Mari's Site

Here's My Friend Lynn. She's been on the JK Diet and her hair's growing back. She sent this pic to me and I want to share it. She looks fabulous!  Go Lynn!

This is Kristen! Isn't she lovely? This young woman found the JK Diet possible by adapting it to fit her needs and still she was able to put her wig in the closet and wear a special hairdo for her Homecoming Celebration.

Kristen is proof that it can be done!

Kristen's Story:

Hi, my name is Kristen. I am 16 years old and I have Trichotillomania (TTM). I have had TTM all of my life, even as an infant. It all started when one day when I was less than 6 months old. My mom noticed that I was grabbing at my hair. She thought that this behavior was unusual but she didn't know what to do. I just didn't stop pulling my hair. So, my mom cut my hair very short. I tried pulling at nothing for awhile, but I became tired of that. So, I stopped pulling. I successfully stopped for about 5 years. Then, when I was six, I was reintroduced to TTM, but in a new area. My cousin showed me that if you pulled an eyelash, there was a "cool white-thingy" on the end. This is what sparked TTM back into my life.

I remember looking around the room in first grade at everyone's eyelashes and wishing I could stop pulling mine. Once again, my parents tried everything. Once there were no more eyelashes to pull out, I started pulling eyebrows. One year, I had no eyebrows for picture day so my mom penciled them in. I went to several psychologists and took various types of medications. Everything only made my TTM worse. By the time I was nine, I was pulling at my hair again. In fourth grade, I started seeing a wonderful psychologist who recommended I take no medicine but just have things that distracted me from pulling. I had to think of ideas myself or they wouldn't work. For instance, my mom suggested pulling doll hair, but that didn't work. But I tried pulling feathers out of a pillow, on my own, and that distracted me! I had several other tactics that helped curb my urges. I had almost all of my hair back, so I stopped seeing my new psychologist. But as soon as I stopped seeing him, I started pulling again. I was too embarrassed to go back to him and tell him I had failed once again. So I saw different psychologists, but it just wasn't the same.

In 7th grade, I started communicating with other people who had TTM. (By 6th grade I had pulled out about 3/4 of my hair and was wearing a wig) Several of them found success with the JK diet. I decided to try it. Well, I was on the diet a total of 3 days. It was too stressful for me seeing all my friends eat candy and drink pop at lunch. So, I pretty much gave up on ever finding a cure for my TTM.

The Spring of ninth grade changed my life. One day my mom just said, out of the blue, "Kristen, I think you should try the JK diet again." I exploded in angry tears at her. I told her that for 15 years, I've tried and tried to stop pulling but nothing worked. I also said that if I had to choose between sugar and hair, I would honestly choose sugar. After that, my mom just dropped the whole issue. But the thought kept eating at me; this was ONE thing I hadn't given a good chance. What if? What if it worked? I imagined the day I would walk into school and everyone would just stare, because my hair was so beautiful. So, I decided to try it. Of course, I tried to hide it from my mom so she wouldn't know that I thought she was right. :)

My first pull-free day was May 23rd, 4 days after I had started the diet. I couldn't believe it. If I had held on one more day in 7th grade, would I have had hair possibly up to 2 years sooner? The idea ate inside of me. But that was the past, there was nothing I could do about it. After that, I had 4 wonderful months of pull-free days. I started seeing my old psychologist from the 4th grade. And when I started the diet, I was ecstatic. I told my best friend Sarah about it and she was just as excited as me. And she knew the importance of moral support even more than I did. So, she volunteered and insisted on going on a "mini" JK Diet just to help me. She gave up pop, chocolate, and her two favorite foods: pop tarts and iced tea just for me. We struggled together. The thought that I have such a wonderful best friend brings tears to my eyes. Every once and awhile we go on "sneak-cheats".    I only cheat when I will constantly be around people for 24 hours; I never pull if someone else is in the room. My family is also wonderful. They buy sugar-free chocolate, and ice-cream, and cookies so I can feel just like I have the real thing. Of course, it's not the same as a Kit-Kat, but it does help tame the cravings. But most of all, what has gotten me through my 16 years of TTM is my relationship with my Savior. He knows all of my pain; He went through worse. This is what has kept me going.

