Exercise Helps Compulsive Picking

Physical Exercise is the key to health and well-being in this automated age. Without exercise in reasonable amounts, we risk becoming internet-tivo-iphone-xbox couch potatoes Exercise can also be an effective part of a treatment regimen for compulsive finger picking:

Exercise Distracts You from Your Fingers

A key tool in the “tool chest” of techniques for fighting impulse control disorder is distraction. Anything that can distract one from the impulse to pick, and instead provide productive outlet for nervous energy, is a positive step forward. But be careful not to replace your picking ritual with an obsessive-compulsive exercising ritual — this sometimes occurs (though more often to those with eating disorders).

Exercise Improves Brain Chemistry

For years scientists have known that exercise boost levels of the chemical serotonin in the brain. The benefits of balanced brain chemistry, though not completely understood, are universally believed to help reduce impulsive and obsessive behaviors like compulsive picking. In fact, the chemical change in the body that occurs with exercise has been likened to a “natural high” (e.g. “runner’s high”). Some believe that the spiritual appeal of alternative therapies like Yoga lay in the fact that their exercise routines stimulate the brain the same as any form of exercise

Exercise is Good For You!

Duh! I think we all realize that without the occasional (or preferably — frequent) healthy dose of aerobic or strengthening exercise we all become like a cooked potato — soft on the inside and outside. But it still bears repeating — its good for you! If implemented as one component of a comprehensive behavior modification or habit reversal training treatment plan, exercise will be good for your mental health and your physical health.