Trichotillomania can be so difficult, and I can't imagine doing it on television. In the episode Haley also visits with a Trichotillomania specialist, Dr. David Wartel. He describes Trich as a habit, which I was wholeheartedly annoyed with. I don't consider it a habit, or an addiction for that matter. I fully believe that it is a disorder due to a chemical imbalance in my brain that I did not purposefully start doing. Everyone will have their opinions, but I think fact should be what is reported on TV. The doctor really gave no good information. No science behind Trich was described, and no real treatment options were given. His best advice to Haley was to "count EVERY single hair and keep them", in order for her to be aware of what she is doing to gain control over this. While this is decent advice to start over-coming Trich, it isn't something that will stop her pulling necessarily and not anything we haven't heard before. Haley did describe a bit of the isolation us Trichsters feel though, which was good to hear. She said "I try to keep myself away from people", and described the loneliness of the disorder a bit. That is something that we can all relate to and may give people without Trich a little sympathy.

The show ended with this update on Haley:
"Haley still struggles with pulling hair. She realizes it will be a life-long battle." Nothing unexpected. We all know it's a life-long battle even if you're years pull-free. Maybe if she had gotten some real help from that specialist. But irregardless, I really just wish that TLC had put more time and research into this issue. It could have been great, but it flopped and was pretty much unsatisfying to me at least. One thing I do want to say though is a congratulations to Haley for her bravery, even though TLC didn't do their part, she sure did hers. I know it must have been so difficult for her to put herself and her Trichotillomania out in that way, and speaking for everyone in the Trich community- we're proud of you girl!


That's all for tonight, folks. I hope everyone isda doing well, and I'd love any feedback you have on the episode!
Savannah


PS: Three days, I've only pulled nine lashes. It might not sound like much, but not too shabby for me when there's other lashes there!