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Lip picker needs help - wedding coming up!
Since going to uni and having a really horrendous time in first term I have picked the skin from my lips. That was 2009!
My lips are quite big and everybody envies my Cupid's bow so I get annoyed that I destroy my best feature but once you pick and it scabs up I have to get rid of the scab - massive vicious circle!!!
I haven't seen a doctor for help, I had counselling for the original problem but now it's just a terrible habit. Can anyone recommend any lip balms that can help healing quicker or any tips to stop the picking?
I get married in 19 weeks and I have to stop in time for my lips to heal and the scars to fade away or it'll look terrible in the photos!
I've had to wear dark lipstick to work because I got fed up of colleagues pointing out my lips were bleeding!
Help! Tips! Anything!
February 26, 2014
The only thing that works for my lips is changing my nails. The way I pick my lips is running the edge of my fingernail over them until it catches any slight roughness or snag, then using my fingernail to peel at any skin i can loosen-- like a sticker.
I discovered that if i don't have thin, stiff nails, i can't pick my lips. So i have found two solutions.
1) get those big, thick, acrylic fake nails. They are too blunt to catch a snag on my lips. You have to tell the manicurist that's what you want because nowadays it's not stylish to have thick nails, but tell them you like it that way.
2) if you dont like having fake nails, clip your nails to their shortest possible length, then file and file and file away at the tops until the nail underneath is paper thin and flimsy. The problem with this is that it takes a bunch of maintenance to keep my nails that thin, and it makes my nails look really ragged and ugly. But i'd rather have ragged nails.
Even with these two solutions, sometimes I'll still break down and use tweezers. But overall that's much more controllable, i can stop myself from doing it and it happens much less frequently. Whereas if i have nails, i will be picking my lips ALL DAY.
Also--
3) No matter what, make sure you always have chapstick. I put on chapstick like every 5 minutes. Any time i feel an urge to start touching my lips and feeling around for loose skin, i put on chapstick instead. It seems to satisfy the same compulsion, somewhat. Unfortunately, your lips do indeed get 'addicted to chapstick' so i have to have some by my bedside at night, and constantly in my pocket. Oh well. The kind i use is blistex medicated, the dark green color.
I hope this helps.