I know OCD is a lyme sx,what about compulsive hair pulling? I cut a clients hair that had a patch the size of my hand from my palm to the tips of my fingers where she had compulsively pulled on it until it was about 1"-2" long in that area and missing in some.
I'm thinking it's a compulsion so it can be lyme related, she said she has no other health problems . . . what do you all think?
Thanks, Curley
Posted by lymielauren28 (Member # 13742) on :
I definately think it can be. I started compulsively pulling out my eyelashes in the fifth grade and now I hardly have any! I always wonder...have I had Lyme all this time, and didn't know it until a couple of years ago? Who knows, but anything's possible.
Lauren
Posted by hokie (Member # 14720) on :
This is called trichotillomania. Certainly some people with Lyme may become so anxious that they hair pull, but if this were the only symptom I would not bet on it. In all likelihood, this particular condition will end up having multiple causes... different for different people depending on their genetic makeup, toxic load of chemicals, physiological sensitivity, immune system functioning, and exposure to various bacteria and/or viruses. I may have left out several factors that we are not aware of at this point in time.
Posted by Ocean (Member # 3496) on :
Lauren, My sister started pulling her eyelashes/eyebrows out in 4th or 5th grade. She eventually stopped. She doesn't have Lyme symptoms although has had depression, and some anxiety. She's never been tested for Lyme though and she and the rest of my family think Lyme is really 'rare'. Until I got my positive WB, they kept saying that I just needed to find a good counselor and I would be fine, ugh!
take care, Ocean
Posted by bejoy (Member # 11129) on :
Yes, in my opinion. I know a child who did this to the point of huge bald patches.
His mother strongly fit a clinical diagnosis for late stage lyme, before I knew what it was, and he fit all the criteria for being congenital.
Posted by Curley911 (Member # 2205) on :
Thank you for all of your helpful replies.
Everyone seemed to have some kind of connect the dots answer, I would be curious how much more of this I could find if I kept looking.
It's hard to convince people to check things out but if I had something extremely compelling I would feel more comfortable approaching this person.