Everyone who has TTM needs support. Even people without TTM are a ton of help to me. My youth group, for example, won't let me have a more than one glass of pop at an outing because they know about my hair pulling. Otherwise, I could drink a whole two liter, pull for hours, and have to start over.

I remember praying when I was little (6 or 7) every night. I would say, "Dear God, please take away my TTM. And if you don't want to right now, that's ok, just please let me have hair for my 16th birthday."

My 16^th birthday was on October 14th (which was also the day of my school's formal homecoming) and for the first time since I was six, I had a full head of hair and a full set of eyelashes. My dream came true! When I walked into the room it seemed as if all eyes were on me. I received so many compliments that night.

"Kristen you're hair is sooo cute short!"

" I love your haircut-it's so pretty!"

" You look so grown up!"

In the end, I choose hair over sugar. And I just remember: prayer is so powerful. God will answer our prayers in time. Trichotillomania has taught me to be a more patient and understanding person, and THERE IS A REASON YOU HAVE TTM.

Once, a close friend said, "Don't you just HATE having TTM? I mean, it must be so frustrating."

Well, it is frustrating, but in a weird way, it is also rewarding. It gives you something to work towards. And you meet so many wonderful people who also have TTM. I know I will always battle TTM, and that's OK. Right now, I have a dime-sized bald spot on the back of my head, thanks to one too many cups of Sprite. But that's ok; that's a minor setback. I just want to let anyone know that they are free to e-mail me, ESPECIALLY teenagers, with any questions.

Thanks for reading!

Kristen.

Email Kristen!

Laura's Story:

I've had some people ask me about my success so far.  I sure hope that maybe it will help someone out there who needs some encouragement.   I don't even know if I have overcome TTM (let's hope it IS possible).  But over 3 months ago, JK posted something that really got me thinking.  It was about a woman who over three years ago saw his JK Diet on the web, decided to go off peanuts and all peanut products, and has been pull-free ever since. That really inspired me and I decided to give it a try.

I am now more than 3 months pull-free.  That's right!  And just thrilled about it!  I have not pulled out a single hair.  In fact, it is starting to hurt when I do my grooming (plucking unsightly hairs).  There have been two or three times when the "habit" of TTM has caught my hands playing in my eyebrows and lashes, but no urges, no yanking, no bald spots!  Almost every part of my face and scalp has grown in thickly except my crown, which is darkening with fuzz. Miraculous in my opinion, seeing as how I have pulled every day of my life from some part of my body since I was about 9.   I don't know what to think of it or  how long it will last, but I have great hopes that removing peanuts from my diet may have turned this TTM from a roaring lion into a little gnat that occasionally buzzes in my ear and can be swatted away.    Whatever your situation may be, keep trying to find what works for you, even if it can just reduce the pulling it will be worth it!  I wish you all the very best!

Laura P.

Amanda, "The JK Diet Queen", (Amanda's from South Africa) says:

"My name is Amanda and I've been on the JK Diet since September of 1997.  It changed my life and made my Trichotillomania controllable for the first time in 21 years!  Without the diet, I don't have much control at all.  Within a day of cutting out sugar, I felt a difference.  (I used to be a sugar junkie, so it must have been a shock to my body when I stopped it!)  After 3 weeks I said to my husband, "Is THIS how normal people feel?  Not being chased around by urges the whole day?"  Well, the diet has helped me become PPF (practically pull free).  I only had one big slip one night, and after investigating the causes, I found that I've been eating too many little bits of wrong foods.  Once I sorted that out, went back to eating properly, I had much more control again. With the JK Diet, I'm 99% urge free, which to me, is much more important than being pull free. I hate having those urges! I find when I have eaten some of the bad foods, it feels like my 'touch-senses' become more alive.  Normally I am able to touch my hair without much of a problem.  However, when I have eaten incorrectly, it is as if every hair I touch is a coarse, kinky one and I obviously want to pull those.  It also feels as if I see grey hair more easily - they just stand out more when I have eaten the bad foods. I just strongly encourage everyone to try the diet.  If you don't, you may be missing out on the solution for your Trichotillomania - the one that you've been searching for your whole life."

Amanda's Web Page - Click Here!

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