Here in Southern Ontario, winter weather seems to be making an early appearance. From the colder temperatures to the snow on the ground, we’re already facing challenges that we normally wouldn’t face until later in the season.
If you’re like me, that also includes looking at your hands, arms, legs, and just your skin in general and looking at the dry, scaly, flaking state of it before groaning. If you’re like me and you let it get dry enough, it’ll just give you more to pick at. Although I’ve fully accepted my skin picking disorder, I’m still a promoter of the less to pick at, the better.
With this in mind, I wanted to share with you all a few quick tips for managing your skin and therefore your dermatillomania in this kind of weather.
Use moisturizer/hand lotion
I used to hate moisturizer, and to some degree, I still don’t like the feel of it on my hands. It’s taken me way too many years to find one that I like that doesn’t make my skin feel like a grease trap. But I did finally find something that worked to actually help prevent dry skin for an extended period of time.
You’re probably thinking you’re going need to buy some super expensive, hypoallergenic thing that comes in a tiny tube, but that’s not the case for me and I hope it’s not the case for you either.
If you’re curious what I use, it’s Aveeno’s unscented lotion. I prefer the unscented stuff because it avoids the sting of perfume on cracked skin. I keep a tube of it at my desk at work and have a jar of it at home, too. I find it’s fast-absorbing and keeps my skin good to go for a long period of time. Keeping my skin hydrated like this prevents the cracked and scaly skin that can lead to something to pick at.
Use lip balm
I don’t go anywhere without a tube of lip balm in my pocket. My lips have a knack for drying and cracking no matter what time of the year it is, and that becomes especially true in the winter. I don’t know how many of you are also lip pickers, but any dryness is an immediate target of picking, and it sucks to pick at your lips because of how sensitive they are.
Lip balm keeps things good for me. Like the hand lotion, it’s about finding what works for you. I tend to stick with ChapStick or Blistex brands, but I know there are many out there. Hell, even if it’s those Lip Smacker ones that seem to be marketed for teenagers while you’re an adult, if it works, it works.
Wear long clothes
We often think of this as a barrier to the picking, but it’s also useful to think of it as a barrier to the elements in this case. Our skin is less likely to take a beating from the cold, dry weather if we keep it covered. Use it as an excuse to break out your favourite comfy sweaters and hoodies, cute mittens, and whatever else you might have. (Who doesn’t like cozy sweaters, am I right?)
As always, too, I recommend keeping other things nearby that will help with preventing picking, such as fidgets. I know it can maybe feel silly to have things like this with you—fidget toys, hand lotion, lip balm—that you need these sorts of things at all, but we have to do what we have to do. Part of managing skin picking disorder is shedding the shame that comes with our disordered and self-care behaviours alike.
No matter whether you use my tips or come up with strategies of your own, always remember the purpose for what you’re doing. Others might not understand it, but what’s important is that we’re taking care of ourselves the best as we can.
