I may not have spelt this correctly but it is basically the term used for pulling out your own hair. A good friend of mine has confided that this is what she is doing - she has three children under 4 and is feeling extremely stressed and tired and she says she has developed this habit of finding a strand of hair, playing with it and actually pulling it out. What started as a silly habit has become a serious problem and she is getting very thin patches on her scalp which obviously makes her even more stressed and upset, vicious circle.
I don't know what to suggest - only her GP but what would he do?
Any experience of this out there you wise Mumsnetters. You were my first thought when I heard she needed help!