My Trichotillomania Story: Overcoming Challenges by Creating Natural Skin & Hair Products

At PERL, we believe that skincare is more than a routine—it's a self-care ritual that nurtures both your skin and your soul. Our innovative, customisable products are designed to enhance skin health while promoting mental well-being, making every step of your skincare routine a moment of peace and empowerment. This belief is deeply rooted in my personal journey with trichotillomania and the creation of our all-natural Nourishing Lash Oil and Stimulating Hair Oil.

 

Here's my story of struggling with trichotillomania

Throughout my whole teenage and adult life, I’ve struggled with my mental health and anxiety. For me, my anxiety causes me to obsessively pick out my lashes and eyebrows, as I struggle with trichotillomania, an OCD hair-pulling disorder.

In times of particular stress – exam season, overwhelmed at work or going through a breakup (we’ve all been there!), my trichotillomania worsened leading to me picking large gaps, or sometimes all my eyelashes out all together.

Over the years I’ve tried so many methods to help stop the pulling, or to make myself feel more confident in my appearance once I’d had a big picking spell. Some things helped to distract me like fidget toys or ways to keep my hands busy. While I found that replacing my lost lashes with extensions or enhancing what little lashes I had left with LVL treatments ultimately led to me picking more as they irritated me. I find when a lash feels ‘different’ and bothers me I end up twisting and touching it until I eventually pull it out.

I tried to use serums to help grow my lashes, which worked well at first. After some time I began to notice some nasty side effects – irritation, changes to skin and eye colour, darkening and fat loss around the eyes.

Read more about the Ugly Truth About Lash Serums in our blog post.

I knew I needed some kind of natural solution to help grow my lashes once I’d picked them all out, as serums, extensions and LVLs were definitely not a solution that worked for me.

 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by PERL | Waterless Skincare (@perlcosmetics)

The Birth of PERL Cosmetics: From Passion to Innovation

PERL Cosmetics was born from my passion for skincare and my love for science. I created waterless skincare in the form of customisable clay masks and facial oils.

After 2 years of running the business, I began to struggle. My sales had dropped and I was really grappling with my sense of purpose. My trichotillomania was at an all time high with all the stress and anxiety, so I embarked on a passion project to create a natural alternative to serums to try and grow my lashes and eyebrows long and strong.

Determined to find a solution that worked for me, I harnessed the power of plant seed oils to create a blend that strengthens and lengthens hairs without the harmful side effects of traditional lash serums.

My natural lash oil ingredients:

• Castor Oil - Known for its nourishing properties, castor oil contains ricinoleic acid, which may help promote hair growth. It can moisturize and strengthen the eyelashes, reducing breakage and encouraging them to appear thicker and fuller.
• Argan Oil - High in vitamin E and fatty acids, argan oil can nourish and hydrate the eyelashes, making them softer and less prone to damage.
• Pumpkin Seed Oil - Rich in vitamins and minerals, pumpkin seed oil can provide essential nutrients to the eyelashes, helping to support their health and improve their appearance.

 

From conception, to our sell out launch

We launched our Nourishing Lash Oil in the summer of 2023, and it sold out within seven hours!

I was absolutely blown away by the support shown, and by how you loved the product just as much as I did. This product quickly became our best-seller, loved by thousands and selling out countless times.

 

Understanding Trichotillomania

Over the past years I’ve done a lot of research into trichotillomania in a mission to understand more about myself.

It’s a condition characterised by an irresistible urge to pull out your own hair, leading to noticeable hair loss and emotional distress. Most commonly sufferers will pull out the hair on their scalp, eyebrows or eyelashes, the struggle is not just physical but emotional too, involving feelings of shame, frustration, and anxiety.

My personal battle with this condition inspired me to create products that offer safe, effective solutions for hair regrowth and maintenance, without the negative side effects of traditional treatments.

If you are a fellow sufferer, I would love to hear about your experience. Reach out to isobel@perlcosmetics.com

 

Listening to Our Community

Our journey didn’t just stop with creating our Nourishing Lash Oil. Feedback from our loyal customers led us to new horizons, with social media comments and customer feedback revealing amazing results when the lash oil was used on the hairline, inspiring me to develop a hair oil. After months of research, development, and testing, we introduced a formula that stimulates the scalp, encouraging growth and restoring hair’s strength and shine – our Stimulating Hair Oil was born.

Read more about the journey of bringing out the Hair Oil in our blog post.

 

 

Skincare as a Self-Care Ritual

My personal experiences with mental health challenges underscored the importance of creating a brand that nurtures both skin and mind. For me, skincare routines provided moments of peace and stability, inspiring me to craft products that offer the same sense of calm and well-being to others.

 

The Impact of Community Support

One of the most rewarding aspects of this journey has been the incredible support and feedback from our community. Hearing from customers who have experienced transformative results and newfound confidence is what drives us to continue innovating and improving. Your stories inspire us to push the boundaries of what skincare can achieve, and we are endlessly grateful for your trust and encouragement. Together, we are creating a community that values self-care, natural beauty, and mental well-being.

 

Join the PERL Family

Inspired by my own journey with mental health challenges and trichotillomania, I created PERL to bring joy and confidence back into your skincare routine. We invite you to discover our range of products, each designed with love and science, to support your journey towards better skin and a peaceful mind.

 

Together, let’s make skincare a beautiful, empowering ritual.