01/27/2026
If you’ve been struggling with BFRBs and/or OCD, it’s common for behaviors like skin picking, hair pulling, nail biting, washing, checking, and more, to happen outside of conscious awareness. It doesn’t mean that there’s something wrong with your brain, when you do anything for long enough, it doesn’t require as much mental energy, allowing your brain to focus on other things.
One of the first steps in treatment is making the subconscious conscious. Self monitoring - tracking the behaviors when they occur, and mindfulness training help to build conscious awareness of the behaviors you’re trying to change.
When looking for treatment for a BFRB and/or OCD (they commonly co-occur) It’s important to seek out licensed mental health providers who offer Habit Reversal Training (HRT) or Comprehensive Model for Behavioral Treatment of BFRBs (COMB) for BFRBs and Exposure and Response Prevention (EXRP) for OCD.