AS picking at the skin around his nails - Autism Spectrum Message Board

Charliesmom · 03-04-2004, 05:19 AM

I need help with this. My son, Charlie, has been picking at the skin around his nails--particularly the thumbs--and making them sore enough to actually complain about it.

He doesn't like bandaids, so that doesn't work. I suspect a lot of it is going on at school because if he starts it at home, I just have to tell him to stop when he starts it at home. He's also biting his nails pretty badly.

Ok, I'm a nail technician but my normal "tactics" don't work on this one. I need help on it.

Any ideas please?
Thank you, Carol

princessputter · 03-04-2004, 07:00 PM

Im not sure how old charlie is.. but its sounds like an oral stim. and his hands are always readly available...best tactic i can come up with is..redirecting him.. by giving him something to put in his mouth...maybe tic tacs.. having him brush his teeth.... im not sure what ya can do during school time...or what they would allow.. olny other thing i can think of .. is maybe if u put lotion on his hands.. b 4 school and when hes home.. he wont bite or chew cuz of the taste.. good luck

cazajacks · 03-06-2004, 10:44 AM

Hi my 11 yr old has Austism and does exactly the same,her fingers are so sore she actually comes and tells me how they hurt and tries to deny that she's picking at them it is so obvious. I have told her over a thousand times not to do it but this does not work
The only thing that sometimes helps her to stop it is as she has a terrible phobia of needles and blood i have told her all about whitlows and that she will cause one by picking at her skin and then she will have to go to the doc and have it lanced, this really frightened her and helps for a while. They seem to forget though and start doing it all over again. The worse time for us was when she came home from school again with sore fingers and when we looked she had actually got a pencil sharpner and sharpened off all her fingre nails on one hand, she was in absolute agony but again the next day she went and did another finger???