Calluses

Skin calloses frequently develop at the sites of repeated, compulsive picking. On the fingers the areas most affected tend to be the cuticles and nail folds.

Calluses also provide fresh temptation for the compulsive picker to dig in anew each time the callus forms. This is one aspect of the cause/effect spiral that habitual pickers feel trapped in — shame is another.

This is not to say that calluses aren’t useful in their own right. Callused skin — especially on the hands and feet — can be essential to certain repetitive activities:

• Playing stringed instruments (e.g. guitar, violin) develops calluses on the finger pads, which are essential for stamina
• Playing percussion or drums develops callused hands — where the sticks are gripped
• Dancers benefit from callused feet by being able to perform turns with less difficulty
• Certain repetitive manual tasks (e.g. playing video games, operating a lathe) require callused hands to perform without constant blistering or discomfort

The typical treatments to remove calluses are:

• Shaving them down with a pumice stone
• Treating with a topical solution, such as Salicylic acid
• Insulating the callused skin — the feet for instance — from the source of the repetitive friction causing the callus. The callus eventually goes away.