I chew on my fingernails. OK, lots of people do that. But

I’VE TAKEN TO CHEWING ON MY CUTICLES and even fingers to the point of drawing blood. That can’t be normal, right?

Right. It’s not normal. All of us have picked at a scab or bitten a nail or two, but when you start drawing blood, that’s extreme. Ruan has seen cases in which people poke and pick at themselves until they actually have holes in their skin. These patients look as if they’re on drugs, she says. “But it’s just anxiety-driven.”

According to Ruan, the fight- or-f light part of the brain is sort of broken. It is stuck in ‘ I must do something’ mode. You are agitated, but you aren’t actually in a situation that calls for running or fighting. You may be alone in your living room, but all that anxious energy has to do something, and the answer is to chew – madly.

Ruan suggests seeing a your doctor for an antidepressant “which will dial back the anxiety”. At the same time, that doctor can work with you on some behaviourmodification techniques.

But remember: anxiet y is self-perpetuating. It doesn’t stop until you begin to face whatever is causing it. So the sooner you get help, the sooner whatever’s eating you (that is, you) will get better. N or N Rating: 8 This is serious. You should seek help before things get worse.