I pick off my nail polish when anxiety is around! Julie

More quotes from readers on the topic:

I am always rubbing and picking at my skin. Whether just out of the shower or a day later. Always twitching. Meds or just bipolar not sure.

I dislike mornings period but I struggle showering in the mornings but do it. It’s the only thing that wakes me up.

I feel like it’s a chore. I feel like there is not enough time in the day for it, and that I am on the go in my head and in my world that, this can take a pass, or that I can do it later, and as long as I don’t smell me, then it’s ok. 

It’s a conversation I have with myself all day long and I struggle with teeth brushing. Something about it, is just super hard (I DO IT) it’s just super hard no matter if I’m healthy or if I’m sick.

MY ANSWER:  Physical changes in hygiene, nail biting, nail picking, skin picking, eyebrow twisting and many, many other behaviors are NORMAL in mental illness. They are a sign we are in a mood swing. I believe in writing them down on my Health Cards and using them as a tool to see if I am ill. For example, I ALWAYS pick at my chin when I am psychotic. I scratch an invisible itch! Hygiene is not one of my issues, but I absolutely can not fix my hair when I am depressed or anxious.

When it is more than bipolar disorder….

Bipolar disorder is episodic. This means that our physical picking symptoms will only be around during a specific mood swing that we can label as depression, mania, anxiety or psychosis for example. If the behaviors are bipolar disorder related, they will END when the mood swing ends. For example, I never pick of my nail polish unless I am having symptoms. It’s not a habit.

Symptoms that are continual, especially lack of hygiene are often a sign of a different illness than bipolar disorder. One way I help parents with getting a correct diagnosis for a child is asking about behaviors that are continual. Schizophrenia for example often has consistent lack of hygiene symptoms as compared to those that are episodic due to bipolar.

Julie 

Further reading:  My book Take Charge of Bipolar Disorder helps with diagnosing. If you feel you have something more than bipolar disorder, as I do writing down your symptoms is crucial. I have schizoaffective disorder. This means that I have bipolar disorder and a psychotic disorder.  I am a strong believer in specific diagnoses. I find them helpful. For a complete symptom list, I use my Health Cards Treatment System for Bipolar Disorder.

Habitual skin picking, hair picking and other psychical habits can be a sign of …..

Trichotillomania (trik-o-til-o-MAY-nee-uh), also called hair–pulling disorder, is a mental disorder that involves recurrent, irresistible urges to pull out hair from your scalp, eyebrows or other areas of your body, despite trying to stop.

I like the workbooks from New Harbinger Publishing on this topic. Many of our picking and scratching symptoms are due to anxiety and might be a separate diagnosis of OCD and anxiety.