Guest guest Posted September 22, 2004 Report Share Posted September 22, 2004 > My 10 yo son with OCD constantly picks at his bottom lip. The child > psych. suggested 1)painting his fingernails with that bitter nail > polish (I can't find any) 2)keeping chapstick on him (impossible, > especially now that he's back in school) and 3) keeping his finger > nails short. He picks it so badly it bleeds, and his lower lip is > covered with scabs. It is worst when he is reading, doing homework, > watching shows, etc. Does anyone have a suggestion to help him > stop? He just gets furious when I give him verbal reminders, even > if it's just " lip " . Thank you! ------------- My son did this too - every fall and winter - and his lips were swollen and cracked from licking them so much. And, due to some SID issues (sensory integration disorder) he REFUSED to put chap stick on his lips. He also won't wear sunscreen in the summer or lotions on his skin of any kind. Medication wiped out the lip licking anxiety symptom, and luckily we haven't seen that in a year or so. He was on Luvox and Risperdal and then later, Strattera, and that seemed to knock it out. Good luck, Joni Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 22, 2004 Report Share Posted September 22, 2004 > My 10 yo son with OCD constantly picks at his bottom lip. The child > psych. suggested 1)painting his fingernails with that bitter nail > polish (I can't find any) 2)keeping chapstick on him (impossible, > especially now that he's back in school) and 3) keeping his finger > nails short. He picks it so badly it bleeds, and his lower lip is > covered with scabs. It is worst when he is reading, doing homework, > watching shows, etc. Does anyone have a suggestion to help him > stop? He just gets furious when I give him verbal reminders, even > if it's just " lip " . Thank you! ------------- My son did this too - every fall and winter - and his lips were swollen and cracked from licking them so much. And, due to some SID issues (sensory integration disorder) he REFUSED to put chap stick on his lips. He also won't wear sunscreen in the summer or lotions on his skin of any kind. Medication wiped out the lip licking anxiety symptom, and luckily we haven't seen that in a year or so. He was on Luvox and Risperdal and then later, Strattera, and that seemed to knock it out. Good luck, Joni Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 24, 2004 Report Share Posted September 24, 2004 Hi, you might have luck with habit reversal techniques. It does seem though that the picker him or herself has to want to minimize or stop the habit in order for anything to work very well. One thing that works fairly well for my 10-year-old daughter is a competing activity. We have a number of squishy and etc. small toys for her to fiddle with while watching TV and other times when my child is most likely to pick (she picks/bites nails.) Many times I just hand her one if I notice her biting. She also gets upset with remarks and reminders, and may bite more to spite me! I sometimes put cuticle cream on her fingers once she is asleep. That seems to help some especially in the winter when her cuticles may split and bleed and are very difficult to heal. You might put some heavy-duty lip balm on your son once he's asleep if he won't allow it while he's awake. Or, could he keep a chapstick in his pocket and apply when he feels the urge to pick? That would be another, healthier competing response to the urge to pick. Plus soft lips are less " provoking " of the urge to pick. My mother picked at her top lip, at times until it was raw and sore. I hadn't heard of anyone else doing this until your post. Kathy R. in Indiana ----- Original Message ----- > My 10 yo son with OCD constantly picks at his bottom lip. The child > psych. suggested 1)painting his fingernails with that bitter nail > polish (I can't find any) 2)keeping chapstick on him (impossible, > especially now that he's back in school) and 3) keeping his finger > nails short. He picks it so badly it bleeds, and his lower lip is > covered with scabs. It is worst when he is reading, doing homework, > watching shows, etc. Does anyone have a suggestion to help him > stop? He just gets furious when I give him verbal reminders, even > if it's just " lip " . Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 24, 2004 Report Share Posted September 24, 2004 Hi Kathy and all, I agree with your great advise. However, (13) will WAKE UP (and become Godzilla) if I put anything on his lips while he's sleeping. He's THAT sensitive to things touching his mouth or face! (this could be both the germ fear and a sensory issue) I've kissed him *on the cheek* while he's sleeping - and he'd suddenly wake up and start swinging at me in ANGER. Luckily, meds knocked this out for because I tried everything, including the best tasting, coolest and hippest lip balms on the market. I also tried rewards - no luck. Joni -Thanking the pharmacy fairy for medications! P.S. Husband is the same way. He won't wear lotions, sunscreen or topical ointments on his face (for example -a bug bite) and would rather suffer with a rash rather than put anything on his face! He covers this up by acting like it's not a guy thing or not " macho " to put something on his face. However, it's becoming clearer every day where is getting some of his issues. > Hi, you might have luck with habit reversal techniques. It does seem though > that the picker him or herself has to want to minimize or stop the habit in > order for anything to work very well. One thing that works fairly well for > my 10-year-old daughter is a competing activity. We have a number of > squishy and etc. small toys for her to fiddle with while watching TV and > other times when my child is most likely to pick (she picks/bites nails.) > Many times I just hand her one if I notice her biting. She also gets upset > with remarks and reminders, and may bite more to spite me! > > I sometimes put cuticle cream on her fingers once she is asleep. That seems > to help some especially in the winter when her cuticles may split and bleed > and are very difficult to heal. You might put some heavy-duty lip balm on > your son once he's asleep if he won't allow it while he's awake. Or, could > he keep a chapstick in his pocket and apply when he feels the urge to pick? > That would be another, healthier competing response to the urge to pick. > Plus soft lips are less " provoking " of the urge to pick. > > My mother picked at her top lip, at times until it was raw and sore. I > hadn't heard of anyone else doing this until your post. > > Kathy R. in Indiana > > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: " kequarles2004 " <kequarles@c...> > > > My 10 yo son with OCD constantly picks at his bottom lip. The child > > psych. suggested 1)painting his fingernails with that bitter nail > > polish (I can't find any) 2)keeping chapstick on him (impossible, > > especially now that he's back in school) and 3) keeping his finger > > nails short. He picks it so badly it bleeds, and his lower lip is > > covered with scabs. It is worst when he is reading, doing homework, > > watching shows, etc. Does anyone have a suggestion to help him > > stop? He just gets furious when I give him verbal reminders, even > > if it's just " lip " . Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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