Picking at your cuticles: the causes and how to break the habit

If you want to stop picking your cuticles, it works best to tackle two things at once: the skin, which should stay smooth and supple so that as few dry edges as possible form for you to pull at, and the moments when your fingers drift to the edge of your nail almost by themselves. If the skin at a nail becomes inflamed, or if you cannot stop despite many attempts, get medical advice.

Where cuticle picking comes from

Picking can start with just a small rough spot, such as a dry edge beside the nail or a hangnail, which Cleveland Clinic describes as a piece of dry or damaged skin that sticks up along the edge of a nail (Cleveland Clinic on hangnails). Among the common causes of hangnails, the clinic lists very dry skin, frequent handwashing, harsh soaps and cleaning products, cold weather and wind, and also picking at or chewing your nails and cuticles, because habits like these can tear the skin around the nails and leave new hangnails behind.

The second trigger has less to do with the skin than with the situation: in an article by Cleveland Clinic, the preventive medicine physician Sandra Darling gives the example of picking at a hangnail or loose skin around your nails because you feel stressed, after which the picking makes things worse and a cycle begins (Cleveland Clinic on skin picking). According to the NHS, the UK's health service, most people pick at their skin from time to time, and among the possible triggers of skin picking disorder it names boredom, stress and anxiety (the NHS on skin picking disorder).

What picking does to your cuticles and nails

According to Cleveland Clinic, the cuticle is a thick layer of skin cells along the nail fold at the base of the nail, which sticks to the nail plate and protects against germs and infection, and the clinic considers it better to leave it alone (Cleveland Clinic on nail anatomy). Cleveland Clinic also explains that picking at your cuticles or biting your nails can cause tiny cracks in the nail or small cuts in the skin through which bacteria can get in, and this is how a nail inflammation known as paronychia can develop (Cleveland Clinic on paronychia).

The habit can show on the nail itself as well, because according to the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD), the professional association of dermatologists in the US, grooves and ridges in the centre of your thumbnail can be a sign that you have got into the habit of picking at or pushing back the cuticles on your thumbs. A dermatologist may then be able to help you break the habit so that healthy nails can grow out (the AAD on nail changes).

How to stop picking at dry cuticles: cream, oil and a small file

Cleveland Clinic advises moisturising your hands, because this helps prevent the dryness and small cracks that can lead to hangnails, and putting lotion on your nail fold and cuticles too if your skin is dry. If your cuticles are rough or scaly, dermatologists also recommend moisturising them, according to the AAD, which names petroleum jelly at bedtime as an inexpensive way to soften rough, dry cuticles and cuticle oil as another good option (the AAD on dip powder manicures).

For skin picking disorder, the NHS advises caring for your skin when you get the urge to pick, for example by applying moisturiser, so it helps to keep a small tube of hand cream or a little bottle of nail oil in your handbag or on your desk.

For the nail itself, a small file belongs in the kit, because the AAD advises keeping your nails shaped and free of snags by filing them with an emery board (the AAD's tips for healthy nails), and with a file in your bag you can smooth a torn nail edge straight away instead of picking at it. A flap of skin that sticks up, on the other hand, is best trimmed close to its base with a clean nail clipper rather than pulled off, as described in the article Torn cuticles and hangnails.

Do not cut the cuticle itself, though, because according to Cleveland Clinic cutting or forcefully pushing back your cuticles can damage the skin around the nail and cause hangnails, which means new edges for your fingers to catch on. How to care for your cuticles instead is explained in the article Cutting your cuticles or not.

Recognising your triggers and giving your hands something else to do

One of the signs of skin picking disorder the NHS lists is that you do not always realise you are picking your skin, which is why the first step is to pay attention to when and where it happens. Among the things the NHS suggests you can try yourself are these:

• keep your hands busy, for example by squeezing a soft ball or putting on gloves,
• work out when and where you pick most often and avoid those triggers where you can,
• resist the urge a little longer each time,
• tell other people so that they can help you notice when you are picking,
• keep your nails short and do not leave things like tweezers or pins within easy reach.

If it happens while you are on the phone or in front of the TV in the evening, for example, keep a soft ball or your hand cream right there. Sandra Darling also recommends regular mindfulness meditation, because it can help you recognise the urge to pick when it comes up, and suggests deliberately doing something else in that moment, such as going for a walk. If you bite your nails as well, you will find the AAD's tips on that in the article How to stop biting your nails.

When to see a doctor

Have the finger looked at by your GP or a dermatologist if

• the skin around the nail hurts, swells or is tender to the touch,
• the skin is red and warm or pus collects under it,
• a nail changes colour or lifts off the nail bed.

Cleveland Clinic advises getting medical advice if the symptoms are severe or do not go away after a few days, and straight away if you have diabetes or your body has difficulty fighting infections. This is why inflamed skin at a nail should be seen by a doctor before you book a manicure.

According to the NHS, you should also get medical advice if you cannot stop picking, if you are seriously damaging your skin by picking it, for example with wounds that are still open after a few days, or if the picking is causing you emotional distress or affecting your daily life. The NHS says the most common talking therapy offered for skin picking disorder is cognitive behavioural therapy, which can include what is called habit reversal training, a technique that helps you become more aware of your picking and what triggers it and replace it with a less harmful behaviour.

Manicure and hand care at Anni Nails in Meidling

At Anni Nails, Schönbrunner Straße 253, 1120 Vienna, Anastasia, who has been doing manicures for more than ten years, works with short nails and without aggressive techniques. "Manicure (File / Classic)" is a classic manicure with files and nail care, which takes about 50 minutes and costs €40. In a file manicure no scissors or nippers are used, and the cuticle is not cut but gently smoothed, shaped and cared for with cream and oil.

For dry and dehydrated hands there is "Paraffin Therapy for Hands" for €25 and about 30 minutes, with a gentle scrub, a moisturising serum, a paraffin mask without a hot bath and a nourishing cream mask.

Every treatment includes a personal consultation on caring for your nails and hands, where you can also ask how best to look after your cuticles at home. Please mention any allergies, skin conditions or health concerns before the treatment, as the studio's terms and conditions ask.

The studio is open Monday to Saturday from 9 am to 8 pm, and on Sundays on request. You will find all treatments with prices under Services and prices, and you can make an appointment online under Book an appointment.