Parent Tips: Hair

Claire is blessed with thick, straight hair, that requires almost no grooming other than being brushed in the morning and after baths. She normally has bangs and shoulder length hair. However, we've had to make modifications on two occasions.

• When Claire was three, she began pulling out her hair in patches. She worked her way around her entire head (except the front). We gave her a very short haircut, to help match the bald sections, and this helped her stop pulling her hair out. She seemed uninterested in pulling if the hair was too short, so she stopped. Other parents have told us similar stories, including shaving the head bald. In all cases, the habit went away once there was no more long hair to pull. Claire hasn't done it since.
• When Claire was 6 1/2, she started sucking and chewing on the hair on the sides of her head. After several weeks of trying to get her to stop, we cut her hair on the side, leaving it long on in the back. The habit stopped, but we still keep it layered around her face so she won't be tempted to start up again.