Third year overcomes condition which made her tear hair out until she was bald

A History of Art third year who became addicted to tearing her hair out after being bullied at school has embraced her baldness and found love.

Kerry Gallagher, who lives in Clarendon Park area, has suffered from trichotillomania – a rare condition that compels her to rip chunks of hair out – for a decade after years of bullying at her school.

The condition left the Leicester student, now 20, completely bald from the age of just ten.

Until recently she hid her naked head underneath hats and wigs, but now she is bearing her baldness and has seen her confidence soar.

Kerry told The Tab: “We were on holiday when I started to pull out strands of hair, and my mum was finding chunks everywhere. She even pointed out that I was going bald.

“At the time we thought nothing of it. Plus, my parents aren’t really internet savvy so there wasn’t anywhere for them to educate themselves on what I was doing, or why I was doing it.”

Kerry, 20, has embraced her baldness

Kerry said her condition was triggered by bullies, but also claims a lack of pastoral support made her feel even more isolated.

She said: “Around GCSE’s was when it became a big problem. I could see people questioning what was going on. And it was a nightmare. At one point a guy asked me if I had cancer. I just told him it was stress. I felt embarrassed to tell the truth.

“My teachers would approach me and ask me what was going on, I’d say something stupid like ‘It’s a new haircut’, but no one followed it up.

“I was left to do my own thing. No one really offered further help. It was unprofessional for them to ask me personally what was going on – especially as they did so in front of other students.”

Kerry started to pull her hair out at aged ten

Kerry suffered in silence for years until her parents finally sought medical help.

“I saw a psychologist who said there was nothing I could do and that it was a bad habit that I needed to get over. Of course, because she was a professional, my parents took that advice and further relayed it to me – which didn’t help at all. I didn’t feel like I had anyone to talk to.

“All they would say is: ‘Just resist the urge, you need to just get over it’.”

Kerry used Google to find out more about her symptoms and self-diagnosed herself with Trichotillomania. After further research she joined a few online chat rooms and found many others who also suffered from the disorder.

“I felt like I could get things off my chest and had found a place where people understood me,” she added.

Kerry wore wigs for years before deciding to embrace her baldness

As part of a fresh start at university, Kerry decided to completely shave her head:

“I just thought ‘I’m going to start again’. It was the best decision I’ve ever made.

“I started to wear wigs. It was exciting and fun to try out different colours and people stopped looking at me funny.

“Finally, I could enjoy not having to worry about pulling or feeling the need to. I felt liberated.”

Kerry feels ‘liberated’ after bearing her bald head

Kerry added her parents also have a better understanding of her condition after researching trichotillomania on the internet.

“My mum’s started doing her own reading into it and she’s a lot more supportive about it now. She used to be funny, and almost embarrassed for me.

“I’m quite lucky, because my family are really supportive. I’ve read comments from other sufferers saying their family and friends call them freaks.”

But Kerry credits her boyfriend of four months, Jake Douglas, for helping her to accept her condition and feel beautiful.

Kerry and hair boyfriend Jake

She added: “I asked him if he had a problem with me shaving my head. He said ‘of course not, I love you as a person’.

“I never feel uncomfortable around him. He’d notice my hair growing and encourage me, make me feel good about myself. But he also wouldn’t criticise me if I did pull it out.

“He noticed it was going to take work from all areas of my life. He’s so supportive.”

Kerry first told someone about her condition by writing a note on a piece of paper in school. Now she blogs about her experiences and hopes to raise awareness about trichotillomania and the emotional effects it has on sufferers.

She said: “I wanted to make it so that people don’t feel alone. Even if they just read it and don’t reply. But if it helps them in someway – that’s all I want.

“In general, people really need to be more aware of mental disorders. They need to understand the stigma attached to what they say, and how they could be indirectly insulting a person suffering with a mental disorder.”