Hair pulling, skin picking, nail biting—living with a body-focused repetitive disorder (BFRB) is no easy business...
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“Acceptance + mindfulness + fidgets. I don’t think I could have stopped [hair] pulling without all three of these. Once I got a jump start on the acceptance part, I learned that fidgets played a big role in the recovery of many, so I slowly built up a collection of hand candy. I keep some fidgets in my car, on the back of my couch, in my nightstand, and at other trouble spots in my house.
The Keen [bracelet by HabitAware] was next.... it played a huge role in my recovery for two reasons: awareness and tracking. I didn’t realize how automatic my pulling was until I had the bracelets catch me every time. And I hate to track, as valuable as it is. But Keen has a little button on it that you can push when you do perform your behavior and you can look at the summary whenever you’re ready. With Keen I can track my behavior with minimal disruption to my life.” —Laura, 32
"From my personal experience, I found the greatest success with talk therapy in combination with a habit-reversal bracelet. I use one by HabitAware that is specifically for people with BFRBs and gives off a vibration when certain hand motions and movements are detected. Since my pulling happens subconsciously, this helped me become more aware of when it was happening. That, mixed with other techniques I’ve learned to notice the behavior and course correct, has helped me a lot."
BFRBs aren't just bad habits that can be broken by sheer power of will— long-term treatment consists of identifying and treating the root cause of the behaviors, and even then, it's not guaranteed that they will stop. Many individuals suffering with BFRBs find themselves subconsciously repeating the behaviors, making it all that more difficult to combat them in the day-to-day.
At 17 years old, Aneela Idnani was struggling with the loss of her father. Over time, she developed a mental health condition known as Trichotillomania, a compulsion to unknowingly pull out one’s hair as a self-soothing mechanism.
Not sure which size is right for you?
It's important that Keen has a snug fit on your wrist. Here's a quick guide to help you decide which bracelet size to order:
Small/Medium
Fits kids and adults with small-medium wrists
min: 5.25 inches (13.3 cm)
max: 7.50 inches (19.0 cm)
Large
Fits adults with large wrists
min: 6.15 inches (15.6 cm)
max: 8.50 inches (21.6 cm)
Small/Medium
Fits kids and adults with small-medium wrists
min: 5.1 inches (13.0 cm)
max: 6.8 inches (17.2 cm)
Medium/Large
Fits adults with medium-large wrists
min: 6.3 inches (16.0 cm)
max: 8.2 inches (20.8 cm)