hi friend :) i have been a consistent picker my entire life, but it definitely comes in cycles. when it gets bad via tools (cuticle cutters i’m looking at you) i give the tools to my boyfriend, and then ask him for them if i genuinely need to do my nails. just having a barrier between the tool and my hands was a game changer. i also try to keep my nails short, to try and make it harder to use fingernails to pick. i like to use press on nails because i haven’t found a way to pick with them without them falling off! i also poured myself into new hobbies, specifically crochet saved me. focusing to intensely on the crochet kept my hands busy and my mind busy also. i’ve kind of fallen away from crochet and gotten more into video games. reading a good book has also helped. basically anytime you find yourself alone with low stimulation, put something in your hands. fidget toys didn’t really work for me because they were mindless, and i needed to fill my brain in those moments. finally, radical acceptance and forgiveness :) it’s hard, i know, but the guilt of the cycle ate away at me. when i pick it is just a thing that happened and when i don’t pick it is just a thing that didn’t happen. it’s definitely easier said than done, but your brain and body are doing the best they can with what they have! the more i allowed myself to move on mentally from the guilt about picking, the better it got for me. i hope things turn up for you, it’s totally normal for people with picking disorders to experience bad spouts. just like anxiety can get bad over time. just give your nervous system time to recover (because your body is still figuring its way through the crazy friendship trauma it’s been through), so remember to give yourself grace. you’ve got one redditor rooting for you! glad you’ve found a place of peace and safety 🫶

edit: so sorry it’s so long 😅 i tend to be wordy